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Wichita Falls, Texas

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Wichita Falls(/ˈwɪtʃɪtɑː/WITCH-ih-tah) is a city in and thecounty seatofWichita County, Texas,United States.[6]It is the principal city of theWichita Falls metropolitan statistical area,which encompasses all ofArcher,Clay,and Wichita Counties. According to the2020 census,it had a population of 102,316,[7]making it the43rd-most populouscity in Texas.

Wichita Falls, Texas
City
Man-made replacement of the original waterfall in Lucy Park
Man-made replacement of the original waterfall inLucy Park
Flag of Wichita Falls, Texas
Flag
Location in the state of Texas
Location in the state of Texas
Wichita Falls is located in Texas
Wichita Falls
Wichita Falls
Wichita Falls is located in the United States
Wichita Falls
Wichita Falls
Coordinates:33°54′11″N98°28′17″W/ 33.90306°N 98.47139°W/33.90306; -98.47139
CountryUnited States
StateTexas
CountyWichita
Government
• TypeCouncil–manager
•MayorTim Short (R)[1]
Area
[2]
•City
72.03 sq mi (186.57 km2)
• Land72.01 sq mi (186.51 km2)
• Water0.02 sq mi (0.06 km2)
Elevation
[3]
951 ft (290 m)
Population
(2020)[4]
•City
102,316
• RankUS:315th
• Density1,400/sq mi (550/km2)
•Urban
99,437 (US:319th)
•Metro
151,306 (US:286th)
Time zoneUTC−6(CST)
• Summer (DST)UTC−5(CDT)
ZIP codes
76301-11
Area code940
FIPS code48-79000[5]
GNISfeature ID2412261[3]
WebsiteCity of Wichita Falls

The city was named, in 1876, for a waterfall on theWichita River,which was destroyed due to flooding in 1886.

The city is home to theNewby-McMahon Building(otherwise known as the "world's littlest skyscraper"), constructed downtown in 1919 and featured inRobert Ripley'sRipley's Believe It or Not!.

History

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See also:Timeline of Wichita Falls, Texas
Map of Wichita Falls in 1890
Kemp-Kell Building,circa1910, now known as the Holt Hotel, was one of the first five-story office buildings in the city.

TheChoctawNative Americans settled the area in the early 1800s from their native Mississippi area once Americans displaced them after theTreaty of Dancing Rabbit Creek.[8]The treaty was signed and proclaimed in 1830–1831. As late as 1841, a large Indian settlement was present in the area that is now the city of Wichita Falls.[9]

American settlers arrived in the 1860s, mainly as cattle ranchers. The city was named Wichita Falls on September 27, 1876, as the Wichita River runs through the area and a waterfall was in the river's course in 1876. Just 10 years later in 1886, a flood destroyed the originalwaterfallon theWichita Riverfor which the city was named.[9][10][11]After nearly 100 years of visitors wanting to visit the no longer existing falls, the city built anartificial waterfallbeside the river in Lucy Park. The recreated falls are 54 ft (16 m) high and recirculate at 3,500 gallons per minute. They are visible to south-bound traffic onInterstate 44.

On the day the city was named in 1876, a sale of town lots was held at what is now the corner of Seventh and Ohio Streets – the birthplace of the city.[12]TheFort Worth & Denver City Railwayarrived in September 1882, the same year the city became the county seat ofWichita County.[8]The city grew westwards from the original FW&DC train depot which was located at the northwest corner of Seventh Street and the FW&DC.[12]This area is now referred to as theDepot Square Historic District,[13][14]which has been declared aTexas Historic Landmark.[15]

The early history of Wichita Falls well into the 20th century also rests on the work of two entrepreneurs, Joseph A. Kemp[16]and his brother-in-law, Frank Kell. Kemp and Kell were pioneers in food processing and retailing, flour milling, railroads, cattle, banking, and oil.[17]

Downtown Wichita Falls was the city's main shopping area for many years. Those shops lost ground to the creation of new shopping centers throughout the city beginning with Parker Square in 1953 and other similar developments during the 1960s and 1970s, culminating with the opening ofSikes SenterMall in 1974. The city has been seeking funding to rebuild and restore the downtown area since 2010.[8]

Wichita Falls was once home to offices of several oil companies and related industries, along with oil refineries operated by theContinental Oil Company(nowConocoPhillips) until 1952 and Panhandle Oil Company (founded in Wichita Falls, sold toAmerican Petrofinain 1965).[18]Both firms continued to use a portion of their former refineries as gasoline/oil terminal facilities for many years.

