Muenster ( ) is a city in western Cooke County, Texas, United States, along U.S. Route 82. The population was 1,536 at the 2020 census. Muenster is a primarily German-Texan city.
History
In 1887, Missouri–Kansas–Texas Railroad constructed a line from Gainesville to Henrietta that passed through the site that would become Muenster. The town was subsequently founded in 1889 by German Catholic settlers Carl and Emil Flusche, who invited other German Catholics to join them. The town was originally to be called "Westphalia", but since the name Westphalia, Texas, was already taken, Muenster was selected instead in honor of Münster, the capital of Westphalia, but these cities are not sister-cities.
Many residents still spoke German in day-to-day life up until the First World War, after which the language was no longer taught in the schools and steadily declined in use.
With more than 90% of the population German and Catholic, the city has preserved many German customs, and still produces traditional foods at the local meat market and Bäckerei. An annual festival in April, Germanfest, includes beer, BBQ, German food, music, and bike and footraces. A Christkindlmarkt is held each year on Thanksgiving weekend.
Catholicism was so important to the early settlers that they built a school before a church was ever established. That school, Sacred Heart Catholic School, still exists today (one of only three high schools in the Fort Worth Diocese), along with the public Muenster Independent School District.
Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , of which (0.14%) are covered by water.
Climate
The climate in this area is characterized by hot, humid summers and generally mild to cool winters. According to the Köppen climate classification, Muenster has a humid subtropical climate, Cfa on climate maps.
Demographics
2020 census
As of the 2020 census, Muenster had a population of 1,536 and a median age of 37.8 years; 26.0% of residents were under18 and 16.1% were 65 or older. There were 104.0 males for every 100 females, and 102.7 males for every 100 females 18 and over.
Of the 588 households in Muenster, 35.4% had children under 18 living in them, 53.9% were married-couple households, 18.5% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 23.1% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 27.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.
{| class="wikitable"
|+ Racial composition as of the 2020 census
! Race !! Number !! Percent
|-
| White || 1,362 || 88.7%
|-
| Black or African American || 5 || 0.3%
|-
| American Indian and Alaska Native || 23 || 1.5%
|-
| Asian || 5 || 0.3%
|-
| Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander || 0 || 0.0%
|-
| Some other race || 44 || 2.9%
|-
| Two or more races || 97 || 6.3%
|-
| Hispanic or Latino (of any race) || 99 || 6.4%
|}
2000 census
As of the census
- Dean L. Sicking, inventor and traffic safety researcher
- Drew Springer, District 30’s senator, lives in Muenster.