Loving County, Texas

Infobox U.S. County
county = Loving County
state = Texas


map size = 250
founded = 1931
seat = Mentone
FIPS = 48301
area_total_sq_mi =677
area_land_sq_mi =673
area_water_sq_mi =4
area percentage = 0.56%
census yr = 2000
pop = 67
density_km2 = 0.0384
web =
|

Loving County is a county in the U.S. state of Texas, and is the least populous county in the entire United States. [http://www.nytimes.com/2006/02/25/national/25loving.html?8hpib "1 Cafe, 1 Gas Station, 2 Roads: America's Emptiest County"] - "New York Times", February 25, 2006] [http://www.austincc.edu/kseago/pcm/lovingcty.html Loving County] - at Austin Community College] Its seat, and only community, is Mentone. The nearest sizable towns are Pecos, Texas, and Carlsbad, New Mexico. In 2000, its population was 67.

Part of the Haley Ranch, founded by the father of Texas historian J. Evetts Haley, is in Loving County, with another portion in neighboring Winkler County.

History

Exploration and incorporation

Prehistorically, the area had many springs with drinkable water that supported wildlife and nomadic hunters. Antonio de Espejo visited the area in 1583 and crossed the Pecos River. Having surveyed the area in 1854 for a railroad company, John Pope returned in 1855 to start a camp in northwestern Loving County and establish artesian wells in the area, but the venture was unsuccessful and was abandoned in 1861.

From 1837 to 1874 the area of modern Loving County was part of the Bexar land district. In 1874 it was separated from Bexar County, becoming a part of Tom Green County.

Loving County is named for Oliver Loving, a cattle rancher and pioneer of the cattle drive who together with Charles Goodnight developed the Goodnight-Loving Trail. He was mortally wounded by Comanches while on a cattle drive in 1867 in the vicinity of the county.

Loving is the only county in Texas to be incorporated twice, first in 1893 and then once more in 1931. Its initial organization was effected by a canal company founded in Denver, Colorado, and appears to have been based upon fraud and willful misrepresentations made by the founders to state officials. [http://www.tsha.utexas.edu/handbook/online/articles/LL/hcl13.html Loving County] - Handbook of Texas] After a local landowner hired a New York firm to investigate alleged improprieties in county government, the company's organizers fled, taking with them all the county records. The state legislature subsequently disorganized Loving in 1897, attaching it to Reeves County.

Oil was discovered in 1921, leading to a population increase in Loving County. By 1930 there were 195 residents, mostly living in what would become the town of Mentone, which became the county seat when Loving was reconstituted in 1931. By 1933, the population had peaked at 600, only to enter a steady decline to the present day.

Loving County was the home of the first elected female sheriff in Texas, Edna Reed Claton Dewees. Dewees was appointed to the job in January 1945, then won an election to continue in the office through 1947. She never carried a firearm, and reported only two arrests during her entire term. Later she would return as a county district clerk, a job she held from 1965 to 1986. As of January 2000, she still resided on a ranch near Mentone. [http://www.rootsweb.com/~txloving/odessa-american-mentone.htm "Odessa American"] Includes details on Edna Dewees, first elected female sheriff in Texas]

Takeover attempt by the "Free Town Project"

In February 2006, Loving County became the focus of a "The New York Times" article detailing an alleged attempt by Libertarians Lawrence Pendarvis, Bobby Emory, and Don Duncan to "take over" Loving County and its county seat, Mentone. According to the article, Pendarvis and his associates, part of the Free Town Project, planned to buy parcels of land in the county, then move in enough of their supporters to outvote earlier residents and take control of local government.

According to a website for Pendarvis' movement, their objectives were to "remove oppressive Regulations...and stop enforcement of Laws prohibiting Victimless Acts among Consenting Adults, such as Dueling, Gambling, Incest, Price-Gouging, Cannibalism, and Drug Handling." Additionally, the group sought "to ensure that the Sheriff's Office or the Town Police are never allowed to waste valuable Town resources...to oppress our residents by the investigation or enforcement of violations of Laws that punish Truancy, Drug Trafficking, Prostitution, Obscenity, Organ Trafficking, and other Victimless 'Crimes'." [http://freetownproject.com Free Town Project] ]

Although Pendarvis, Emory and Duncan claimed to have legally bought convert|126|acre|km2 in Loving county in 2005, and registered to vote accordingly, the county sheriff, Billy Burt Hopper, determined that this land had been sold to a different buyer. Misdemeanor charges were filed against the three men, who had left the state by this time. Pendarvis said that he had a canceled check to prove his purchase of the land in question, but no deed was ever produced, and the original landowners denied having sold land to Pendarvis or his associates. The three were subsequently featured on a "wanted" poster issued by Sheriff Hopper and the local Texas Rangers (displayed at Hopper's office), and threatened with arrest should they return to Loving County.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Loving County has a total area of 677 square miles (1,753 km²), of which, 673 square miles (1,743 km²) of it is land and 4 square miles (10 km²) of it (0.56%) is water.

