Selma is a city in Bexar, Comal, and Guadalupe counties in Texas, United States. It is part of the San Antonio metropolitan area. Its population was 10,952 at the 2020 census, up from 5,540 at the 2010 census. Selma was settled by German and Polish immigrants in the mid-1800s.
The Retama Park horse-racing track is located in Selma.
History
Selma was settled in 1847 by immigrants from several European countries. The name Selma is a traditional German feminine name. In 1849, the Harrison and Brown stagecoach stop was built in Selma to handle passengers and freight on the San Antonio to Austin stagecoach line. John Harrison and his wife Martha moved to Selma in 1852, and he became the first postmaster of the town when the post office opened in 1856. Harrison was also co-owner of the Harrison and McCulloch stage line, which ran a postal route through Selma. Harrison's house still stands by Cibolo Creek, where it was built and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
German and Polish immigrants constituted most of the next wave of immigrants who settled in the area. By 1885, the population was 145, and at the turn of the century, the population peaked at 600. The population went into a rapid decline, so much so that by 1906, the post office was closed. Selma's population dropped to 100 in 1940. The city incorporated in 1964 and has seen tremendous growth along the Interstate 35 corridor since 2000.
The Retama Racing Park opened in 1995, and The Forum, a 110-shop outdoor mall, opened in 2000. The old Harrison and Brown stagecoach stop was restored and rechristened the Selma Stage Stop, along with a visitor center and park.
Today, Selma is a bustling suburb of San Antonio, but it retains its German and European heritage in its name and in the descendants of Europeans who still call this town home.
Geography
Selma has territory in Guadalupe, Bexar and Comal Counties. The city center is located in northern Bexar County, but City Hall, at 9375 Corporate Drive, is located in Guadalupe County, across the border from the city center. The city is bordered by Schertz to the east, Universal City to the south, Live Oak to the southwest, and part of San Antonio to the northwest. The center of Selma is northeast of downtown San Antonio and southwest of New Braunfels.
- runs through the south-central part of the community, with access from exits 173 and 174.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , of which , or 0.09%, is covered by water.
|footnote=U.S. Decennial Census
|2020=10952
| align-fn = center
2020 census
As of the 2020 census, Selma had a population of 10,952. The median age was 33.8 years. 27.5% of residents were under the age of 18 and 8.8% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 94.5 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 91.3 males age 18 and over.
{| class="wikitable"
|+ Racial composition as of the 2020 census
! Race !! Number !! Percent
|-
| White || 5,615 || 51.3%
|-
| Black or African American || 1,308 || 11.9%
|-
| American Indian and Alaska Native || 90 || 0.8%
|-
| Asian || 529 || 4.8%
|-
| Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander || 46 || 0.4%
|-
| Some other race || 1,036 || 9.5%
|-
| Two or more races || 2,328 || 21.3%
|-
| Hispanic or Latino (of any race) || 4,426 || 40.4%
|}
100.0% of residents lived in urban areas, while 0.0% lived in rural areas.
There were 3,943 households in Selma, of which 45.4% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 54.0% were married-couple households, 15.5% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 23.4% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 19.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 4.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.<!--https://www.judsonisd.org/about-us/maps-boundaries provides school board districts, but is not providing specific attendance boundary maps that show where each place attends school--> Selma Elementary School is scheduled to open in 2025.
The portion in Comal County is zoned to the Comal Independent School District<!--UNI 14730-->. Zoned schools for that portion are:
- Garden Ridge Elementary School in Garden Ridge
- Danville Middle School
- Davenport High School
The portion in Guadalupe County is zoned to the Schertz-Cibolo-Universal City Independent School District<!--UNI 39480-->.
- In 2018 zoned elementary schools included Paschal Elementary and Schertz Elementary, Wilder Intermediate School, Corbett Junior High School, and Samuel Clemens High School.
Our Lady of Perpetual Help Catholic School, a school of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of San Antonio, is in Selma.
In popular culture
The town was famous as a speed trap as referenced in the Steve Earle song "Guitar Town". Texas Monthly published a feature on Selma in 1974, describing it as "the perfect speed trap".
Notable person
- Kenneth Raymond Fleenor, brigadier general in the U.S. Air Force; mayor of Selma from 1987 to 1994
See also
- List of municipalities in Texas