Wikipedia

North Texas

This article is about the region of Texas. For the university in Denton, seeUniversity of North Texas.For the soccer team, seeNorth Texas SC.

North Texasis a term used primarily by residents of theDallas–Fort Worth metroplex[7][8]to refer to a geographic area of Texas, generally considered to include the area south ofOklahoma,east ofAbilene,west ofParis,and north ofWaco.[9]Definitions of the region usually don't include the sparsely populatedPanhandle of Texas,which is the northernmost region of Texas bordered byNew Mexicoto the west andOklahomato the north and east.[10][11]

North Texas
Region
From top, left to right:Downtown Dallas,Downtown Fort Worth,Denison Commercial Historic District
North Texas counties in red
North Texas counties in red
CountryUnited States
StateTexas
Largest cityDallas
Population
(2020)
• Total8,584,519[1][2][3][4][5][6]

North Texas is centered upon the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the largestmetropolitan areain Texas and theSouthern United States.People in theDallasand Fort Worth areas sometimes use the termsMetroplex,DFW,andNorth Texasinterchangeably. However, North Texas refers to a much larger area that includes many northern rural counties along theRed River of the Southborder.[12]

History

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Indigenous tribes in North Texas included theCaddo,Tawakoni,Wichita,Kickapoo,andComanche.[13][14][15]With European colonization,Mexican independence,andTexan independenceandannexation to the United States,many of these tribes experienced demographic decline through relocation, slavery, etc. Since European colonization and the independence movements, the North Texas area was settled and most notably developed the cities of Dallas and Fort Worth.

Climate

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The North Texas climate issubtropicalwith hot summers. It is alsocontinental,characterized by a wide annual temperature range. Average annualprecipitationalso varies considerably, ranging from less than 28 to more than 48 inches (700–1200 mm). Severestormsare frequent in the spring and summer, as the area lies in the southern section of "tornado alley".

South is the prevailing wind direction, and southerly winds are frequently high and persist for several days. Strong northerly winds often occur during the passage of cold fronts.

Winters can be mild, but northers occur about three times each month, and often are accompanied by sudden drops in temperature. In Dallas, a record-setting 12.8 inches of snow fell in February 2010. Periods of extreme cold that occasionally occur are short-lived, so that even in January mild weather occurs frequently.[16]

The highest temperatures of summer are associated with fair skies, and moderate to high humidities. Characteristically, hot spells in summer are broken into three- to five-day periods bythunderstormactivity. There are only a few nights each summer when the low temperature exceeds 80 °F (27 °C). Summer daytime temperatures frequently exceed 100 °F (38 °C). Air conditioners are recommended for maximum comfort indoors and while traveling via automobile.

Throughout the year, rainfall occurs more frequently during the night. Usually, periods of rainy weather last for only a day or two, and are followed by several days with fair skies. A large part of the annual precipitation results from thunderstorm activity, with occasional heavy rainfall over brief periods of time. Thunderstorms occur throughout the year, but are most frequent in the spring and early summer months.Hailfalls on about two or three days a year, ordinarily with only slight and scattered damage. Windstorms occurring during thunderstorm activity are sometimes destructive.Snowfallis uncommon.

The average length of the warm season (freeze-free period) is about 249 days. The average last occurrence of 32 °F (0 °C) or below is mid March and the average first occurrence of 32 °F or below is in late November.[17]

Counties

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Although the terms "Northeastern Texas" or "North Texas" are not official state designations, the Texas State Data Center and Office of the State Demographer lists the following counties as belonging to theNorth Central Texas Council of Governments(NCTCOG):[18][19]

The Texas State Demographer also lists the following regional county groupings, some or all of which are often included in the informal meaning of the terms "North Texas" or "North Central Texas".

Additionally, some other Texas counties contiguous with those named above are sometimes included in the general meaning of "North Texas".

Major cities

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City Population (2023) State rank U.S. rank

Dallas 		1,259,404 3 9

Fort Worth 		961,885 5 13

Arlington 		390,399 7 50

Plano 		291,450 9 69

Garland 		235,293 12 91

Irving 		248,931 13 93

Grand Prairie 		199,395 15 127

McKinney 		214,302 17 155

Frisco 		227,528 18 162

Mesquite 		143,792 20 181

Carrollton 		132,935 23 197

Denton 		160,564 26 202

Richardson 		113,613 32 255

Wichita Falls 		103,687 35 285

Lewisville 		114,170 36 288

Allen 		109,411 40

Flower Mound 		79,102 50

Other cities and towns

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Statistical areas

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In the North Texas region there is onecombined statistical area,threemetropolitan areas,and sevenmicropolitan areas.

