Quay County () is a county in the state of New Mexico. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the population was 8,746. Its county seat is Tucumcari. The county was named for Pennsylvania senator Matthew Quay, who supported statehood for New Mexico. Its eastern border is the Texas state line, approximately 103.04 degrees west longitude.
History
Early history
Modern-day Quay County was once home to a massive inland sea, known as the Western Interior Seaway. Like the rest of New Mexico, Quay County has a strong paleontological history and dinosaur fossils have been found in the area.
The earliest known evidence of human activity dates back to roughly 9500 BC, when the Clovis culture emerged in the region. Around 900 AD, the Ancestral Puebloan culture emerged in the region, and is believed to have lasted until roughly 1400 AD. While settlement was largely in the Four Corners region of the state, artifacts have been discovered in Quay County as well, and the area is believed to have been a trade route or a temporary hunting site.
In 1926, U.S. Route 66 was established, quickly surpassing the railroad in terms of importance. Quay County was a major thoroughfare, and the population of the area boomed as the economy quickly shifted towards the service sector. By the 1950s, Tucumcari was referred to as "Little Las Vegas" and was one of the most important commercial centers of eastern New Mexico.
With the advent of the Interstate Highway System in the 1960s, Quay County quickly declined in importance as I-40 (which served only Tucumcari) replaced Route 66. The population of Quay County has since declined steadily, and it is now a rural area with only one large commercial center at Tucumcari.
Adjacent counties
- Union County - north
- Harding County - northwest
- San Miguel County - west
- Guadalupe County - west
- De Baca County - southwest
- Roosevelt County - south
- Curry County - south
- Deaf Smith County, Texas - southeast
- Oldham County, Texas - east
- Hartley County, Texas - northeast
Demographics
2020 census
As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 8,746. The median age was 47.5 years. 21.9% of residents were under the age of 18 and 26.1% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 96.5 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 94.3 males age 18 and over.
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;"
|+Quay County, New Mexico – Racial and ethnic composition<br><small></small>
!Race / Ethnicity <small>(NH = Non-Hispanic)</small>
!Pop 2000
!Pop 2010
!
!% 2000
!% 2010
!
|-
|White alone (NH)
|5,953
|4,847
|style='background: #ffffe6; |4,434
|58.62%
|53.61%
|style='background: #ffffe6; |50.70%
|-
|Black or African American alone (NH)
|78
|82
|style='background: #ffffe6; |89
|0.77%
|0.91%
|style='background: #ffffe6; |1.02%
|-
|Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)
|78
|69
|style='background: #ffffe6; |57
|0.77%
|0.76%
|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.65%
|-
|Asian alone (NH)
|81
|78
|style='background: #ffffe6; |48
|0.80%
|0.86%
|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.55%
|-
|Pacific Islander alone (NH)
|6
|4
|style='background: #ffffe6; |2
|0.06%
|0.04%
|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.02%
|-
|Other race alone (NH)
|4
|9
|style='background: #ffffe6; |36
|0.04%
|0.10%
|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.41%
|-
|Mixed race or Multiracial (NH)
|98
|118
|style='background: #ffffe6; |232
|0.97%
|1.31%
|style='background: #ffffe6; |2.65%
|-
|Hispanic or Latino (any race)
|3,857
|3,834
|style='background: #ffffe6; |3,848
|37.98%
|42.41%
|style='background: #ffffe6; |44.00%
|-
|Total
|10,155
|9,041
|style='background: #ffffe6; |8,746
|100.00%
|100.00%
|style='background: #ffffe6; |100.00%
|}
The racial makeup of the county was 70.7% White, 1.3% Black or African American, 1.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6% Asian, 0.1% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 11.5% from some other race, and 14.4% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 44.0% of the population.
59.7% of residents lived in urban areas, while 40.3% lived in rural areas.
There were 3,922 households in the county, of which 25.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them and 30.4% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. About 35.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 18.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The population density was . There were 5,569 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 86.1% white, 1.2% American Indian, 1.1% black or African American, 1.0% Asian, 7.2% from other races, and 3.4% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 42.4% of the population.
Of the 4,072 households, 26.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 43.5% were married couples living together, 12.7% had a female householder with no husband present, 38.6% were non-families, and 34.2% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.21 and the average family size was 2.79. The median age was 45.6 years.
2000 census
As of the 2000 census, there were 10,155 people, 4,201 households, and 2,844 families living in the county. The population density was . There were 5,664 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 82.09% White, 0.84% Black or African American, 1.27% Native American, 0.80% Asian, 0.15% Pacific Islander, 12.11% from other races, and 2.75% from two or more races. 37.98% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There were 4,201 households, out of which 28.90% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.10% were married couples living together, 12.00% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.30% were non-families. 28.90% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.80% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.37 and the average family size was 2.90.