1964 tornado

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Main article:1964 Wichita Falls tornado

A devastatingtornadohit the northern and northwestern portions of Wichita Falls, along withSheppard Air Force Baseduring the afternoon of April 3, 1964 (later referred to as "Black Friday" ). As the first violent tornado on record to hit the Wichita Falls area,[19]it left seven dead and more than 100 injured. Additionally, the tornado caused roughly $15 million in property damage with about 225 homes destroyed and another 250 damaged.[20]It was rated F5, the highest rating on theFujita scale,but it is overshadowed by the 1979 tornado.[21]

1979 tornado

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Main article:1979 Red River Valley tornado outbreak § Wichita Falls, Texas

An F4 tornado struck the heavily populated southern sections of Wichita Falls in the late afternoon on Tuesday, April 10, 1979 (known as "Terrible Tuesday" ). It was part of an outbreak that produced 30 tornadoes around the region. Despite having nearly an hour's advance warning thatsevere weatherwas imminent, 42 people were killed (including 25 in vehicles) and 1,800 were injured because it arrived just as many people were driving home from work.[22]It left 20,000 people homeless and caused $400 million in damage, a U.S. record not topped by an individual tornado until the F5Moore–Oklahoma City tornadoof May 3, 1999.[23]

Geography and climate

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Wichita Falls is about 15 miles (24 km) south of the border withOklahoma,115 mi (185 km) northwest ofFort Worth,and 140 mi (230 km) southwest ofOklahoma City.According to theUnited States Census Bureau,the city has a total area of 70.71 square miles (183.1 km2), of which 0.02 square miles (0.052 km2) (0.03%) is covered by water.[24]

Wichita Falls experiences ahumid subtropical climate(Köppen climate classificationCfa), featuring long, very hot and humid summers, and cool winters. The city has some of the highest summer daily maximum temperatures in the entire U.S. outside of theDesert Southwest.Temperatures have hit 100 °F (38 °C) as early as March 27 and as late as October 17, but more typically reach that level on 28 days annually, with 102 days of 90 °F (32 °C) or higher annually; the average window for the latter mark is April 9–October 10. However, 59 to 60 nights of freezing lows occur, and an average of 4.8 days where the high does not rise above freezing. The monthly daily average temperature ranges from 42.0 °F (5.6 °C) in January to 84.4 °F (29.1 °C) in July. The record low temperature is −12 °F (−24 °C) on January 4, 1947. The highest recorded temperature is 117 °F (47 °C) on June 28, 1980. Snowfall is sporadic and averages 4.1 in (10 cm) per season, while rainfall is typically greatest in early summer.

From 2010 through 2013, Wichita Falls, along with a large portion of the south-central US, experienceda persistent drought.In September 2011, Wichita Falls became the first Texas city[25]to have 100 days of 100 °F (38 °C) or higher within one year.[a]On every day from June 22 to August 12, the temperature reached 100 °F or higher, and from May 27 to September 3, the temperature reached 90 °F or higher. In addition, the all-time warm daily minimum of 88 °F (31 °C) was set on July 26, and June, July, and August of that year were all the hottest on record.[26]

During the2015 Texas–Oklahoma floods,Wichita Falls broke its all-time record for the wettest month, with 17.00 inches of rain recorded in May 2015.[27]