Dallas–Fort Worth TX-OK combined statistical area

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Metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs)

Metropolitan divisions in the Dallas–Fort Worth–Arlington MSA:
Dallas–Plano–Irving
Fort Worth–Arlington–Grapevine
  • Dallas–Fort Worth–Arlingtonis the only MSA in Texas subdivided into metropolitan divisions:
    • Dallas–Plano–Irving (Collin, Dallas, Denton, Ellis, Hunt, Kaufman, and Rockwall counties)
    • Fort Worth–Arlington–Grapevine (Johnson, Parker, Tarrant, and Wise counties)
  • Sherman–Denison(Grayson County)

Micropolitan statistical areas (μSAs)

Wichita Falls area

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Metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs)

Micropolitan statistical areas (μSAs)

Other

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Micropolitan statistical Areas (μSAs)

Economy

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Top employers

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Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex[22]

Company No. of employees
locally 		Type of business
Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. 34,000 Retail
American Airlines 27,000 Commercial airline
Texas Health Resources 22,296 Health care
Dallas Independent School District 19,740 Education
Baylor Health Care System 16,500 Health care

Wichita Falls metropolitan area[23]

# Employer # of Employees
1 Sheppard Air Force Base 12,272
2 Wichita Falls Independent School District 2,059
3 North Texas State Hospital 1,974
4 United Regional Health Care System 1,778
5 City of Wichita Falls 1,477
6 Midwestern State University 1,284
7 James V. Allred Unit 971
8 Cryovac 732
9 Work Services Corporation 730
10 Howmet Castings 704

Sherman–Denison metropolitan area[24]

# Employer # of Employees
1 Tyson Foods 1,400
2 Texoma Health Systems 1,375
3 Texas Instruments 1,200
4 Cigna 1,000
5 Wilson N Jones Health Systems 1,000

Colleges and universities

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Public universities
School Enrollment Location Mascot Athletic affiliation
(conference) 		University system

The University of North Texas 		46,940 Denton Mean Green NCAA Division IFBS
(American) 		University of North Texas System

University of Texas at Arlington 		40,990 Arlington Mavericks NCAA Division I
(WAC)
Non–Football 		University of Texas System

University of Texas at Dallas 		30,885 Richardson Comets NCAA Division III
(American Southwest)
Non–Football 		University of Texas System

Texas Woman's University 		15,472 Denton Pioneers NCAA Division II
(Lone Star)
Women's sports only 		Independent

Tarleton State University 		14,092 Stephenville Texans NCAA Division IFCS
(WAC) 		Texas A&M University System

Texas A&M University–Commerce 		10,966 Commerce Lions NCAA Division IFCS
(Southland) 		Texas A&M University System

Midwestern State University 		6,102 Wichita Falls Mustangs NCAA Division II
(Lone Star) 		Independent

University of North Texas at Dallas 		3,513 Dallas Trailblazers NAIA
(Sooner)
Non–Football 		University of North Texas System
Private universities
School Enrollment Location Mascot Athletic affiliation
(conference)

Southern Methodist University 		11,643 University Park Mustangs NCAA Division IFBS
(American)

Texas Christian University 		10,323 Fort Worth Horned Frogs NCAA Division IFBS
(Big 12)

Dallas Baptist University 		5,445 Dallas Patriots NCAA Division II
(Lone Star)
Non–Football, compete in theMissouri Valley Conferenceat theDivision Ilevel for baseball

Texas Wesleyan University 		3,378 Fort Worth Rams NAIA
(Sooner)

University of Dallas 		2,576 Irving Crusaders NCAA Division III
(SCAC)
Non–Football, compete inTexas Rugby Unionat theDivision IIlevel for Rugby

Southwestern Assemblies of God University 		2,012 Waxahachie Lions NAIANCCAA
(Sooner)

Austin College 		1,224 Sherman Roos NCAA Division III
(SCAC)
Compete in theSouthern Athletic Associationfor football

Paul Quinn College 		600 Dallas Tigers NAIA
(Red River)
Non–Football

Sports

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The North Texas region has teams from the four major professional sports leagues. Major professional sports first came to the area in 1960, when theDallas Cowboysbegan competing in theNational Football Leagueand the Dallas Texans began competing in theAmerican Football League.(The Texans later relocated toKansas Cityand became theChiefs). In 1972,Major League Baseball'sWashington Senators moved to Arlington to become theTexas Rangers,named after thestatewide law enforcement agency.TheNational Basketball Associationexpanded into North Texas in 1980 when theDallas Maverickswere added to the league. The fourth sport was added in 1993 when theMinnesota North Starsof theNational Hockey Leaguemoved to Dallas, becoming theDallas Stars.

TheMajor League SoccerteamFC Dallasis based in Frisco, and theDallas Wingsof theW NBAplays in Arlington. The area is also home to many minor league professional teams and four colleges that compete inNCAA Division Iathletics.

