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Rockwall, Texas

Coordinates: 32°55′01″N 96°26′15″W / 32.91694°N 96.43750°W / 32.91694; -96.43750
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Rockwall, Texas
City
City of Rockwall
Rusk Street in Rockwall
Rusk Street in Rockwall
Location of Rockwall in Rockwall County, Texas
Location of Rockwall in Rockwall County, Texas
Coordinates: 32°55′01″N 96°26′15″W / 32.91694°N 96.43750°W / 32.91694; -96.43750[1]
CountryUnited States
StateTexas
CountyRockwall
Government
 • TypeCouncil-Manager
 • City CouncilMayor: Trace Johannesen
Mayor Pro Tem: Anna Campbell
Tim McCallum
Mark Moeller
Clarence Jorif
Dennis Lewis
 • City ManagerMary Smith
Area
[2]
 • Total
29.97 sq mi (77.62 km2)
 • Land29.47 sq mi (76.33 km2)
 • Water0.50 sq mi (1.29 km2)  1.63%
Elevation
[1]
561 ft (171 m)
Population
 (2020)[3]
 • Total
47,251
 • Density1,600/sq mi (610/km2)
Demonym(s)Rockwaller, Rockwallite, Rockwallian
Time zoneUTC-6 (CST)
 • Summer (DST)UTC-5 (CDT)
ZIP codes
  • 75032
  • 75087
Area code(s)214, 469, 945, 972
FIPS code48-62828[4]
GNIS feature ID2410982[1]
Websitewww.rockwall.com

Rockwall is a city in Rockwall County, Texas, United States, which is part of the Dallas/Fort Worth metroplex. It is the county seat of Rockwall County.[5] The U.S. Census Bureau estimates that as of the 2020 census, Rockwall's population is 47,251, up from 45,888 in 2019.[6] The name Rockwall is derived from a naturally jointed geological formation, which has the appearance of an artificial wall.[7][8]

History

The association of Paleo-Indian artifacts with extinct Pleistocene mammal remains in various archeological sites within the Texas Prairie-Savannah Region of eastern North Central Texas, including a site in Collin County, and Clovis points recovered from the Brushy Creek Clovis Site in Hunt County demonstrates that the Rockwall region was occupied by prehistoric Native American cultures at least as far back as 13,500 to 13,000 years ago.[9][10][11] More recently, the Rockwall region was occupied by Caddo Indians. Creek Indians moved to the area in the early 19th century.

In 1851, the first Anglo-American settlers moved to the area, and wells were dug. During the digging, they found large underground rock walls that were initially believed to be man-made. Later study of the wall-like features by geologists and archaeologists found them to be jointed, natural sandstone dikes that had intruded Cretaceous marl.[7][8] The wall, when viewed from above, runs in long straight lines with angles that form a near perfect rectangle. The eastern wall has several deviations that run in straight lines with sharp angles, which would be unusual for a natural formation in an already unusual closed loop wall formation.

The town was established April 17, 1854 and named after these natural rock walls. While originally part of Kaufman County, in 1873, Rockwall County was formed with Rockwall being the county seat.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 31.6 square miles (82 km2), of which 22.3 square miles (58 km2) is land and 0.4 square miles (1.0 km2) (1.63%) is water.

Rockwall is on the eastern shore of Lake Ray Hubbard, approximately 20 miles northeast of Dallas. It is on state highways 205 and 66, north of Interstate 30.[12]

Climate

The climate in this area is characterized by hot, humid summers and generally mild to cool winters. According to the Köppen Climate Classification system, Rockwall has a humid subtropical climate, abbreviated "Cfa" on climate maps.[13]

Demographics

Historical population
CensusPop.Note%±
1880215—
1890843292.1%
19001,24547.7%
19101,136−8.8%
19201,38822.2%
19301,074−22.6%
19401,31822.7%
19501,50113.9%
19602,16644.3%
19703,12144.1%
19805,93990.3%
199010,48676.6%
200017,97671.4%
201037,490108.6%
202047,25126.0%
U.S. Decennial Census[14]
Rockwall racial composition as of 2020[15]
(NH = Non-Hispanic)[a]
Race Number Percentage
White (NH) 30,786 65.15%
Black or African American (NH) 3,706 7.84%
Native American or Alaska Native (NH) 205 0.43%
Asian (NH) 1,705 3.61%
Pacific Islander (NH) 29 0.06%
Some Other Race (NH) 128 0.27%
Mixed/Multi-Racial (NH) 2,043 4.32%
Hispanic or Latino 8,649 18.3%
Total 47,251

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 47,251 people, 16,151 households, and 12,771 families residing in the city.

