Leander ( ) is a city in Williamson and Travis Counties, Texas, United States. Its population was 59,202 at the 2020 census and 87,511 at the 2024 census estimate. A suburb just north of Austin, and part of the metropolitan area, it was the fastest-growing city in the United States between 2018 and 2019.
History
thumb|Leander Presbyterian Church (built 1884)|left
Leander was established in 1882 on land sold by the Austin and Northwestern Railroad Co. to prospective citizens. The town was named in honor of Leander "Catfish" Brown, one of the railroad officials responsible for the completion of the line.
Tumlinson Fort, the first Anglo-American settlement in Williamson County, was established in early January 1836 at the headwaters of Brushy Creek, four miles south of present-day Leander. With the purpose of protecting settlers from attacks by the Comanche, a company of Texas Rangers occupied the post until late February, when the invasion of Santa Anna made abandoning the post necessary, soon after which it was burned by the Comanche.
The Webster Massacre occurred near present-day Leander in August 1839, when a party of about 13 settlers traveling westward through the area was <!-- party is singular --> attacked by a band of Comanche, and all but three were killed.
Near Leander, the Leanderthal Lady, a skeleton dating back 10,000 to 13,000 years, was discovered; the site was one of the earliest intact burials found in the United States.
In August and September 2011, destructive wildfires swept through two central Leander neighborhoods, burning a total of and destroying 26 homes.
Geography
Leander is located at the intersection of Ranch to Market Road 2243 and U.S. Route 183, about 22 miles northwest of downtown Austin. Georgetown lies five miles to the east on Route 2243.
According to the City of Leander, the city has a total area of , all land.
Demographics
2020 census
As of the 2020 census, Leander had a population of 59,202, 19,925 households, and 15,118 families. The population density was .
The median age was 35.6 years. 29.0% of residents were under the age of 18 and 9.3% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 97.1 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 94.2 males age 18 and over.
{| class="wikitable"
|+ Racial composition as of the 2020 census
! Race !! Number !! Percent
|-
| White || 37,244 || 62.9%
|-
| Black or African American || 3,008 || 5.1%
|-
| American Indian and Alaska Native || 464 || 0.8%
|-
| Asian || 5,948 || 10.0%
|-
| Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander || 77 || 0.1%
|-
| Some other race || 3,803 || 6.4%
|-
| Two or more races || 8,658 || 14.6%
|-
| Hispanic or Latino (of any race) || 13,087 || 22.1%
|}
2015–2019 American Community Survey
As of the 2015–2019 American Community Survey 5-year estimates, the median household income (in 2019 dollars) was $101,872, the per capita income was $36,893, and 4.2% of the population lived below the poverty line.
Education
thumb|Leander Public Library
Leander is the center of the Leander Independent School District. Schools in the district include Leander High School, Vista Ridge High School, Cedar Park High School, Charles Rouse High School, Vandegrift High School, Tom Glenn High School, Wiley Middle School (Bernice Knox Wiley Middle School), Stiles Middle School (Florence W. Stiles Middle School), Leander Middle School, Danielson Middle School, Henry Middle School, Running Brushy Middle School, Cedar Park Middle School, Canyon Ridge Middle school, Parkside Elementary School, Pleasant Hill Elementary School, Rutledge Elementary School, Whitestone Elementary School, Jim Plain Elementary School, and Block House Creek Elementary School, Winkley Elementary School, Reed Elementary School, Camacho Elementary (STEM) school, Bagdad Elementary School, and Monta Akin Elementary School.
Infrastructure
Transportation
thumb|CapMetro Rail Station
Leander is a jurisdiction member of the Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Capital Metro). The northern terminus for the Capital MetroRail Red Line is located at Leander Station and Park and Ride designed by McKinney York Architects, located on U.S. Highway 183 north of Ranch to Market Road 2243. Leander Station also has access to several express bus lines, and includes a park and ride facility with 600 parking spaces.
Notable people
- Logan Bearden, racing driver
- Nate Champion, notable in the Johnson County War
- Dan Janjigian, Olympian, author and management consultant
- Kyle Park, country music singer-songwriter
- Khiry Shelton, professional soccer player
- Ramesh Srivastava, lead singer of the band Voxtrot
- Paul Thompson, football player