Major professional sports teams

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Club Sport Founded League Venue

Dallas Cowboys 		Football 1960 NFL AT&T Stadium

Texas Rangers 		Baseball 1972^ MLB Globe Life Field

Dallas Mavericks 		Basketball 1980 NBA American Airlines Center

Dallas Stars 		Hockey 1993^ NHL American Airlines Center

FC Dallas 		Soccer 1996 MLS Toyota Stadium

Dallas Wings 		Basketball 2015^ W NBA College Park Center

^- Indicates year team relocated to the area

Other professional teams

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Club Sport Founded League Venue
Allen Americans Hockey 2009 ECHL Credit Union of Texas Event Center
Dallas Jackals Rugby union 2022 Major League Rugby Choctaw Stadium
Dallas Sidekicks Indoor soccer 2012 Major Arena Soccer League Credit Union of Texas Event Center
Frisco Fighters Indoor football 2021 Indoor Football League Comerica Center
Frisco RoughRiders Baseball 2003^ Double-A Central Dr Pepper Ballpark
Fort Worth Vaqueros FC Soccer 2014 National Premier Soccer League Farrington Field
Panther City Lacrosse Club Lacrosse 2021 National Lacrosse League Dickies Arena
Texas Legends Basketball 2010^ NBA G League Comerica Center

^- Indicates year team relocated to the area

Division I college teams

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School City Mascot Conference

University of Texas at Arlington 		Arlington Mavericks Sun Belt Conference

University of North Texas 		Denton Mean Green Conference USA

Southern Methodist University 		University Park Mustangs American Athletic Conference

Texas Christian University 		Fort Worth Horned Frogs Big 12 Conference

Texas A&M University–Commerce

Commerce Lions Southland Conference

Dallas Baptist University 		Dallas Patriots Missouri Valley Conference(baseball only)

The headquarters for both the Big 12 and Conference USA are located inIrving,and the Southland Conference headquarters are inFrisco.

Transportation

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Commercial airports

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Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport

Public transit

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Dallas Area Rapid Transit

Major highways

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Interstates

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Interstate 20
Interstate 35E

U.S. Routes

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U.S. Route 75
U.S. Route 82
U.S. Route 287

Tollways

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Dallas North Tollway

See also

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References

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  1. ^"U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts: Hood County, Texas; Erath County, Texas; Denton County, Texas; Ellis County, Texas; Collin County, Texas; Dallas County, Texas".Census.gov.Retrieved2022-07-20.
  2. ^"U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts: Parker County, Texas; Palo Pinto County, Texas; Navarro County, Texas; Kaufman County, Texas; Johnson County, Texas; Hunt County, Texas".Census.gov.Retrieved2022-07-20.
  3. ^"U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts: Baylor County, Texas; Archer County, Texas; Wise County, Texas; Tarrant County, Texas; Somervell County, Texas; Rockwall County, Texas".Census.gov.Retrieved2022-07-20.
  4. ^"U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts: Montague County, Texas; Jack County, Texas; Hardeman County, Texas; Foard County, Texas; Cottle County, Texas; Clay County, Texas".Census.gov.Retrieved2022-07-20.
  5. ^"U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts:Grayson County, Texas; Fannin County, Texas; Cooke County, Texas; Young County, Texas; Wilbarger County, Texas; Wichita County, Texas".Census.gov.Retrieved2022-07-20.
  6. ^"U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts: Taylor County, Texas; Jones County, Texas; Haskell County, Texas; Knox County, Texas; Hamilton County, Texas".Census.gov.Retrieved2022-07-20.
  7. ^"North Texas Facts and Figures from the North Texas Commission".NTC-DFW.Retrieved2022-06-02.It is a 9,000-square-mile, 13-county region that is home to 7.5 million people. North Texas is made up of 150 cities – including Dallas and Fort Worth – with 15 of those cities boasting a population of more than 100,000.
  8. ^"TSHA | Grayson County".tshaonline.org.Retrieved2022-06-02.Grayson County, in north central Texas, is bordered by the Red River and by Fannin, Collin, Denton, and Cooke counties. The county seat, Sherman, which lies approximately sixty-five miles north of Dallas, is part of the Sherman-Denison Metropolitan Statistical Area.
  9. ^"North Central Texas Council of Governments".Texas Association of Regional Councils.Retrieved2022-06-02.
  10. ^"Counties in the North Central Texas Region of Texas - US Travel Notes".travelnotes.org.Retrieved2022-06-02.
  11. ^"Why Grayson County? | North Texas Regional Airport".Retrieved2022-06-02.
  12. ^"W5JCK Map of North-Central Texas Counties".Archived fromthe originalon 9 April 2016.Retrieved26 March2023.
  13. ^"Indians".
  14. ^"What happened to Native American tribes that once existed in North Texas? Curious Texas investigates".Dallas News.25 December 2020.Retrieved26 March2023.
  15. ^Murray, Brandon (24 November 2021)."Tales from the Dallas History Archives: Honoring Native American Heritage Month".Retrieved26 March2023.
  16. ^"Snow: Dallas/Fort Worth's Top-20 Largest Snowfalls on Record".Retrieved26 March2023.
  17. ^"DFW Climate Narrative".
  18. ^abc"Counties by Regional Councils of Governments".Retrieved26 March2023.
  19. ^"NCTCOG.org".Archived fromthe originalon 17 May 2008.Retrieved26 March2023.
  20. ^"Counties".Archived fromthe originalon 2008-11-20.Retrieved2008-05-20.
  21. ^Texoma Council of Governments
  22. ^Dallas Business Journal 2016
  23. ^"City of Wichita CAFR"(PDF).Retrieved26 March2023.
  24. ^"Sherman-Denison Employers".Archived fromthe originalon 2015-06-11.Retrieved2016-06-02.
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