Government

Local government

The Rockwall County Courthouse in Rockwall

According to the city's most recent Comprehensive Annual Financial Report Fund Financial Statements, the city's various funds had $39.0 million in Revenues, $42.2 million in expenditures, $32.3 million in total assets, $3.6 million in total liabilities, and $25.9 million in investments.[18]

The structure of the management and coordination of city services is:[19]

Department Director
City Manager Mary Smith
Assistant City Manager Joey Boyd
Director of Public Works/City Engineer Amy Williams, PE
Director of Parks and Recreation Travis Sales, MCPTM
Chief of Police Ed Fowler
Fire Chief Kenneth Cullins
Director of Planning Ryan Miller, AICP

The city of Rockwall is a voluntary member of the North Central Texas Council of Governments association, the purpose of which is to coordinate individual and collective local governments and facilitate regional solutions, eliminate unnecessary duplication, and enable joint decisions.

State government

Rockwall is represented in the Texas Senate by Republican Bob Hall, District 2,[20] and in the Texas House of Representatives by Republican Justin Holland, House District 33.[21]

Federal government

At the Federal level, the two U.S. Senators from Texas are Republicans John Cornyn and Ted Cruz; Rockwall is part of Texas' 4th Congressional District, which is currently represented by Republican Pat Fallon.

Education

Public schools

The city is served by the Rockwall Independent School District. There are two public high schools in Rockwall: Rockwall High School and Rockwall-Heath High School. There are sixteen elementary schools and three middle schools in Rockwall.

Higher education

The city is home to the Higher Education Center at Rockwall, which is part of the community college district, Collin College. The campus is the District's first campus outside of Collin County itself. Texas A&M University-Commerce holds classes at the center.

Transportation

Rockwall is served by the following highways that run through the city:

Ralph M. Hall/Rockwall Municipal Airport is located two miles east of the city and is used mostly by small general aviation aircraft.

Sports

Rockwall offers many different sports complexes as well as activities. Airport Road boasts baseball fields, as well as the Landing Point complex containing the Texas International Fencing Center, zipline and dance facilities. The Rockwall Indoor Sports Expo is located on South 205. Lake Ray Hubbard has several boating marinas and is used for jet skiing.

Rockwall also offers 2 different Golf Courses [1] within 17 miles of the center of Rockwall.

Notable people

In 2013, forensic geologist, Scott Wolter, on the television show America Unearthed, visited Rockwall to investigate the claims that the wall might have been manmade, and the conclusion of the episode was that the underground structure was natural and not man-made.[23][unreliable source?]

References

  1. ^ a b c "Rockwall". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior.
  2. ^ "2019 U.S. Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved August 7, 2020.
  3. ^ "State and County Quick Facts". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on February 13, 2020. Retrieved May 14, 2015.
  4. ^ "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved January 31, 2008.
  5. ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
  6. ^ "U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts: Rockwall city, Texas; Rockwall County, Texas". www.census.gov. Retrieved April 28, 2021.
  7. ^ a b Monroe, J.N., 1950, Origin of the clastic dikes in the Rockwall area, Texas. Field and Laboratory. v. 18, no. 4, pp. 133-143.
  8. ^ a b Ellwood, B.B., J. Payne, and G.J. Long, 1989, The Rockwall, Texas: A study of unusual natural magnetic effects in geoarcheological surveys produced by mineral oxidation. Geoarchaeology. v. 4, no. 2, pp. 103-118.
  9. ^ Crook, W.W. III, M.D. Hughston and J.L. McCraw, 2009, The Brushy Creek Clovis Site (41HU74): An Early Paleoindian Occupation in Hunt County, Texas. The Record, Dallas Archeological Society 56(1):1-18.
  10. ^ Crook, W. W., III, 2011, A Possible Association of Worked Flakes with Probosidian Bones near Lake Lavon, Collin County, Texas. Archeological Journal of the Texas Prairie-Savannah 1(1):4-8.
  11. ^ Ferring, C.R., 2000, The Archeology and Paleoecology of the Aubrey Clovis Site (41DN79) Denton County, Texas. Center for Environmental Archeology, Department of Geography, University of North Texas, Denton.
  12. ^ Rockwall, Texas, 7.5 Minute Topographic Quadrangle, USGS, 1963 (1973 rev)
  13. ^ Climate Summary for Rockwall, Texas
  14. ^ "Census of Population and Housing". Census.gov. Retrieved May 30, 2019.
  15. ^ "Explore Census Data". data.census.gov. Retrieved May 21, 2022.
  16. ^ https://www.census.gov/ [not specific enough to verify]
  17. ^ "About the Hispanic Population and its Origin". www.census.gov. Retrieved May 18, 2022.
  18. ^ City of Rockwall 2009 CAFR Archived 2011-07-15 at the Wayback Machine retrieved 2010-11-17
  19. ^ "Comprehensive Annual Financial Report" (PDF). September 30, 2012. p. 19. Retrieved June 3, 2013.[permanent dead link‍]
  20. ^ "Senator Bob Hall: District 2". Archived from the original on March 12, 2015. Retrieved April 24, 2015.
  21. ^ "Texas House Member". Retrieved April 24, 2015.
  22. ^ Cliff Harris Football All-time Great & Author Retrieved 2018-04-16.
  23. ^ "Great Wall of Texas". America Unearthed. Season 2. Episode 3. December 14, 2013. A&E Television Networks. Retrieved July 19, 2019.
  1. ^ Note: the US Census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos can be of any race.[16][17]
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