Armstrong County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2010 census, the population was 1,901. Its county seat is Claude. The county was formed in 1876 and later organized in 1890. It was named for one of several Texas pioneer families named Armstrong. Armstrong County is included in the Amarillo, TX Metropolitan Statistical Area.
History
Native Americans
first inhabitants as far back as 10,000 BC. Apachean cultures roamed the county until Comanche dominated around 1700. The Comanches were defeated by the United States Army in the Red River War of 1874. Later tribes include Kiowa and Cheyenne.
County established and growth
Armstrong County was formed from Bexar County in 1876, and organized in 1890, with Claude as the county seat. Charles Goodnight and John George Adair established ranching in the county. In 1876, Goodnight brought a herd of 1,600 cattle into the Palo Duro Canyon. The JA Ranch encompassed over a million acres, including Armstrong County and five adjoining counties. The county land use was primarily ranch-related, even after the trickling in of homesteaders, for the remainder of the 19th century. In 1887, the JA Ranch split up, giving way to a terminus for the Fort Worth and Denver City Railway. The first town from the ranch was Goodnight. Landowner Robert E. Montgomery platted the town of Washburn, named after railroad executive D.W. Washburn. The next year, railroad lines turned Washburn into a boom town. In the same year, Armstrong City was renamed Claude in honor of railroad engineer Claude Ayers. In 1890, the two towns competed for the county seat, with Claude winning. Many scenes of the 1963 Paul Newman film Hud were filmed at Goodnight and Claude. At the beginning of the 20th century, ranching began to share the land with cotton and wheat crops, although ranching remained the leading industry. The Great Depression had a severe effect on the county's economy, and recovery took years. Ranches still occupied about 68% of the land in the county in 2005.
Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of, of which are land and are covered by water.
As of the census of 2000, 2,148 people, 802 households, and 612 families resided in the county. The population density was 2 people per square mile. The 920 housing units averaged 1 per square mile. The racial makeup of the county was 95.44% White, 0.28% Black or African American, 0.65% Native American, 2.79% from other races, and 0.84% from two or more races. About 5.40% of the population was Hispanic or Latino of any race. Of the 802 households, 33.90% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 67.20% were married couplesliving together, 6.10% had a female householder with no husband present, and 23.60% were non-families. About 21.40% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.00% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.58 and the average family size was 2.99. In the county, the population was distributed as 26.00% under the age of 18, 6.10% from 18 to 24, 24.80% from 25 to 44, 23.80% from 45 to 64, and 19.20% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41 years. For every 100 females, there were 93.20 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.30 males. The median income for a household in the county was $38,194, and for a family was $43,894. Males had a median income of $30,114 versus $21,786 for females. The per capita income for the county was $17,151. About 7.90% of families and 10.60% of the population were below the poverty line, including 15.80% of those under age 18 and 11.60% of those age 65 or over.