Climate data for Wichita Falls, Texas (Wichita Falls Regional Airport), 1991–2020 normals, extremes 1923–present
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °F (°C) 87
(31) 		94
(34) 		100
(38) 		103
(39) 		110
(43) 		117
(47) 		115
(46) 		113
(45) 		112
(44) 		102
(39) 		91
(33) 		91
(33) 		117
(47)
Mean maximum °F (°C) 76.9
(24.9) 		81.9
(27.7) 		88.2
(31.2) 		91.9
(33.3) 		97.4
(36.3) 		101.1
(38.4) 		105.5
(40.8) 		105.2
(40.7) 		100.4
(38.0) 		93.4
(34.1) 		82.8
(28.2) 		77.2
(25.1) 		107.3
(41.8)
Mean daily maximum °F (°C) 54.7
(12.6) 		59.0
(15.0) 		67.9
(19.9) 		76.0
(24.4) 		83.9
(28.8) 		92.0
(33.3) 		97.2
(36.2) 		96.6
(35.9) 		88.3
(31.3) 		77.3
(25.2) 		65.2
(18.4) 		55.7
(13.2) 		76.2
(24.5)
Daily mean °F (°C) 42.4
(5.8) 		46.3
(7.9) 		54.7
(12.6) 		62.8
(17.1) 		71.8
(22.1) 		80.1
(26.7) 		84.7
(29.3) 		84.1
(28.9) 		76.0
(24.4) 		64.6
(18.1) 		52.7
(11.5) 		43.7
(6.5) 		63.7
(17.6)
Mean daily minimum °F (°C) 30.0
(−1.1) 		33.6
(0.9) 		41.6
(5.3) 		49.6
(9.8) 		59.7
(15.4) 		68.3
(20.2) 		72.2
(22.3) 		71.5
(21.9) 		63.8
(17.7) 		51.9
(11.1) 		40.2
(4.6) 		31.8
(−0.1) 		51.2
(10.7)
Mean minimum °F (°C) 15.7
(−9.1) 		19.0
(−7.2) 		24.3
(−4.3) 		34.4
(1.3) 		44.9
(7.2) 		59.9
(15.5) 		65.3
(18.5) 		63.5
(17.5) 		50.7
(10.4) 		35.9
(2.2) 		24.8
(−4.0) 		17.3
(−8.2) 		11.8
(−11.2)
Record low °F (°C) −12
(−24) 		−8
(−22) 		6
(−14) 		24
(−4) 		35
(2) 		50
(10) 		54
(12) 		53
(12) 		38
(3) 		21
(−6) 		14
(−10) 		−7
(−22) 		−12
(−24)
Averageprecipitationinches (mm) 1.20
(30) 		1.40
(36) 		2.02
(51) 		2.50
(64) 		3.81
(97) 		3.35
(85) 		2.02
(51) 		2.53
(64) 		2.99
(76) 		2.88
(73) 		1.63
(41) 		1.56
(40) 		27.89
(708)
Average snowfall inches (cm) 0.7
(1.8) 		1.1
(2.8) 		0.2
(0.51) 		0.0
(0.0) 		0.0
(0.0) 		0.0
(0.0) 		0.0
(0.0) 		0.0
(0.0) 		0.0
(0.0) 		0.0
(0.0) 		0.3
(0.76) 		0.8
(2.0) 		3.1
(7.87)
Average precipitation days(≥ 0.01 in) 4.6 4.9 6.5 6.6 9.1 7.3 5.2 6.0 6.3 6.9 5.2 4.5 73.1
Average snowy days(≥ 0.1 in) 0.3 0.5 0.1 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.2 0.5 1.6
Source 1: NOAA[28]
Source 2: National Weather Service[26]

Notes:

  1. ^The previous record was 79 in 1980.

