Ballinger, Texas

Ballinger, Texas
City
Farmers and Merchants State Bank Building, built in 1909.
Location of Ballinger, Texas
Country	United States
State	Texas
County	Runnels
Area
• Total	3.4 sq mi (8.7 km2)
• Land	3.3 sq mi (8.7 km2)
• Water	0.0 sq mi (0.0 km2)
Elevation	1,627 ft (496 m)
Population  (2000)
• Total	4,243
• Density	1,266.7/sq mi (489.1/km2)
Time zone	UTC-6 (Central (CST))
• Summer (DST)	UTC-5 (CDT)
ZIP code	76821
Area code	325
FIPS code	48-05456Template:GR
GNIS feature ID	1372383Template:GR
Website	www.ballingertx.org

Ballinger is a city in Runnels County, Texas, United States.Template:GR The population was 3,767 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Runnels County.

Geography

Ballinger is located at 31°44′27″N 99°57′14″W (31.740907, -99.953832)Template:GR.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 3.4 square miles (8.8 km²), of which, 3.3 square miles (8.5 km²) of it is land and 0.30% is water.

Demographics

As of the censusTemplate:GR of 2000, 4,243 people, 1,578 households, and 1,093 families resided the city. The population density was 1,266.7 people per square mile (489.0/km²). There were 1,879 housing units at an average density of 560.9 per square mile (216.6/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 79.68% White, 2.14% African American, 0.71% Native American, 0.45% Asian, 14.52% from other races, and 2.50% from two or more races. Hispanics or Latinos of any race were 31.28% of the population.

Of 1,578 households, 33.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.0% were married couples living together, 11.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.7% were not families. About 28.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 17.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.53 and family size was 3.10.

In the city, the population was distributed as 26.9% under the age of 18, 6.4% from 18 to 24, 25.5% from 25 to 44, 21.0% from 45 to 64, and 20.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 88.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 80.9 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $26,129, and for a family was $31,393. Males had a median income of $24,207 versus $18,951 for females. The per capita income for the city was $11,917. About 14.3% of families and 17.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 18.1% of those under age 18 and 25.0% of those age 65 or over.

Education

The City of Ballinger is served by the Ballinger Independent School District and home to the Ballinger High School Bearcats.

Notable people

Ballinger is the birthplace of former nationally syndicated entertainment columnist Lane Crockett (born 1942), who was primarily affiliated with the Shreveport Times. He has been called the "prince of performance critics." {{citation}}: Empty citation (help)

George E. "Buddy" West, a Republican member of the Texas House of Representatives from Odessa who served from 1993 to 2008, was born in Ballinger in 1936. Right before the start of WWII after johnny cash came to visit

Sports

Ballinger was home of the minor league baseball team the Ballinger Cats from the 1920s to its disbandment in the late 1950s. They were affiliated with the Cincinnati Reds from 1947 to 1950, as well with the bygone St. Louis Browns in the 1930s and early 1940s. Today, the Ballinger Cats name is back, but they are members of the Central Texas Collegiate League, a woodbat summer league of collegiate level players.

External links

• Ballinger, Texas - official website
• Entry for William P. Ballinger, for whom Ballinger was named, from the Biographical Encyclopedia of Texas published 1880, hosted by the Portal to Texas History.