Texas/Houston

[Ulrich]

Interesting Facts About The Lone Star State . . . . . . .

* The population of Texas is 21 million, not including the 16 million cattle.

* 70% of the population of Texas lives within 200 miles of Austin.

* Texas possesses three of the Top Ten most populous cities in the U.S. - Houston, Dallas and San Antonio.

* Texas' most populous county is Harris County with 3.4 million residents in Houston. The least populated county is Loving County with 67 residents.

* Texas has 215 cities with a population of 10,000 or more.

* The Dallas-Fort Worth area has more residents - 5,221,801 - than 31 U.S. states. For example, Arizona has about 5.1 million residents.

* Texas includes 267,339 square miles or 7.4% of the nation's total area.

* El Paso, Texas is closer to Needles, California (516 miles) than it is to Dallas, Texas (571 miles)

* Texas' largest county is Brewster with 6,208 square miles. Connecticut (5,544 Sq Mi), Delaware (2,489 Sq Mi) and Rhode Island (1,545 Sq Mi) can fit inside this county.

* The King Ranch itself near Corpus Christi is larger than the state of Rhode Island and includes 50,000 head of cattle.

* Texas possesses 23,292 farms with 1,000 acres or more for a total of 132 million acres, or 80% of the state land area,

* Texas has 90 mountains a mile or more high, with Guadalupe Peak in West Texas at 8,751 feet being the tallest.

* Almost 10% of Texas is covered by forest which includes four national and five state forests.

* Average yearly rainfall totals in West Texas are less than 8 inches while in East Texas totals exceed 56 inches

* The average January temperature for Amarillo is 36.7 degrees while in Brownsville the average is 61.4. On March 27, 1984, the temperature in Brownsville was 106 degrees while Amarillo reported snow and 35 degrees.

[Ulrich]

Interesting Facts About Houston . . . . . . .

* Houston is the fourth most populous city in the nation (trailing only New York, Los Angeles and Chicago), and is the largest in the southern U.S. and Texas.

* Founded in 1836, the City of Houston has a population of 1.9 million.

* The Houston-Galveston-Brazoria Consolidated Metropolitan Statistical Area (Houston CMSA) consists of eight counties: Brazoria, Chambers, Fort Bend, Galveston, Harris, Liberty, Montgomery and Waller.

* The metro area's population of 4.8 million is 10th largest among U.S. metropolitan statistical areas.

* The Houston Consolidated Metropolitan Statistical Area covers 8,778 square miles, an area slightly smaller than Massachusetts but larger than New Jersey.

* Each year more than 38 million people zip in and out of Houston's two major airports.

* Houstonians eat out more than residents of any other city. While here you can choose to indulge in one of the more than 11,000 restaurants ranging from award-winning and upscale to memorable deli shops.

* Houston has a Theater District second only to New York City with its concentration of seats in one geographic area. Located downtown, the 17-block Theater District is home to eight performing arts organizations with more than 12,000 seats.

* Houston has a unique museum district offering a range of museums, galleries, art and cultural institutions, including the City's major museums.

* Houston has more than 500 cultural, visual and performing arts organizations, 90 of which are devoted to multicultural and minority arts.

* More than 90 languages are spoken throughout the Houston area.

* Houston has professional teams representing every major sport.

* Houston is home to the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo. The largest rodeo in the world, it attracts more than 1.8 million visitors each year.

* Houston has a young population; 37 percent of Houstonians are 24 years old or younger and 34 percent are between the ages of 25 and 44.

* Houston boasts more than 40 colleges, university and institutions - offering higher education options to suit all interests.

* Houston is home to the Texas Medical Center, the largest medical center in the world, with a local economic impact of $10 billion. More than 52,000 people work within its facilities, which encompass 21 million square feet. Altogether 4.8 million patients visit them each year.

* For Houstonians, 2000 was a banner year economically. Employment growth was 3 percent, or 63,000 new jobs. Per capita income rose 5 percent.

* Home to 18 Fortune 500 companies and more than 5,000 energy related firms, Houston is considered by many as the Energy Capital of the world.

* The Port of Houston ranks as the nation's largest port in international tonnage and second in total tonnage.

* For three consecutive years, Houston has ranked first in the nation in new business growth, according to American Business Information. The most recent survey shows that more than 31,000 new local businesses were started in Houston. Los Angeles was a distant second with 16,780.

* Houston has the most affordable housing of 10 most populated metropolitan areas; Houston housing costs are 39 percent below the average of 26 U.S. urban populations of more than 1.5 million.

* Houston has the second lowest cost of living among major American cities.

[S2000 Driver]

Another interesting fact:

Houston is the only place where I saw this famous vehicle in-person (I know meat is going to like this):

[WestSideBilly]

Cheeseheads!

[S2000 Driver]

Cheeseheads!

Or, in this case, Meatheads!

[WestSideBilly]

The metro area's population of 4.8 million is 10th largest among U.S. metropolitan statistical areas.

I thought Houston was higher in the MSA rankings...

[WestSideBilly]

Or, in this case, Meatheads!

Those are only found in Washington DC.

[S2000 Driver]

Those are only found in Washington DC.

Brad may not agree...

[Greg Stevens]

I heard today that Texas has very lowest rate of kids being graduated from high school...I mean DEAD LAST. It was 77%, I think...



At least they didn't have to endure a Jesuit school like I did...!

[S2000 Driver]

At least they didn't have to endure a Jesuit school like I did...!

Hey, watch it there, Padre!

[WestSideBilly]

I heard today that Texas has very lowest rate of kids being graduated from high school...I mean DEAD LAST. It was 77%, I think...

The GWBush influence...

[S2000 Driver]

I heard today that Texas has very lowest rate of kids being graduated from high school...I mean DEAD LAST. It was 77%, I think...

See what happens when you eliminate social promotion.

It screws up all your stats!

Better to give the illiterate HS Diplomas so you can get re-elected!

[photodavo]

Another interesting fact:

Houston is the only place where I saw this famous vehicle in-person (I know meat is going to like this):

On a business trip to Louiseville a couple of years ago I saw FOUR of these crazy contraptions parked in front of the hotel - must have been an OM convention. It was bizarre to see more than one but I would find it more interesting to catch one out on the highways.