Hale County

Hale County is on the Llano Estacado in northwest Texas, bounded on the east by Floyd County, on the south by Lubbock County, on the west by Lamb County, and on the north by Swisher and Castro counties. Its center point is at 34°05' north latitude and 101°50' west longitude, about forty miles north of Lubbock. The county was named for John C. Hale, who died at the battle of San Jacinto. Hale County covers 979 square miles of flat terrain, with fertile sandy and loamy soils and many playas; the elevation ranges from 3,200 to 3,600 feet above sea level. There is a considerable supply of underground water from the vast Ogallala Aquifer. Running Water Draw cuts southeastward across the county through Plainview, and Black Water Draw touches the southwestern part of the county. Hale County's average annual rainfall is 19.34 inches. The average minimum temperature in January is 26° F, and the average maximum in July is 93°; the growing season lasts 211 days. Hale County produces an average annual agricultural income of $160 million, 80 percent of which comes from cotton, corn, soybeans, sorghums, wheat, and vegetables; the remainder derives from beef cattle, swine, and sheep. In 1982 the county had 468,000 acres of irrigated land. Petroleum production in 1990 was more than 1,941,000 barrels; by January 1991 more than 148,177,000 barrels of oil had been pumped from Hale County lands since its discovery in 1946. Food processing and the manufacture of farm equipment generated $46,700,000 in 1991. The county's road network includes U.S. Highway 87 (Interstate 27), which runs north to south, and U.S. Highway 70, which runs west to east. The Santa Fe and the Fort Worth and Denver rail lines cross the county.

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