Round Rock, Texas

Round Rock is a city located in the U.S. state of Texas within Williamson County of the Austin–Round Rock metropolitan area. As of the 2000 U.S. Census, the city had a total population of 61,136 (though the 2005 census estimate placed the population at 86,316^*).

History

In 1851 A small community formed on the banks of Brushy Creek, near a large round rock located in the middle of Brushy Creek. This round rock marked a convenient low-water crossing for wagons, horses and cattle. The first postmaster called the community Brushy Creek, but in 1854 the small settlement was renamed Round Rock in honor of this now famous rock.The "round rock" is located on Chisholm Trail Street in the middle of Brushy Creek. After the Civil War, Jesse Chisholm began to move cattle from South Texas through Round Rock, on the way to Abilene, Kansas. The route he established, which crossed Brushy Creek at the round rock became known as the Chisholm Trail. Most of the old buildings, including the old Saint Charles Hotel are still there today. This historic area is now called "Old Town".

Downtown Round Rock is the site of the gunfight and subsequent capture (then death) of the nineteenth-century American train robber, Sam Bass, by the Texas Ranger Division on July 19, 1878. The event is known locally as the "Sam Bass Shootout". Bass is buried in Round Rock Cemetery, located northwest of "Old Town" on Sam Bass Road.

Infamous confidence man, Soapy Smith lived in Round Round and claimed to have witnessed the Sam Bass shootout. It was in this city that Soapy started his criminal career.

Sports

Round Rock is home to the Class AAA Pacific Coast League minor league baseball team Round Rock Express, which is owned by (and named for) Nolan Ryan.

Round Rock calls itself the Sports Capital of Texas.

Geography

Round Rock is located at (30.514865, -97.672561), 17 miles (27 km) north of Austin.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 68.0 km² (26.3 mi²). 67.7 km² (26.1 mi²) of it is land and 0.3 km² (0.1 mi²) of it (0.50%) is water.

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 61,136 people, 21,076 households, and 15,933 families residing in the city. The population density was 903.0/km² (2,339.1/mi²). There were 21,766 housing units at an average density of 321.5/km² (832.8/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 76.76% White, 7.72% African American, 0.50% Native American, 2.89% Asian, 0.10% Pacific Islander, 9.47% from other races, and 2.56% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 22.10% of the population.

There were 21,076 households out of which 47.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 60.5% were married couples living together, 11.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 24.4% were non-families. 18.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 3.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.87 and the average family size was 3.29. The median price for a house in Round Rock in 2006 was $150,322.

In the city the population was spread out with 31.9% under the age of 18, 8.5% from 18 to 24, 38.8% from 25 to 44, 16.3% from 45 to 64, and 4.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 30 years. For every 100 females there were 99.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.3 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $60,354, and the median income for a family was $65,471. Males had a median income of $41,971 versus $30,807 for females. The per capita income for the city was $24,911. About 2.8% of families and 4.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 4.3% of those under age 18 and 6.7% of those age 65 or over.

Business

Round Rock is headquarters to Dell, Inc.

External links

Williamson County Historical Museum page on Round Rock
City of Round Rock website at http://www.roundrocktexas.gov/
Round Rock Chamber of Commerce
Round Rock Housing Statistics

Williamson County, Texas | Cities in Texas