Demographics

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Historical population
CensusPop.Note%±
18901,978—
19002,48025.4%
19108,200230.6%
192040,079388.8%
193043,6909.0%
194045,1123.3%
195068,04250.8%
1960101,72449.5%
197096,265−5.4%
198094,201−2.1%
199096,2592.2%
2000104,1978.2%
2010104,5530.3%
2020102,316−2.1%
U.S. Decennial Census[29]
Texas Almanac: 1850–2000[30]

2020 census

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Wichita Falls city, Texas – Racial and ethnic composition
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 may be of any race.
Race / Ethnicity(NH = Non-Hispanic) Pop 2000[31] Pop 2010[32] Pop 2020[33] % 2000 % 2010 % 2020
Whitealone (NH) 71,782 66,509 57,750 68.89% 63.61% 56.44%
Black or African Americanalone (NH) 12,705 12,812 12,838 12.19% 12.25% 12.55%
Native AmericanorAlaska Nativealone (NH) 696 790 737 0.67% 0.76% 0.72%
Asianalone (NH) 2,256 2,396 2,464 2.17% 2.29% 2.41%
Pacific Islanderalone (NH) 90 82 124 0.09% 0.08% 0.12%
Some Other Race alone (NH) 128 98 409 0.12% 0.09% 0.40%
Mixed race or Multiracial(NH) 1,970 2,095 4,813 1.89% 2.00% 4.70%
Hispanic or Latino(any race) 14,570 19,771 23,181 13.98% 18.91% 22.66%
Total 104,197 104,553 102,316 100.00% 100.00% 100.00%

As of the 2022American Community Surveyestimates, there were 102,659 people and 38,057 households.[34][35]Thepopulation densitywas 1,421.2 inhabitants per square mile (548.7/km2). There were 42,641 housing units at an average density of 590.3 per square mile (227.9/km2).[36][35][37]The racial makeup of the city was 72.1% White, 10.8% Black or African American, 3.6% some other race, 2.8% Asian, 1.0% Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander, and 0.6% Native American or Alaskan Native, with 9.1% from two or more races.[35]Hispanics or Latinosof any race were 22.4% of the population.[35]

Of the 38,057 households, 30.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 27.4% had seniors 65 years or older living with them, 40.1% were married couples living together, 6.9% were couples cohabitating, 24.0% had a male householder with no partner present, and 29.0% had a female householder with no partner present.[34]The median household size was 2.39 and the median family size was 2.98.[34]

The age distribution was 22.9% under 18, 13.9% from 18 to 24, 27.0% from 25 to 44, 21.3% from 45 to 64, and 14.9% who were 65 or older. The median age was 34.4 years.[38]For every 100 females, there were 114.6 males.[35]

The median income for a household was $56,091, with family households having a median income of $71,975 and non-family households $35,403. Theper capita incomewas $31,730.[39][40]Out of the 90,842 people with a determined poverty status, 15.2% were below thepoverty line.Further, 21.4% of minors and 16.3% of seniors were below the poverty line.[41]

In the survey, residents self-identified with various ethnic ancestries. People ofGermandescent made up 9.6% of the population of the town, followed byIrishat 6.5%,Englishat 6.3%,Americanat 5.1%,Italianat 2.7%,Swedishat 1.9%,Scotch-Irishat 1.1%,Dutchat 1.1%,Sub-Saharan Africanat 1.0%,Scottishat 0.9%,Frenchat 0.9%, andNorwegianat 0.8%.[34]

Economy

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Memorial Day parade atSheppard Air Force Base

Top employers

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According to Wichita Falls Chamber of Commerce, the top employers in the city are:

# Employer # of Employees
1 Sheppard Air Force Base 7,222
2 Wichita Falls Independent School District 2,378
3 United Regional Health Care System 2,100
4 Midwestern State University 1,276
5 City of Wichita Falls 1,217
6 Arconic 1,072
7 Walmart(three locations) 1,009
8 North Texas State Hospital-Wichita Falls campus 1,000
9 Vitro[42] 934
10 Texas Department of Criminal JusticeJames V. Allred Unit[43] 921

Media

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See also:List of newspapers in Texas,List of radio stations in Texas,andList of television stations in Texas

Wichita Falls'media marketalso includes the nearby, smaller city ofLawton, Oklahoma.According toNielsen Media Researchestimates for the 2016–17 season, the market – which encompasses 10 counties in westernNorth Texasand six counties in southwestern Oklahoma, has 152,950 households with at least one television set, making it the 148th-largest television market in the United States; the market also has an average of 120,200 radio listeners ages 12 and over, making it the 250th-largest radio market in the nation.[44][45]

Newspapers

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Television stations

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KERA-TVout ofDallas–Fort Worthserves as the defaultPBSmember station for Wichita Falls via atranslator stationon UHF channel 44.

