Castroville, Texas

Castroville is a city in Medina County, Texas, United States. The population was 2,680 at the 2010 census. Prior to 1893, Castroville was the first county seat of Medina County. Castroville is known for its influential Alsatian-Texan architecture, people, and culture. Most Alsatians that came to Castroville spoke Alsatian (a dialect of German origin integrating Celtic, Yiddish, and French words). To say Castroville's ancestral influences are broadly French would not be true, as they are more strictly Alsatian, a culture and language still kept alive by its residents.

Castroville, Texas
Castroville City Hall
Seal
Nickname(s): 
The Little Alsace of Texas
Location of Castroville, Texas
Coordinates: 29°21′N 98°53′W
CountryUnited States
StateTexas
CountyMedina
IncorporatedJanuary 16, 1850[1]
Area
  Total2.91 sq mi (7.55 km2)
  Land2.88 sq mi (7.46 km2)
  Water0.03 sq mi (0.09 km2)
Elevation
758 ft (231 m)
Population
 (2010)
  Total2,680
  Estimate 
(2019)[3]
3,119
  Density1,082.61/sq mi (417.97/km2)
Time zoneUTC-6 (Central (CST))
  Summer (DST)UTC-5 (CDT)
ZIP codes
78009, 78023
Area code(s)830
FIPS code48-13312[4]
GNIS feature ID1353948[5]
Websitewww.castrovilletx.gov

History

Castroville was established in 1844 by Henri Castro, an empresario of the Republic of Texas, who brought several dozen European families to the area from Alsace and adjoining Baden to populate his land grant along the Medina River 20 miles (32 km) west of San Antonio. The first colonists disembarked at Galveston on January 9, 1843. They were taken by ship to Lavaca Bay and traveled overland to San Antonio, where they took shelter in abandoned buildings until the Texas Rangers were prepared to escort them to their land and protect them from hostile Indians. On September 2, 1844, the first colonists arrived at Castro's land grant on the Medina River.[6]

From 1849, Castroville, on the Medina River was a water stop on the San Antonio-El Paso Road and a stagecoach station on the San Antonio-El Paso Mail Line and San Antonio-San Diego Mail Line.

After a few hard years, the town and surrounding farms flourished; although for generations, the residents remained insular. In Castroville's first century, a visitor would be more likely to hear Alsatian—a dialect spoken in Europe before Standard German was prevalent—than English spoken in the town's homes, stores, and taverns. Modern Alsatian travelers noted that the dialect spoken in Castroville was more like that which was spoken in the 1840s. The descendants of the original settlers worked diligently to preserve their language, whose usage in Europe has been diminished by the political actions of France and Germany, especially since World War II.

The Steinbach Haus (originally built between 1618 and 1648 in Wahlbach, Alsace) was dismantled and reconstructed in Castroville in 1998. It was opened to the public in 2002.

Castroville is a sister city of Ensisheim (Alsace) in France.

Geography

Castroville is located at 29°21′N 98°53′W (29.3550, -98.8807).[7] This is 20 miles west of Downtown San Antonio.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 2.5 square miles (6.5 km2), of which, 2.5 square miles (6.5 km2) of it is land and 0.39% is covered with water.

Demographics

Historical population
CensusPop.
1850366
186045825.1%
187051512.4%
188073141.9%
1890679−7.1%
1950985
19601,50853.1%
19701,89325.5%
19801,821−3.8%
19902,15918.6%
20002,66423.4%
20102,6800.6%
2019 (est.)3,119[3]16.4%
U.S. Decennial Census[8]

As of the census[4] of 2010, 3,053 people resided in the city. The population density was 1,045.4 people per square mile (403.4/km2). There were 1,025 housing units at an average density of 402.2 per square mile (155.2/km2).[9]

Of the 941 households, 37.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 61.5% were married couples living together, 10.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 23.5% were not families. About 20.5% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.74 and the average family size was 3.17.

In the city, the population was distributed as 28.0% under the age of 18, 6.9% from 18 to 24, 27.7% from 25 to 44, 21.7% from 45 to 64, and 15.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were 97.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.3 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $42,308, and for a family was $51,007. Males had a median income of $35,625 versus $27,228 for females. The per capita income for the city was $20,615. About 5.4% of families and 9.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 11.9% of those under age 18 and 5.9% of those age 65 or over.

Education

The City of Castroville is served by the Medina Valley Independent School District and Saint Louis Catholic School (pre-k through 5th grade).

References

  1. Texas (1898). "The Laws of Texas 1822-1897: Austin's Colonization Law and Contract; Mexican Constitution of 1824; Federal Colonization Law; Colonization Laws of Coahuila and Texas; Colonization Law of State of Tamaulipas; Fredonian Declaration of Independence; Laws and Decrees, with Constitution of Coahuila and Texas; San Felipe Convention; Journals of the Consultation; Proceedings of the General Council; Goliad Declaration of Independence; Journals of the Convention at Washington; Ordinances and Decrees of the Consultation; Declaration of Independence; Constitution of the Republic; Laws, General and Special, of the Republic; Annexation Resolution of the United States; Ratification of the Same by Texas; Constitution of the United States; Constitutions of the State of Texas, with All the Laws, General and Special, Passed Thereunder, Including Ordinances, Decrees, and Resolutions, with the Constitution of the Confederate States and the Reconstruction Acts of Congress".
  2. "2019 U.S. Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved August 7, 2020.
  3. "Population and Housing Unit Estimates". United States Census Bureau. May 24, 2020. Retrieved May 27, 2020.
  4. "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
  5. "US Board on Geographic Names". United States Geological Survey. 2007-10-25. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
  6. Wolff, Linda (1999). Indianola and Matagorda Island 1837 - 1887. Austin, Texas: Eakin Press. p. 9. ISBN 1-57168-340-2.
  7. "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. 2011-02-12. Retrieved 2011-04-23.
  8. "Census of Population and Housing". Census.gov. Retrieved June 4, 2015.
  9. "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2006-03-15. Retrieved 2006-08-04.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
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