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Temple, Texas

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City of Temple
City
The former Kyle Hotel at 111 Main Street in Temple has been converted to apartments.
The former Kyle Hotel at 111 Main Street in Temple has been converted to apartments.
Location of Temple, Texas
Location of Temple, Texas
CountryUnited StatesUnited States
StateTexasTexas
CountyBell
Government
 • TypeCouncil-Manager
 • City CouncilMayor Bill Jones III
Danny Dunn
Patsy E. Luna
Marty Janczak
Russell Schneider
 • City ManagerDavid Blackburn
Area
 • Total65.3 sq mi (66.5 km2)
 • Land65.4 sq mi (169.3 km2)
 • Water0.1 sq mi (0.2 km2)
Elevation
719 ft (219 m)
Population
 (2000)
 • Total54,514
 • Density834.2/sq mi (322.1/km2)
Time zoneUTC-6 (Central (CST))
 • Summer (DST)UTC-5 (CDT)
Area code254
FIPS code48-72176Template:GR
GNIS feature ID1369696Template:GR
Websitewww.templetexas.us
Temple welcome sign on Interstate 35
A look at downtown Temple at Main Street
Extraco Banks building in Temple
File:Mural in downtown Temple, TX IMG 2400.JPG
Mural of historical development in downtown Temple
Temple Visitor Center
Former Arcadia Theater in downtown Temple

Temple is a city in Bell County, Texas, United States. Located near the county seat of Belton, Temple lies in the region referred to as Central Texas. Located off Interstate 35, Temple is 65 miles north of Austin and 34 miles south of Waco. As of the 2000 census, the population was 54,514, and had increased to 60,118 according to a 2009 estimate.[1] It is a "principal city" in the Killeen–Temple–Fort Hood Metropolitan Statistical Area.

Called the "Wildflower Capital of Texas," Temple was founded in 1881 as a railroad town. It was named in honor of Bernard Moore Temple, a civil engineer and former surveyor with the Gulf, Colorado and Santa Fe Railway Company who established the town. For many years it was the home of the Santa Fe Railway Company's hospital for its employees. Temple is known for its strength as a regional medical center (this is primarily due to the highly respected Scott & White Memorial Hospital). Scott & White is the largest employer in town with about ten thousand employees. With Scott & White, the Veteran's Hospital Center, and other smaller clinics, Temple is home to more physicians per capita than any other community in the nation. Temple is the site of one of two major campuses for the Texas A&M Health Science Center College of Medicine. Medical students can elect to spend all four years of their medical education training or their two years of clinical training on the campus.

Besides health services, Temple is home to many regional distribution centers and headquarters to two large, multi-national companies, Wilsonart International and McLane Company.[2] The Temple Daily Telegram is the daily newspaper.

Geography

Temple is located at 31°5′37″N 97°21′44″W / 31.09361°N 97.36222°W / 31.09361; -97.36222Invalid arguments have been passed to the {{#coordinates:}} function (31.093678, -97.362202)Template:GR. It is the second largest city in Bell county, population 66,102[3]. Its residents are within relatively short driving distances to Texas's major cities: 134 miles to Dallas, 65 miles to Austin, 143 miles to San Antonio, and 187 miles to Houston. The city is bisected by Interstate 35. It is also bisected by the Balcones Fault, a reportedly dead fault. To the east of the fault line lies the Blackland Prairie region, a rich farming area. To the west of the fault line the terrain rises with shallower soils over low rolling limestone hills which are essentially the northeastern edge of the Texas Hill Country. The land to the west was originally well suited to ranching, but is currently under increasing development pressure as the Central Texas economy expands and is considered to be in transition from rural to more suburban land uses including residential developments, retail centers,a skate park, and scientific/industrial complexes.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 65.4 square miles (169.5 km²), of which 65.3 square miles (169.3 km²) is land and 0.1 square miles (0.2 km²) (0.14%) is water.

History

Temple was founded by the Gulf, Colorado and Santa Fe Railroad in 1881. It was incorporated in 1882.[4] The town was named after a Santa Fe Railroad official, Bernard Moore Temple.

Christ Episcopal Church in Temple
First Baptist Church of Temple was founded in 1874 in rural Birdsdale.