Radio stations

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Sports and recreation

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Kay Yeager Coliseum

Recreation

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Lucy Park

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Lucy Park is a 170-acre (69 ha) park with a log cabin, duck pond, swimming pool, playground,frisbee golfcourse, and picnic areas. It has multiple paved walkways suitable for walking, running, biking, or rollerskating, including a river walk that goes to a man-made waterfall feature in lieu of the original falls for which the city was named (the original falls, located in the river, were destroyed in a 19th-century flood; the new waterfall attraction, located in the park and discharging into the river, were built in response to numerous tourist requests to visit the "Wichita Falls" ). It is one of 37 parks throughout the city. The parks range in size from small neighborhood facilities to the 258 acres of Weeks Park featuring the Champions Course at Weeks Park, an 18-hole golf course. In addition, an off-leash dog park is withinLake Wichita Parkand a skatepark adjacent to the city's softball complex. Also, unpaved trails for off-road biking and hiking are available.[46]

Hotter'N Hell Hundred

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Wichita Falls is the home of the annualHotter'N Hell Hundred,the largest single-daycentury bicycle ridein the United States and one of the largest races in the world. The race started as a way for the city to celebrate its centennial in 1982. The race takes place over a weekend in August, and multiple events are hosted for people to participate.[47]

Sports

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In 2014, theWichita Falls Nighthawks,anindoor footballteam, joined theIndoor Football League[48]but suspended operations after the 2017 season.

The city has also been home to a number of semiprofessional, developmental, and minor league sports teams, including the Wichita Falls Drillers (bankrupt 2002), a semipro football team that won numerous league titles and a national championship; the professional basketball teamWichita Falls Texans(relocated 1994, bankrupt 1996) of theContinental Basketball Association;Wichita Falls Fever(bankrupt 1992) in theLone Star Soccer Alliance;theWichita Falls Spuddersbaseball team (bankrupt 1957) in theTexas League;theWichita Falls Wildcats(bankrupt 2017) of theNorth American Hockey League,an AmericanTier II juniorhockey league; and the Wichita Falls Roughnecks (bankrupt 2008) of theTexas Collegiate League.[citation needed]TheDallas Cowboysheld training camp in Wichita Falls during the late 1990s.[citation needed]In 2015, it was acknowledged that the sustainability of minor or rookie league sports franchises in the Wichita Falls region had a questionable future.[49]

TheProfessional Wrestling Hall of Famerelocated to Wichita Falls fromAmsterdam, New York,in November 2015.

Government

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Local government

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The mayor of Wichita Falls is Tim Short, who was elected on November 7, 2023. Mayors are elected on anonpartisanballot.

The Wichita Falls City Council has six members:

  • District 1: Michael Smith
  • District 2: Larry Nelson
  • District 3: Jeff Browning
  • District 4: Mike Battaglino
  • District 5: Tom Taylor
  • At-large: Bobby Whiteley

The city manager is Darron Leiker.

List of mayors of Wichita Falls[50]
Name Term Start Term End
Otis T. Bacon 1889 1892
J.Q. Morrison 1892 1894
Charles O. Joline 1894 1898
Charles W. Bean 1900 1904
T.B. Noble 1904 1912
Jonathan M. Bell 1912 1914
J.W. Bradley 1914 1914
A.H. Britain 1914 1918
J.B. Marlow 1918 1920
Walter D. Cline 1920 1922
Frank Collier 1922 1925
R.E. Shepherd 1925 1928
Joseph William Akin 1928 1930
Walter Nelson, Jr. 1930 1934
John Thomas Young 1934 1936
William Edward Fitzgerald 1936 1942
W.P. (Bill) Hood 1942 1944
W.B. Hamilton 1944 1948
Harold Jones 1948 1952
Kindall Paulk 1952 1954
Lloyd Thomas 1954 1956
K.C. Spell 1956 1960
Kenneth Johnson 1960 1962
John Gavin 1962 1964
Winston Wallander 1964 1966
R.C. "Dick" Rancier 1966 1970
R. Kenneth Hill 1970 1974
Max Kruger 1974 1978
Kenneth Hill 1978 1984
Gary Cook 1982 1986
Charles Harper 1986 1988
Perry Goolsby 1988 1990
Michael Lam 1990 1996
Kay Yeager 1996 2000
Jerry Lueck 2000 2002
William Altman 2002 2005
Arthur B. Williams 2005 2005
Lanham Lyne 2005 2010
Glenn Barham 2010 2016[51]
Stephen Santellana 2016 2023
Tim Short 2023 present