In the county, the population was spread out, with 25.00% under the age of 18, 6.70% from 18 to 24, 23.30% from 25 to 44, 26.00% from 45 to 64, and 19.00% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females, there were 94.00 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.50 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $24,894, and the median income for a family was $30,362. Males had a median income of $24,801 versus $17,500 for females. The per capita income for the county was $14,938. About 15.70% of families and 20.90% of the population were below the poverty line, including 25.50% of those under age 18 and 15.80% of those age 65 or over.
Economy
Quay County has a declining economy once dominated by the agriculture and ranching sectors, which remain major employers to this day. In the 1920s, Quay County became an important railroad hub, but the rail industry has since disappeared from the county. The development of Route 66 and I-40 transformed the region into a service-based economy, and now the county's main economic sectors include logistics and service, concentrated around I-40 and Tucumcari, and ranching.
{| class="wikitable"
|+Quay County employment by industry
!Industry
!Percentage of employment
|-
|Education and healthcare
|21.7%
|-
|Entertainment and service
|21.3%
|-
|Retail
|10.2%
|-
|Professional and administrative
|7.9%
|-
|Public administration
|7.2%
|-
|Other
|7%
|-
|Construction
|6.4%
|-
|Agriculture and mining
|5.9%
|-
|Logistics and transportation
|5.3%
|-
|Finance and real estate
|3.2%
|-
|Manufacturing
|1.9%
|-
|Wholesale trade
|1.1%
|-
|Information
|0.7%
|}
Culture and media
Culture
As a rural town along Route 66, Quay County has long been associated with both traditional frontier culture and the 1950s-era road tripping culture that made it a boomtown. Tucumcari was the filming location for the western series Rawhide, and it was one of the major inspirations for the fictional town of Radiator Springs in the film Cars, and many of its events today are either Route 66 oriented or inspired by its earlier days as a Wild west railroad town. Major events and attractions include:
- Rawhide Days, an annual event that showcases the frontier culture of the area, including gunslinger performances and longhorn parades.
- The Quay County Sun, published in Tucumcari, is a subsidiary paper published by the Eastern New Mexico News.
Government and politics
Government
At the federal level, Quay County is represented in the United States Senate by Martin Heinrich and Ben Ray Luján, both Democrats. It is represented in the United States House of Representatives as part of New Mexico's 3rd congressional district by Democrat Teresa Leger Fernández. It is part of the New Mexico Senate's 7th and 8th districts, represented by Republican Pat Woods and Democrat Pete Campos, respectively. It is in the New Mexico House of Representatives's 67th district, represented by Republican Jack Chatfield. Judicially, it is in New Mexico's 10th Judicial District Court.
<!-- PresRow should be -->
Locally, Quay County is represented by a three-person board of commissioners and several county officials.
{| class="wikitable"
! colspan="2" |Office
!Name
!Party
|-
| bgcolor="red" |
|Commissioner
|Dallas Dowell
|Republican
|-
| bgcolor="red" |
|Commissioner
|Jerri Rush
|Republican
|-
| bgcolor="red" |
|Commissioner
|Brian Fortner
|Republican
|}
{| class="wikitable"
! colspan="2" |Office
!Name
!Party
|-
| bgcolor="blue" |
|County Clerk
|Veronica Manley
|Democratic
|-
| bgcolor="red" |
|Assessor
|Jefferson Byrd
|Republican
|-
| bgcolor="red" |
|Probate Judge
|Christina Wilson
|Republican
|-
| bgcolor="red" |
|Sheriff
|Dennis Garcia
|Republican
|-
| bgcolor="red" |
|Treasurer
|Theresa Lafferty
|Republican
|}
Politics
At formation, Quay County was part of a predominantly Southern Baptist region known as "Little Texas." As such, Quay County had much more in common with traditional Southern Democrats than it did with the more Catholic and Republican Spanish American regions in the west and north, which were much more Southeastern in culture. Quay County was thus a powerfully Democratic county until the 1950s, when it along with North and West Texas began slowly realigning towards Republicans. Quay remained a swing county until the 1960s but continued to vote more in align with Southern Democrats than the rest of New Mexico (in 1968, it was George Wallace's sixth strongest county in the state). It has since followed the southern trend of becoming powerfully Republican, and has given Republicans increasing margins since 2008.
Education
Primary education
School districts include:
- Grady Municipal Schools
- House Municipal Schools
- Logan Municipal Schools
- Melrose Municipal Schools
- San Jon Municipal Schools
- Tucumcari Public Schools
Community colleges
- Mesalands Community College
Transportation
Airports
Quay county has one airport, Tucumcari Municipal Airport. The airport is mainly for civil use.
Highways
Communities
City
- Tucumcari (county seat)
Villages
- House
- Logan
- San Jon
Census-designated place
- Nara Visa
Other communities
- Bard
- Endee
- Forrest
- Glenrio (partly in Deaf Smith County, Texas)
- McAlister
- Montoya
- Quay
- Wheatland
See also
- National Register of Historic Places listings in Quay County, New Mexico