In 1882, the Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad built through the town and soon after, the Santa Fe railroad made Temple a division point. In its early years, Temple was a town of shacks and tents with a large number of saloons and tough characters found in the early west. Locally, it was nicknamed Tanglefoot, because some citizens found that the combination of muddy streets and liquor made walking through the town challenging. After the town was incorporated in 1882, two private schools were founded in the city: The Temple Academy was organized and public school was established in 1884. In 1893, the annual Temple Stag Party began, growing out of a private Thanksgiving celebration attended by the town's leading men. It was held until 1923.[5]

The Temple Railroad and Heritage Museum, on the second floor of the Santa Fe Railroad station at 315 West Avenue B, commemorates the connection between railroads and the city.[6]

Demographics

As of the censusTemplate:GR of 2000, there were 54,514 people, 21,543 households, and 14,110 families residing in the city. The population density was 834.2 people per square mile (322.1/km²). There were 23,511 housing units at an average density of 359.8 per square mile (138.9/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 69.76% White, 17.82% Hispanic or Latino, 16.49% African American, 0.51% Native American, 1.53% Asian, 0.09% Pacific Islander, 9.23% from other races, and 2.39% from two or more races.

First United Methodist Church in Temple
Municipal Building at Christmas time in Temple
File:Veterans Memorial in Temple, TX IMG 2376.JPG
Veteran's Memorial outside the Temple Municipal Building
Temple Public Library

There were 21,543 households out of which 32.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 48.4% were married couples living together, 13.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.5% were non-families. 29.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.44 and the average family size was 3.04.

In the city the population was spread out with 26.3% under the age of 18, 9.2% from 18 to 24, 28.6% from 25 to 44, 20.0% from 45 to 64, and 15.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 91.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.2 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $35,135, and the median income for a family was $42,795. Males had a median income of $30,858 versus $22,113 for females. The per capita income for the city was $19,360. About 10.8% of families and 13.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 20.0% of those under age 18 and 9.8% of those age 65 or over.

Government and infrastructure

Texas State Soil and Water Conservation Board headquarters

The Texas State Soil and Water Conservation Board has its headquarters in Temple.[7]

The Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) operates the Temple Parole Office in Temple.[8]

The United States Postal Service operates the Temple Post Office.[9]

Education

Primary and secondary schools

The City of Temple is served by the Temple Independent School District.

In addition, Temple is also home to several private schools: Saint Mary's Catholic School (Pre K-8), Holy Trinity Catholic High School (Texas), and Central Texas Christian School (K–12).

Colleges and universities

Temple College offers two-year Associate degrees in a variety of subjects, including programs in business administration, information technology and nursing. Temple is also home to the second location of the Texas A&M Health Science Center College of Medicine. It operates in conjunction with the Scott & White Memorial Hospital and the Veteran's Hospital Center.

Adjacent Belton is home to the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor offering both Bachelor's and Master's degrees in various fields of study, and one doctorate. Several other regional and national universities are close by: Baylor University in Waco, The University of Texas at Austin, Texas A&M University in College Station, and Texas A&M—Central Texas in Killeen.

Public libraries

The Temple Public Library is located in Temple.[10]

Transportation

Temple was founded as a railroad junction, and serves as a major freight railroad hub to this day. Both the Union Pacific Railroad and BNSF Railway have mainlines serving the city, and a BNSF rail yard and locomotive maintenance facility are located here. Amtrak also serves the city with its Texas Eagle passenger train, which calls at Temple (Amtrak station).

Temple does not have commercial airline service, but is served indirectly by these airports:

Notables

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Temple, Texas.
A water tower advertising the City of Temple's official website.

Local newspaper, television and radio

References

  1. ^ Temple at City-Data
  2. ^ http://www.mclaneco.com
  3. ^ 2010 US Census http://factfinder2.census.gov/faces/tableservices/jsf/pages/productview.xhtml?src=bkmk
  4. ^ Britanica. 1984 Edition. Vol. IX, p. 879
  5. ^ Texas State Historical Commission. "Temple, Texas Historical Marker".
  6. ^ Temple Railroad and Heritage Museum Website.[1]
  7. ^ "Contact Us." Texas State Soil and Water Conservation Board. Retrieved on June 3, 2010.
  8. ^ "Parole Division Region IV." Texas Department of Criminal Justice. Retrieved on May 21, 2010.
  9. ^ "Post Office Location - TEMPLE." United States Postal Service. Retrieved on May 21, 2010.
  10. ^ "Directions to Library." Temple Public Library. Retrieved on May 21, 2010.
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