State and federal politics

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Wichita Falls is located in the 69th district of theTexas House of Representatives.Lanham Lyne,aRepublican,represented the district from 2011 to 2013; he was the mayor of Wichita Falls from 2005 to 2010. When Lyne declined to seek a second term in 2012, voters chose another Republican,James Frank.Wichita Falls is located in the30th districtof theTexas Senate.Craig Estes,a Republican, had held the senate seat since 2001, untilPat Fallonwon election in 2018. Wichita Falls is part ofTexas's 13th congressional districtfor the U.S. House of Representatives.Ronny Jackson,a Republican, has held this seat since 2021.

The Texas Department of Criminal JusticeJames V. Allred Unitis located in Wichita Falls, 4 mi (6.4 km) northwest of downtown. The prison is named for formerGovernorJames V. Allred,aDemocratand a native ofBowie, Texas,who lived early in his career in Wichita Falls.[52]TheUnited States Postal Serviceoperates the Wichita Falls Post Office, the Morningside Post Office, the Bridge Creek Post Office, and theSheppard Air Force BasePost Office.[53]

Education

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Primary and secondary schools

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Public primary and secondary educationis covered by the following school districts:Wichita Falls Independent School District,City View Independent School District,Burkburnett Independent School District,andIowa Park Consolidated Independent School District.[54]Several private and parochial schools operate in the city, as does an activehome-schoolcommunity. Many of the local elementary schools participate in theHead Startprogram for preschool-aged children.

Two schools in the Wichita Falls ISD participate in theInternational Baccalaureateprograms.Hirschi High Schooloffers theIB Diploma Programme,and G.H. Kirby Junior High School for theMiddle Years Programme.Other public high schools areWichita Falls High SchoolandS. H. Rider High School(Wichita Falls ISD) andCity View High School(City View ISD).

By 1879, the first school was established. The first public school was a log structure established in the 1880s; in 1885, it was replaced with a former courthouse.Wichita Falls High Schoolopened in 1890. That year, a school district was created, but problems with the law allowing its establishment meant it was dissolved in 1894 and the city provided schooling until the second establishment of a school district in 1900. In 1908, theTexas Legislatureissued a charter for WFISD.[55]

The city has a school for German children, Deutsche Schule Sheppard (DSS).[56]

Higher education

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Hardin Administration Building atMidwestern State University

Wichita Falls is home toMidwestern State University,an accredited four-year college in theTexas Tech University Systemand the only independent liberal arts college in Texas offering both bachelor's and master'sdegrees.[57]

Vernon Collegeis the designated community college for all of Wichita County.[58]A local branch nearby offers two-year degrees, certificate programs, and workforce development programs

Wayland Baptist University,offering both bachelor's and master's degrees, has its main branch located inPlainview, Texas.

