Ector County

Ector County, Texas

Ector County, Texas

Landscape view of oil fields across Ector County, Texas.
Photograph Credit: Robert Plocheck.
Ector County, Texas

Ector County, Texas

Ector County Coliseum in the City of Odessa, Texas. Photograph by Billy Hathorn.
Ector County, Texas

Ector County, Texas

Map of Ector County, Texas. Map Credit: Robert Plocheck.

Ector County is in West Texas on the lower shelf of the Great Plains and on the northern border of the Edwards Plateau, bounded on the north by Andrews County, on the west by Winkler County, on the east by Midland County, and on the south by Crane and Ward counties. The county's midpoint is 30°53' north latitude and 102°33' west longitude, about thirty miles southwest of Midland. The county was named for Mathew D. Ector, a Confederate general and Texas jurist. It covers 907 square miles of level to rolling land with elevations that vary from 2,500 to 3,300 feet above sea level. The annual rainfall is 13.77 inches. The average minimum temperature in January is 30° F; the average maximum in July is 96°. The county has a growing season of 217 days, though less than 1 per cent of the land is considered prime farmland. Ector County's geology is significant since the county is a major producer of petroleum products. Oil in the Permian Basin was formed in comparatively shallow reservoirs bound by Permian Age limestone. Above the oil a large gas cap formed, which in modern times provides the energy for producing the oil underneath, making the Permian Basin nearly ideal for oil and gas production. Over 35,897,000 barrels of oil were taken from Ector County lands in 1990; between 1926, when oil was first discovered in the county, and 1990 the county produced 2,726,524,140 barrels of petroleum, making it the second most productive oil county in Texas.

Impressive evidence of prehistoric Indian culture in the area that is now Ector County exists in the Blue Mountain pictographs, which depict various prehistoric hunting scenes. During the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries the area was within the range of Comanche hunters, but was not particularly attractive to them because of the region's limited water resources.

Continue Reading

John Leffler | © TSHA

Handbook of Texas Logo

Adapted from the official Handbook of Texas, a state encyclopedia developed by Texas State Historical Association (TSHA). It is an authoritative source of trusted historical records.

Currently Exists

Yes

Place type

Ector County is classified as a County

Altitude Range

2780 ft – 3360 ft

Size

Land area does not include water surface area, whereas total area does

  • Land Area: 897.7 mi²
  • Total Area: 901.8 mi²

Temperature

January mean minimum: 31.8°F
July mean maximum: 94.8°F

Rainfall, 2019

13.5 inches

Population Count, 2019

166,223

Civilian Labor Count, 2019

85,961

Unemployment, 2019

13.0%

Property Values, 2019

$13,657,911,921 USD

Per-Capita Income, 2019

$47,271 USD

Retail Sales, 2019

$4,121,972,221 USD

Wages, 2019

$1,332,179,998 USD

Ector County

Highlighted:
  • Ector County
Place Type Population (Year/Source) Currently Exists
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town 1,268 (2021) Yes
Town 228 (2021) Yes
Town
Town
Town
Town 20 (2009) Yes
Town 112,483 (2021) Yes
Town 41 (2009) Yes
Town 800 (2009) Yes
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town 31,927 (2021) Yes

Proud to call Texas home?

Put your name on the town, county, or lake of your choice.


Search Places »