Arlington, Texas

Arlington is a city in Tarrant County, Texas (USA) within the Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington metropolitan area. As of the 2000 U.S. Census, the city population was 332,969 (though a July 1, 2004 estimate placed the city's population at 359,467). Arlington is the seventh-largest city in the state and the fifty-first largest city in the United States.

Arlington is home to the Texas Rangers, Ameriquest Field in Arlington, the theme parks Six Flags Over Texas and Hurricane Harbor, future home to the Dallas Cowboys' new stadium, and is approximately 12 miles east of Fort Worth and 20 miles west of Dallas. It is coterminous with Kennedale, Grand Prairie, Mansfield and Fort Worth. The city also completely surrounds the smaller communities of Dalworthington Gardens and Pantego.

History

White settlement in the Arlington area dates back at least to the 1840s. After the May 24, 1841 battle between General Edward H. Tarrant (Tarrant County is named for him) and Native Americans of the Village Creek settlement, a trading post was established at Marrow Bone Spring in present-day Arlington. The rich soil of the area attracted farmers, and several agriculture-related businesses were well established by the late nineteenth century.

The city was founded in 1875 and is named after General Robert E. Lee's Arlington House (in present-day Arlington County, Virginia). After the arrival of the railroad in 1876, Arlington grew as a cotton-ginning and farming center, and incorporated in 1884. The city could boast of water, electricity, natural gas, and telephone services by 1910, along with a public school system. By 1925 the population was estimated at 3,031, and it grew to over four thousand before World War II.

Large-scale industrialization began in 1954 with the arrival of a General Motors assembly plant. Automotive and aerospace development gave the city one of the nation's greatest population growth rates between 1950 and 1990. Arlington became one of the "boomburbs," the extremely fast-growing suburbs of the post-World War II era. U.S. Census Bureau population figures for the city tell the story: 7,692 (1950), 90,229 (1970), 261,721 (1990), and 359,467 (2004 estimate). Tom Vandergriff served as mayor from 1951 to 1977 during this period of explosive development. Six Flags Over Texas opened in Arlington in 1961, and in 1972 the Washington Senators baseball team relocated to Arlington and began play as the Texas Rangers.

Geography

Arlington is located at (32.705033, -97.122839).

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 256.5 km² (99.0 mi²). 248.2 km² (95.8 mi²) of it is land and 8.3 km² (3.2 mi²) of it (3.24%) is water.

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 332,969 people, 124,686 households, and 85,035 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,341.7/km² (3,475.0/mi²). There were 130,628 housing units at an average density of 526.4/km² (1,363.3/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 67.69% White, 13.73% Black or African American, 0.55% Native American, 6.01% Asian, 0.14% Pacific Islander, 8.94% from other races, and 2.94% from two or more races. 18.27% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 124,686 households out of which 38.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.6% were married couples living together, 11.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.8% were non-families. 24.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 3.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.65 and the average family size was 3.20.

In the city the population was spread out with 28.3% under the age of 18, 11.0% from 18 to 24, 35.7% from 25 to 44, 18.9% from 45 to 64, and 6.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 31 years. For every 100 females there were 100.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 98.2 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $47,622, and the median income for a family was $56,080. Males had a median income of $38,612 versus $29,339 for females. The per capita income for the city was $22,445. About 7.3% of families and 9.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 12.3% of those under age 18 and 6.4% of those age 65 or over. Average rents in Arlington in 2005 were $537 for a one bedroom apartment, and $701 for a two bedroom apartment.

Education

Colleges and universities

Arlington is home to the University of Texas at Arlington (UTA), the Southeast Campus of Tarrant County College, and Arlington Baptist College.

The University of Texas at Arlington is the second largest component of the University of Texas System. The university has a current enrollment of 25,297 students as of Fall 2004, and is perceived as a valuable asset to the city of Arlington and its economy. Buildings on the UTA campus are among some of the oldest standing structures in the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex, including the original Arlington High School which was annexed by the campus.

Primary and secondary schools

Arlington's residents live in the following three independent school districts (or ISDs), listed in descending order with respect to number of population served: Arlington ISD, Mansfield ISD, and Kennedale ISD. Parts of Arlington are also located in the Hurst-Euless-Bedford ISD's jurisdiction, but currently there are no residents in this location.

In Texas, school district boundaries do not always follow city and county boundaries because all aspects of the school district government apparatus including school district boundaries are separated from the city and county government. While not all city of Arlington residents are in the AISD, not all AISD students are residents of Arlington.

Sports

Arlington is the home of the Texas Rangers baseball team, and is the future home of the Dallas Cowboys. As in the rest of Texas, Friday night high school football is a widespread obsession with fans of all ages. Lamar High School has been the most historically successful of the city's high schools over the past three decades. But in recent years Martin High School, Arlington High School and Mansfield Summit High School (a Mansfield ISD school located within Arlington) have enjoyed much success. Arlington High owns the city's only state football title from 1951 under Coach Mayfield Workman.

The University of Texas at Arlington used to field a football team, but the program was cancelled in the 1980s due to funding issues and waning attendance. The football vacancy at the campus stadium, Maverick Stadium, was quickly filled by Arlington High and susequently Bowie High School. Cravens Field, on the campus of Lamar, and Wilemon Field, on the campus of Sam Houston, are home to the other four teams in the city. Both have enjoyed a history of close and dramatic games. Arlington is also known for bodybuilder Ronnie Coleman, eight-time champion of the Mr. Olympia competition.

Transportation

Arlington is the largest city in the United States that is not served by a public transportation system.^*

City council and residents have been generally opposed to participation in DART (Dallas Area Rapid Transit) or The T (Fort Worth Transportation Authority) due to taxation concerns.

Twinning

Arlington is twinned with:

Bad Königshofen, Germany since 1952

External links

Cities in Texas | Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex | Tarrant County, Texas

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