Nueces County, Texas

Nueces County ( ) is located in the southern part of the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2024 census, the population was 352,955, making it the 17th-most populous county in the state. The county seat is Corpus Christi, which is also the most populous city in the Nueces County, at 317,773 people, as of 2021. The county was formed in 1846 from portions of San Patricio County and organized the following year. It is named after the Nueces River, which marks the county's northwestern boundary with San Patricio County before emptying into its mouth at Nueces Bay north of the port of Corpus Christi. The county was officially created on April 18, 1846, with Texas only gaining control over the county after the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo.

The Indian tribes that lived in and raided the county were the Lipan Apache, Karankawa, Coahuiltecan, Kickapoo, and the Seminole. Relentless attacks from these tribes, along with its isolation and diseases, kept the counties population at a minimum in the counties beginning. The final recorded Indian raid in the county happened in April 1878, when Lipan Apache, Kickapoo, Seminole, Mexicans, and a white man briefly entered the county and onto ranches, before returning west to Laredo. Around this time, a band of Texas Rangers would clear out the outlaws that had embedded themselves into the Nueces Strip during the disputes between Texas and Mexico.

The county faced various trials and tribulations in its first few decades. It was only after the Civil War that the county began to see steady success, mainly due to Corpus Christi, which contributed value as a major shipping port. It borders the Gulf of Mexico, located about 210 miles southwest of Houston and 145 miles southeast from San Antonio. The elevation, in the county, ranges from sea level to about 180 feet above sea level. In the county, about 61 to 70 percent of the land is ideal farmland for many agricultural purposes.

|align-fn=center

|footnote=U.S. Decennial Census<br />1850–2010 2010

!Pop 2010

!% 2000

!% 2010

|White alone (NH)

|118,178

|111,870

|style='background: #ffffe6; |106,165

|37.68%

|32.88%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |30.06%

|Black or African American alone (NH)

|12,718

|12,178

|style='background: #ffffe6; |12,651

|4.05%

|3.58%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |3.58%

|Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)

|933

|882

|style='background: #ffffe6; |907

|0.30%

|0.26%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.26%

|Asian alone (NH)

|3,458

|5,495

|style='background: #ffffe6; |7,712

|1.10%

|1.62%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |2.18%

|Pacific Islander alone (NH)

|136

|209

|style='background: #ffffe6; |281

|0.04%

|0.06%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.08%

|Other Race alone (NH)

|308

|399

|style='background: #ffffe6; |1,264

|0.10%

|0.12%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.36%

|Mixed Race or Multiracial (NH)

|2,963

|2,897

|style='background: #ffffe6; |7,146

|0.94%

|0.85%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |2.02%

|Hispanic or Latino (any race)

|174,951

|206,293

|style='background: #ffffe6; |217,052

|55.78%

|60.63%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |61.46%

|Total

|313,645

|340,223

|style='background: #ffffe6; |353,178

|100.00%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |100.00%

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 353,178, and the median age was 37.2 years. 23.5% of residents were under the age of 18 and 15.6% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 98.3 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 96.2 males age 18 and over.

The racial makeup of the county was 54.2% White, 4.1% Black or African American, 0.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 2.3% Asian, 0.1% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 12.6% from some other race, and 25.9% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 61.5% of the population.

Around 93.7% of residents lived in urban areas, while 6.3% lived in rural areas.

There were 130,687 households in the county, of which 32.9% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 43.3% were married-couple households, 20.9% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 28.3% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 26.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. 313,645 people, 110,365 households, and 79,683 families resided in the county. The population density was . The 123,041 housing units averaged . The racial makeup of the county was 72.03% White, 4.24% African American, 0.64% Native American, 1.16% Asian, 0.07% Pacific Islander, 18.74% from other races, and 3.13% from two or more races. About 55.78% of the population was Hispanic or Latino of any race.

Of the 110,365 households, 36.30% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.80% were married couples living together, 15.30% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.80% were not families. About 22.60% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.90% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.79 and the average family size was 3.30.

In the county, the age distribution was 28.40% under the age of 18, 10.50% from 18 to 24, 28.90% from 25 to 44, 21.10% from 45 to 64, and 11.20% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females, there were 95.80 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.50 males. The largest perecentage of citizens is in the age group's 10–19, 20–29, and 30–39.

2024 American Community Survey estimates

As of the 2024 American Community Survey 1-Year Estimates, the median income for a household in Nueces County was $66,927, and it was $79,880 for a family. The per capita income for the county was $33,465. Approximately 15% of the population were below the poverty line, with 21% of them under age 18, 12.4% between the ages 18 to 64, and 15.6% of them were at age 65 or over.

Communities

Cities (multiple counties)

Aransas Pass (partly in San Patricio and Aransas Counties)
Corpus Christi (county seat) (San Patricio and Aransas Counties)
Ingleside (mostly in San Patricio County)
Portland (mostly in San Patricio County)

In the 2000 U.S. census, a portion of San Patricio was indicated as being in Nueces County. As of the 1990 U.S. census, the 2010 U.S. census, and the 2020 U.S. census, that particular area is indicated as being in San Patricio County.

Cities

Agua Dulce
Bishop
Driscoll
Petronila
Port Aransas
Robstown
Corpus Christi

Census-designated places

Banquete
La Paloma-Lost Creek
North San Pedro
Rancho Banquete
Sandy Hollow-Escondidas
Spring Gardens
Tierra Grande
Tierra Verde

Unincorporated communities

Chapman Ranch
Rabb
Violet

Education

School districts:

Agua Dulce Independent School District
Aransas Pass Independent School District
Banquete Independent School District
Bishop Consolidated Independent School District
Calallen Independent School District
Corpus Christi Independent School District
Driscoll Independent School District
Flour Bluff Independent School District
London Independent School District
Port Aransas Independent School District
Robstown Independent School District
Tuloso-Midway Independent School District
West Oso Independent School District

Del Mar College is the designated community college for all of Nueces County.

Politics

Historically, Nueces County leaned Democratic in presidential elections, though in recent years has narrowly voted Republican. Dwight D. Eisenhower in 1956 became the first Republican candidate to carry the county. Prior to that year, the only times Nueces County did not vote for the national Democratic candidate was in its first presidential election in 1848 for Whig Zachary Taylor, and in 1860, supporting Southern Democratic John C. Breckinridge. Since Eisenhower's election, the only other Republicans to carry the county in the 20th century were Richard Nixon in 1972 and Ronald Reagan in 1984. So far, Bill Clinton remains the last Democratic candidate to win Nueces County, having done so in 1996.

Since 2000, Nueces County has voted for every Republican presidential candidate, with only George W. Bush in 2004 and Donald Trump in 2024 having carried it by a double digit margin, with Bush's 56.8% of the vote also the highest for any Republican in the county's history. In 2016, Trump defeated Hillary Clinton in the county with a plurality of 48.6% to 47.1%, or 1,568 votes, the closest race since 1956.

Democratic strength is concentrated within the inland portion of the county, with particular strengths in center portion of Corpus Christi whereas neighborhoods that are predominately Hispanic and the city of Robstown. Republicans performed well in areas particularly in the suburbs of the city, North Padre Island and Port Aransas.

References

External links

Historic Nueces County materials, hosted by the Portal to Texas History.