The Pecos River is the county's western boundary, forming the Red Bluff Reservoir along its northwestern border with Reeves County, Texas and Eddy County, New Mexico. The terrain of Loving County is described as flat desert, with a few low hills. Desert shrubs, range grass and cactus abound, with salt cedars along the river. Elevations vary from 2,686 to convert|3311|ft|m above sea level.

Loving is the smallest county by area in the Permian Basin region.

Highways

*
*Farm to Market Road 652These are the only through-routes in Loving County.

Adjacent counties

*Lea County, New Mexico (north)
*Winkler County (east)
*Ward County (southeast)
*Reeves County (south & west)
*Eddy County, New Mexico (northwest)

Demographics

USCensusPop
1890= 3
1900= 33
1910= 249
1920= 82
1930= 195
1940= 285
1950= 227
1960= 226
1970= 164
1980= 91
1990= 107
2000= 67

As of the census of 2000, there were 67 people, 31 households, and 19 families living in the county. The population density was 0.1 people per square mile (0.03/km²). There were 70 housing units at an average density of 0.1 per square mile (0.04/km²). Of the 67 residents, 60 persons identified themselves as White, no person identified themselves as Black, African American, Native American, Asian, or Pacific Islander. 6 identified themselves as "some other race", and 1 person identified him or herself as belonging to two or more races. In addition, 7 people identified themselves as being of Hispanic, Latino, or Spanish origin of any race. It is one of only a few counties in the U.S. — outside of the northeast — where the largest self-identified ancestry group is Irish American.

There were 31 households out of which 5 have children under the age of 18 living with them, 17 are married couples living together, 2 have a female householder with no husband present, and 11 are non-families. Ten households are made up of individuals and 2 consist of someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. Average household size was 2.16, while the average family size was 2.65.

In the county, the population was spread out with 13 people under the age of 18, one between 18 and 24, 18 from 25 to 44, 24 from 45 to 64, and 11 who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 46 years. For every 10 females there are 11.61 males. For every 10 females age 18 and over, there are 12.50 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $40,000, and the median income for a family was $53,750. Males had a median income of $25,833 versus $0 for females. The per capita income for the county was $24,084.

Loving County's population has been rapidly declining in recent years, with a decline of over 35% between 1990 and 2000, and another 22% of its population between 2000 and 2004.

Loving County is the only county in the United States with no people below the poverty line as of 2000. [http://factfinder.census.gov/servlet/QTTable?_bm=y&-geo_id=05000US48301&-qr_name=DEC_2000_SF3_U_QTP34&-ds_name=DEC_2000_SF3_U&-redoLog=false|1 Fact Finder at Census.gov] ]

The county is the least populous county in the United States, with a 2000 census population of only 67 persons. With an average of only 0.0384 inhabitants/km² (0.0995/sq mi), the county is also the least densely populated county outside of Alaska. (Lake and Peninsula Borough and North Slope Borough in Alaska are both lower, as is the Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area, which is not a county.) Its population has declined further, with a 2007 estimate of 55, according to figures from the U.S. Census Bureau.

Economy

Loving County's economy is based almost entirely upon oil and gas drilling, ranching, and county services.

Education

Loving County is served by the Wink-Loving Independent School District. The county's school system was closed and consolidated into Wink's ISD in 1972 because the enrollment had fallen to two pupils.

Popular culture

"Loving County" is the name of a song written and performed by Charlie Robison. It appears on his 1998 album "Life of the Party". [http://www.galleywinter.com/main/Lyrics/song/c_id=722.html Lyrics to the song "Loving County"] ]

References

External links

* Contains valuable information on early history of Loving County.
* [http://www.mywesttexas.com/articles/2007/03/18/import/20070318-archive47.txt Mentone from MyWestTexas.com] Brief but detailed report on life in Mentone and Loving County. Includes several videos of Mentone and interviews with the local sheriff and judge.
* [http://www.davickservices.com/Loving_County.htm Loving County at Davickservices.com] Numerous photos and stories about Loving County and Mentone. A small picture of the "wanted" poster for Mssrs. Pendarvis, Emory and Duncan may also be seen here
* [http://texashistory.unt.edu/permalink/meta-pth-25194 Inventory of county records, Loving County Courthouse, Mentone, Texas] , hosted by the [http://texashistory.unt.edu/ Portal to Texas History]