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Jefferson County
	Jefferson County, Texas
	; Location in the state of Texas
	; Texas's location in the U.S.
Seat	Beaumont
Area; - Total; - Land; - Water	; 1,111 sq mi (2,877 km²); 904 sq mi (2,341 km²); 208 sq mi (539 km²), 18.69%
Population; - (2000); - Density	; 252,051; 280/sq mi (108/km²)
Founded	1836
Website	www.co.jefferson.tx.us

Jefferson County is a county located in the state of Texas, United States. As of 2000, the population was 252,051. Its county seat is Beaumont,^[1] and it is named for the former U.S. president, Thomas Jefferson.

The county is part of the Beaumont–Port Arthur Metropolitan Statistical Area.

[edit] Geography

Jefferson County is located on the plains of the Texas Gulf Coast in the southeastern part of the state. The county is bounded on the north by Pine Island Bayou, on the northeast by the Neches River, and on the east by Sabine Lake and the mouth of the Sabine River, a natural outlet called Sabine Pass. The southern part of the county is largely marshland, much of which is contained within Sea Rim State Park, reaching to the storm-battered beach at the Gulf of Mexico.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 1,111 square miles (2,878 km²), of which, 904 square miles (2,340 km²) of it is land and 208 square miles (538 km²) of it (18.69%) is water.

[edit] Major highways

Interstate 10
U.S. Highway 69/U.S. Highway 96/U.S. Highway 287
State Highway 105
See List of Highways in Jefferson County for more roadways in Jefferson County.

[edit] Adjacent counties and parishes

Hardin County (north)
Orange County (northeast)
Chambers County (southwest)
Liberty County (northwest)
Cameron Parish, Louisiana (east)

[edit] National protected areas

[edit] Demographics

As of the census^[2] of 2000, there were 252,051 people, 92,880 households, and 63,808 families residing in the county. The population density was 279 people per square mile (108/km²). There were 102,080 housing units at an average density of 113 per square mile (44/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 57.24% White, 33.74% Black or African American, 0.34% Native American, 2.89% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 4.26% from other races, and 1.50% from two or more races. 10.53% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 8.3% were of American, 7.2% French, 6.2% German, 5.8% English and 5.3% Irish ancestry according to Census 2000.

There were 92,880 households out of which 33.00% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 48.40% were married couples living together, 16.20% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.30% were non-families. 27.30% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.00% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.55 and the average family size was 3.12.

In the county, the population was spread out with 25.90% under the age of 18, 10.00% from 18 to 24, 29.30% from 25 to 44, 21.10% from 45 to 64, and 13.60% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 101.10 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 100.20 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $34,706, and the median income for a family was $42,290. Males had a median income of $36,719 versus $23,924 for females. The per capita income for the county was $17,571. About 14.60% of families and 17.40% of the population were below the poverty line, including 24.60% of those under age 18 and 11.80% of those age 65 or over.

[edit] 2004 and 2008 Elections

Jefferson County is one of the more Democratic counties in Texas. It has not supported a Republican for president since 1972.

In 2004, Jefferson was one of only 18 counties in Texas that gave Senator John Kerry a majority of the popular vote. Kerry received 47,050 votes while George W. Bush received 44,412. [1] In 2008, Barack Obama won 51% of the vote and 44,854 votes. John McCain won 48% of the vote and 42,877 votes. Other candidates received 1% of the vote. ^[3]

[edit] Economy

Conquest Airlines, which began in April 1988, had its headquarters on the grounds of Southeast Texas Regional Airport in an unincorporated area in the county.^[4]^[5] Conquest planned to move its headquarters to Austin, Texas in the beginning of 1990.^[6] In 1989 Conquest moved its corporate headquarters, 78 employees, and six aircraft to Austin.^[7]

[edit] Communities

The Jefferson County Courthouse in Beaumont. The Art Deco style building was added to the National Register of Historic Places on June 17, 1982. The building is one of the few completely original Art Deco structures in Texas. The top five floors once served as the County Jail.