Zapata County, Texas

Geography According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 2,740 km² (1,058 mi²). 2,582 km² (997 mi²) of it is land and 159 km² (61 mi²) of it is water. The total area is 5.80% water.

Demographics As of the census of 2000, there are 12,182 people, 3,921 households, and 3,164 families residing in the county. The population density is 5/km² (12/mi²). There are 6,167 housing units at an average density of 2/km² (6/mi²). The racial makeup of the county is 84.07% White, 0.41% African American, 0.32% Native American, 0.19% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 12.64% from other races, and 2.33% from two or more races. 84.78% of the population are Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There are 3,921 households out of which 43.20% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 64.20% are married couples living together, 13.00% have a female householder with no husband present, and 19.30% are non-families. 17.50% of all households are made up of individuals and 10.30% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is 3.10 and the average family size is 3.52.

In the county, the population is spread out with 33.00% under the age of 18, 10.00% from 18 to 24, 24.10% from 25 to 44, 18.60% from 45 to 64, and 14.30% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 31 years. For every 100 females there are 96.80 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 93.70 males.

The median income for a household in the county is $24,635, and the median income for a family is $26,722. Males have a median income of $26,294 versus $14,579 for females. The per capita income for the county is $10,486. 35.80% of the population and 29.30% of families are below the poverty line. Out of the total people living in poverty, 46.10% are under the age of 18 and 21.30% are 65 or older.

Cities and Towns

• Falcon Lake Estates
• Falcon Mesa
• Lopeno
• Medina
• Morales-Sanchez
• New Falcon
• San Ignacio
• Siesta Shores
• Zapata