Victoria, Texas
Victoria is a city in
Victoria County,
Texas,
United States. The population was 60,603 at the 2000 census. It is the
county seat of
Victoria County. Victoria is the cathedral city of the
Roman Catholic Diocese of Victoria in Texas. Victoria is home to
Victoria College, the
University of Houstonâ€"Victoria, MLB players
Doug Drabek and
Ron Gant and WWE wrestler
"Stone Cold" Steve Austin. It is the principal city of the Victoria
metropolitan statistical area.
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Location of Victoria, Texas |
Victoria is located at (28.816866, -96.993462). It is one of the state's old, historic cities. The original colony founded in 1824 was named for the first president of Mexico, Don Guadalupe Victoria.
According to the
United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 85.8
km² (33.1
mi²). 85.4 km² (33.0 mi²) of it is land and 0.4 km² (0.2 mi²) of it (0.45%) is water.
As of the
census of 2000, there were 60,603 people, 22,129 households, and 15,755 families residing in the city. The
population density was 709.7/km² (1,838.3/mi²). There were 24,192 housing units at an average density of 283.3/km² (733.8/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 71.18%
White, 42.92%
Hispanic or
Latino of any race, 17.31% from
other races, 7.59%
African American, 2.35% from two or more races, 1.01%
Asian, 0.51%
Native American, and 0.04%
Pacific Islander.
There were 22,129 households out of which 36.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.4% were
married couples living together, 14.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.8% were non-families. 24.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.68 and the average family size was 3.21.
In the city the population was spread out with 28.8% under the age of 18, 9.7% from 18 to 24, 28.0% from 25 to 44, 21.0% from 45 to 64, and 12.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females there were 92.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.8 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $36,829, and the median income for a family was $42,866. Males had a median income of $34,184 versus $21,161 for females. The
per capita income for the city was $19,009. About 12.2% of families and 14.7% of the population were below the
poverty line, including 20.4% of those under age 18 and 12.2% of those age 65 or over.
Victoria, Texas, is located 30 miles inland from the Gulf of Mexico and is within a two-hour drive of Corpus Christi, Houston, San Antonio and Austin. Victoria is a regional hub for a seven county area and serves a retail trade area of over 250,000 people.
Known as the South Texas Crossroads, Victoria is located at the intersection of three major U. S. highways.
U. S. Highway 59 (future I-69) is a four-lane divided interstate quality highway extending southwest to Laredo and northeast to Houston where it meets I-10 and I-45.
U. S. Highway 77 travels north from Victoria to the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex intersecting I-10, I-35, and I-37. U. S. 77 travels south via a four-lane divided highway to the Rio Grande Valley.
U. S. Highway 87 travels northeast connecting Victoria to San Antonio providing access to I-35. U. S. 87 also connects with Port Lavaca to the southeast.
Victoria is a regional transportation hub for the surrounding counties with local access to major large and small freight carriers,
Victoria Regional Airport, railway terminals, the shallow draft
Port of Victoria, and the deep water
Port of Port Lavaca-Point Comfort.
For more than a century, the children of the public and private schools of Victoria have been building their futures on a solid educational foundation. The
Victoria Independent School District motto is "Everyone Can Learn." That motto is a core belief that all children should have the opportunities that will help them to reach their fullest potential.
Victoria Independent School District has led the way in developing curriculum that goes beyond basic academics. The business community has joined school personnel in helping to develop local standards in addition to national and state standards. The District carefully researches, evaluates and fine-tunes each program in a process that has gained state and national recognition. Courses of study at VISD magnet school campuses are enhanced through advanced technology, in-depth experiences, and field learning activities that are designed to nurture every child's imagination and celebrate cultural and ethnic diversity. A career and technology center offers vocational training in 12 areas including electronics, building trades, computer networking, cosmetology, and Process Operation Technology for petrochemical plants.
Victoria's private schools offer young men and women the opportunity to excel in academics, athletics and fine arts in a nurturing atmosphere. Advanced Placement courses augment traditional academic and honors courses. State-of-the art technology, complemented by extracurricular activities, offer unique opportunities for personal, physical, social and spiritual development.
More than 60 colleges and universities are located within a 125-mile radius of Victoria including the University of Texas, Texas A&M University, Rice University and the University of Houston. Some of the nations premier research facilities are located on these campuses. For those students wanting a quality education closer to home, it's a short commute to a higher education at
The Victoria College and
University of Houston-Victoria.