Transportation

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Highways

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Wichita Falls is the western terminus forInterstate 44.U.S. Highwaysleading to or through Wichita Falls include287,277,281,and82.State Highway 240ends at Wichita Falls andState Highway 79runs through it. Wichita Falls has one of the largest freeway mileages for a city of its size[citation needed]as a result of a 1954 bond issue approved by city and county voters to purchase rights-of-way for several expressway routes through the city and county, the first of which was opened in the year 1958 as an alignment of U.S. 287 from Eighth Street at Broad and Holliday Streets northwestward across the Wichita River and bisecting Lucy and Scotland Parks to the Old Iowa Park Road, the original U.S. 287 alignment.[citation needed]That was followed by other expressway links including U.S. 82–287 east toHenrietta(completed in the year 1968), U.S. 281 south towardJacksboro(completed 1969), U.S. 287 northwest toIowa ParkandElectra(opened 1962), Interstate 44 north toBurkburnettand the Red River (opened 1964), and Interstate 44 from Old Iowa Park Road to U.S. 287/Spur 325 interchange on the city's north side along with Spur 325 from I-44/U.S. 287 to the main gate of Sheppard Air Force Base (both completed as a single project in 1960). However, cross-country traffic for many years had to contend with several ground-level intersections and traffic lights over Holliday and Broad Streets near the downtown area for about 13 blocks between connecting expressway links until a new elevated freeway running overhead was completed in 2001.[citation needed]

Efforts to create an additional freeway along the path of Kell Boulevard for U.S. 82–277 began in 1967 with the acquisition of right-of-way that included a former railroad right-of-way and the first project including construction of the present frontage roads completed in 1977, followed by freeway lanes, overpasses, and on/off ramps in 1989 from just east of Brook Avenue west to Kemp Boulevard; similar projects west from Kemp to Barnett Road in 2001 followed by Barnett Road west past FM 369 in 2010 to tie in which a project now underway to transform U.S. 277 into a continuous four-lane expressway between Wichita Falls and Abilene.[59]

Public transportation

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The city operates a bus system, Falls Ride, which runs on an hourly schedule with seven routes (except on Sundays, when only one route is in operation).[60]

Greyhound Linesprovidesintercity busservice to other locations served by Greyhound via its new terminal at the Wichita Falls Travel Center located at Fourth and Scott in downtown.[61]Skylark Van Service shuttles passengers to and from Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport on several runs during the day all week long.[62]

TheWichita Falls Municipal Airportis served byAmerican Eagle,with two flights daily to theDallas/Fort Worth International Airport.TheKickapoo Downtown Airportand the Wichita Valley Airport serve smaller, private planes.

Although still in the planning phase, local officials are currently working to potentially bring anAmtrakstop to the city. Wichita Falls last had passenger rail service in 1967.[63]

Landmarks

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  • Newby-McMahon Building,completed in 1919, also known as the "Worlds Littlest Skyscraper"
  • Sacred Heart Catholic Church
  • Episcopal Church of the Good Shepherd, 1915
  • Railroad exhibit at Depot Square
  • The Wichita Falls City Hall occupies the bottom floor of the Memorial Auditorium, 1927

Notable people

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See also

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Notes

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References

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  1. ^"Wichita Falls mayor speaks to Wichita County Republican Women".Wichita Falls.RetrievedMarch 24,2019.
  2. ^"2019 U.S. Gazetteer Files".United States Census Bureau.RetrievedAugust 7,2020.
  3. ^abU.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Wichita Falls, Texas
  4. ^"U.S. Census website".United States Census Bureau.RetrievedSeptember 4,2014.
  5. ^"U.S. Census website".United States Census Bureau.RetrievedJanuary 31,2008.
  6. ^"Find a County".National Association of Counties.RetrievedJune 7,2011.
  7. ^"U.S. Census Bureau Quickfacts: Wichita Falls city, Texas".RetrievedJanuary 3,2024.
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  13. ^Whitaker, Bill (August 20, 1998)."Cowboys Mosey On, But Littlest Skyscraper Remains".Abilene Reporter-News.Abilene, Texas:E. W. Scripps Company.ISSN0199-3267.Archived fromthe originalon June 14, 2011.RetrievedOctober 9,2010.But when the building was done, investors discovered the skyscraper was only 30 feet tall, 18 feet deep and 10 feet wide. And of the reportedly $200,000 sunk into the skyscraper's construction – well, that was plainly gone with the wind.
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  36. ^To calculate density we use the land area figure from the places file in"The 2023 U.S. Gazetteer Files".
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Bibliography

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See also:Bibliography of the history of Wichita Falls, Texas
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