Borger, Texas

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Borger is a city in Hutchinson County, Texas, United States. The population was 14,302 at the 2000 census.

1 History
2 Geography
3 Demographics
4 Education
5 External links

[edit] History

Thomas Hart Benton's painting depicting Main Street in 1920s Borger.

The city of Borger is named after its founder, A. P. (Ace) Borger, who had a reputation throughout Oklahoma and Texas as a shrewd town promoter. Borger and his business partner John R. Miller purchased a 240-acre townsite near the Canadian River in March 1926 after the discovery of oil in the vicinity. Within a few months time, the boomtown had swelled to a population of 45,000, most lured by sensationalist advertising and "black gold". In October 1926, the city charter was adopted and Miller was elected mayor. By this time the Panhandle & Santa Fe Railway had completed the spur line to Borger, a post office had opened, and a school district was established. The boomtown of Borger soon had steam-generated electricity, telephone service, a hotel and jail.

In the months that followed, oilmen, roughnecks, prospectors, panhandlers and fortune seekers were joined by card sharks, prostitutes, bootleggers and drug dealers. The city became known as "Booger Town" as it attracted criminals and fugitives from the law. The town government soon fell under control of an organized crime syndicate led by Mayor Miller's shady associate, "Two-Gun Dick" Herwig. Dixon Street (now Tenth Street) was the "red-light" district, housing brothels, dance halls, speakeasies and gambling dens. Murder and robbery became an everyday occurrence and illegal moonshining and home brewing flourished under the fatherly watch of Hedwig and his henchmen, including W. J. (Shine) Popejoy, the king of the Texas bootleggers. Borger became so notorious that in the spring of 1927 Texas Governor Dan Moody sent a force of Texas Rangers to reign in the town. The Texas Rangers were led by Captains Frank Hamer and Thomas R. Hickman. (Hamer would go onto later fame and even infamy as the man who killed Bonnie and Clyde.) The Texas Rangers did have a stabilizing effect, but Borger still struggled with lawlessness and violence into the 1930s, climaxing with the murder of District Attorney John A. Holmes by an assassin on September 18, 1929. This event caused Governor Moody to impose martial law for a month and send in state troops to help rid the town of its criminal element. Eventually Borger settled down, but not before town founder Ace Borger was shot and killed at the post office by Arthur Huey on August 31, 1934 (Huey was County Treasurer and was irked at Ace Borger for not bailing him out of jail on an embezzlement charge. Huey shot Borger five times with a Colt .45 pistol, even pulling Borger's own pistol out of his clothing and shooting him again, along with others there in the post office).

By the late 1930s Borger was pushed from one era to another by the Great Depression. Phillips Petroleum and others profited from the oil fields in the area, but during this time the price of oil and gas dropped, ending the "boom" and rapid growth of Borger. Carbon black plants added black soot to the Dust Bowl storms, covering the town in layers of dark grime. "Okie" migrants forced off their foreclosed farms back in Oklahoma, found work in Borger plants and refineries. The Works Project Administration provided the town with new red brick streets as the ramshackle shacks throughout town were replaced by more permanent buildings. During WWII synthetic rubber and other petroleum products became important in the Borger area. By the 1960s the Borger area was one of the largest producers of oil, carbon black, and petrochemicals and supplies in the state. The creation of nearby Lake Meredith also added to the town's economy as an important recreational area. Today Borger remains an important shipping point for agricultural produce as well as for the petroleum products produced there.

[edit] Geography

Borger is located at 35°39′46″N, 101°24′6″W (35.662789, -101.401565)^GR1.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 22.6 km² (8.7 mi²). 22.6 km² (8.7 mi²) of it is land and 0.11% is water.

[edit] Demographics

As of the census^GR2 of 2000, there were 14,302 people, 5,591 households, and 3,997 families residing in the city. The population density was 632.5/km² (1,637.9/mi²). There were 6,462 housing units at an average density of 285.8/km² (740.1/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 82.75% White, 3.66% African American, 1.33% Native American, 0.43% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 9.36% from other races, and 2.44% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 19.70% of the population.

There were 5,591 households out of which 34.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.9% were married couples living together, 10.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.5% were non-families. 26.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.52 and the average family size was 3.204.

In the city the population was spread out with 27.8% under the age of 18, 9.8% from 18 to 24, 25.4% from 25 to 44, 20.9% from 45 to 64, and 16.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 95.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.2 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $34,653, and the median income for a family was $40,417. Males had a median income of $39,207 versus $19,654 for females. The per capita income for the city was $16,869. About 9.7% of families and 12.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 15.4% of those under age 18 and 6.3% of those age 65 or over.

[edit] Education

Education in the city in secondary and primary education is almost entirely conducted by the Borger Independent School District, with 2,800 students on five campuses (Paul Belton Early Childhood Center, Crockett and Gateway Elementary, Borger Middle School, and Borger High School). A private institution, Cornerstone Christian Academy, also exists in Borger. St. John the Evangelist Catholic Church operated a Catholic school for many years, but is now closed.

There are also over 3,000 students in Borger at Frank Phillips College.