On April 8, 1824, Don Martin De León petitioned the provincial delegation at San Fernando de Béxar to settle forty-one Mexican families on the lower Guadalupe and founded the town of Nuestra Señora Guadalupe de Jesús Victoria. The colonization grant was approved on April 13. Patricia De León (wife of Martin De León) contributed $9,800 and cows, horses, and mules valued at $300, which she inherited from her father. De León's colony was the only predominantly Mexican colony in Texas, and as a Mexican citizen the empresario received legal preference in the numerous border disputes with American settlements encircling Guadalupe Victoria. In 1829 he obtained a second contract to settle one hundred and fifty families within an area of ten leagues from the coast, and complied with that contract, founding the town of Victoria.
Victoria was the site of
Foster Air Force Base before its decommissioning in
1958.
Big-city convenience and small-town friendliness are two Victoria ingredients that blend to appeal to all ages. The moderate climate, comparative low cost of goods and services, and ease of travel allow residents and tourists alike to take advantage of abundant recreational opportunities, festivals, cultural attractions, outdoor events and sport opportunities every month of the year.Unique in concept, Victoria's 562 acre
Riverside Park is home to the
National Zoo of Texas which houses more than 200 species of animals and plants that are indigenous to Texas exhibiting them in their natural habitat.Golf is a big part of Victoria activities, not only for residents but also for many visitors who enjoy the three golf courses located in our city. Sportsmen are attracted to the abundant fishing and hunting. Major rivers, natural and man-made lakes, salt marshes and coastal bay systems shelter an incredible variety of fish and wildlife for year-round fishing and hunting.
The
Victoria Symphony,
MacNamara House,
Nave Museum,
Victoria Community Theatre, the Fine
Arts Association,
Bach Festival,
Victoria Ballet Theatre, the
Victoria Performing Arts Center, and
Summer Repertory Theater are but a few of the cultural organizations that present the finer things to Victorians.
Victoria Bach Festival - Founded in 1976, the four-day June festival features symphonic, chamber and choral works from every period, with an emphasis on the baroque. Artists from Texas and all over the United States perform works by Beethoven, Mozart, Bach and many others. The festival has been featured on
National Public Radio and has performed in Goliad and San Antonio, Texas.
Victoria Fine Arts Association - Known for bringing to Victoria such artists as
Luciano Pavaroti,
Roberta Peters,
Fred Waring,
Ferrante and Teicher, the Association offers a season of five to six concerts per year and has been providing quality and diverse entertainment to Victorians for nearly 50 years.
The Victoria Ballet Theatre, established in April 1984, presents two yearly performances for the enjoyment of Victoria residents. The highly anticipated yearly performance of
Tchaikovsky's The Nutcracker is a December tradition missed by few. In Spring, there's a little something for everyone at the Spring Gala, a mixed repertory program.
The Victoria Community Theatre - This performing arts organization serves approximately 15,000 theatre enthusiasts per year.
Theatre Victoria is gaining a distinguished statewide and national reputation for presenting quality theatrical productions. The Theatre plays host to six locally produced plays written by world famous playwrights and local Victoria talent in addition to offering childrens productions and a youth academy to train young talent.
The Victoria Symphony, under the direction of
Maestro Daryl One, is a leading artistic force in this area and patrons and the media alike praise its performances. Featured in two hour-long programs on
National Public Radio, the Orchestra consists of approximately 65 talented musicians from Victoria, Austin, San Antonio, Corpus Christi and other communities throughout Texas. Dedicated to excellence, the Victoria Symphony has attracted such acclaimed artists as
Santiago Rodriguez,
Nathaniel Rosen,
Nancy Allen,
David Hickman,
Peter Zazovsky, and the late Leonard
Rose. A typical season consists of five performances with varied repertoire, usually including a pop concert.
The
Victoria Public Library contains approximetly 127,000 volumes at its downtown location.
The Victoria College and the
University of Houston-Victoria share a library on their joint campus.
Victoria has 1,260 hotel/motel rooms for visitors. The
Victoria Community Center is the largest enclosed convention/exhibit facility in the Golden Crescent region, with over 68,000 square feet. The
Victoria Chamber of Commerce,
Victoria African-American Chamber of Commerce, and the
Victoria Convention and Visitors Bureau can assist with tourism-related inquires.
Victoria is located on
U.S. Highway 59, which is scheduled to be part of the new
Interstate 69. It is served by
Victoria Regional Airport and the
Port of Victoria.
*
City of Victoria, Texas*
VictoriaCrossroads information*
Victoria Economic Development Corporation economic development*
The Victoria Advocate newspaper*
Catholic Diocese of Victoria in Texas
