History
1541 - A Spanish conquistador named Francisco Coronado was the first
European to visit the Amarillo-region.
1887 - Amarillo was founded.
1918 - The founding of oil in the Texas Panhandle brought oil and gas
companies to the region.
1929 - The Amarillo Helium Plant started operations.
1934 - Amarillo was hit by the infamous Dust Bowl.
1998 - Oprah Winfrey was sued by cattlemen for beef-defamation and the trial
was held in Amarillo. Oprah moved her popular TV show temporarily from
Chicago to Amarillo.
2003 - Amarillo native, Rick Husband was killed along with the rest of the
STS-107 crew when the Space Shuttle Columbia disintegrated after reentry
into the Earth's atmosphere.
Geography
Amarillo is located at 35°11'57" North, 101°50'43" West (35.199252,
-101.845163).
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of
233.9 km˛ (90.3 mi˛). 232.7 km˛ (89.9 mi˛) of it is land and 1.2 km˛ (0.4
mi˛) of it is water. The total area is 0.50% water.
Economy
The city is the self-proclaimed "Helium Capital of the World" and is one of
the largest beef producing cities in the United States. The city also has
major industry plants such as Bell Helicopter (a helicopter plant), Owens
Corning (a fiberglass plant), Iowa Beef Packers, and Pantex (a nucluear
weapons plant). The city is also surrounded by farmers with wheat as the
main crop. In the past Amarillo was home to a US Air Force base but was
closed in the seventies.
Airport
Rick Husband Amarillo International Airport is located in Amarillo, and was
named after the Amarillo native Rick Husband, whom died aboard the Space
Shuttle Columbia.
List of major freeways
Interstate 27
Interstate 40
U.S. Highway 60
U.S. Highway 87
U.S. Highway 287
Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there are 173,627 people, 67,699 households, and
45,764 families residing in the city. The population density is 746.0/km˛
(1,932.1/mi˛). There are 72,408 housing units at an average density of
311.1/km˛ (805.8/mi˛). The racial makeup of the city is 77.50% White, 5.97%
African American, 0.78% Native American, 2.05% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander,
11.32% from other races, and 2.34% from two or more races. 21.86% of the
population are Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There are 67,699 households out of which 33.9% have children under the age
of 18 living with them, 50.6% are married couples living together, 12.8%
have a female householder with no husband present, and 32.4% are non-families.
27.7% of all households are made up of individuals and 9.9% have someone
living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is
2.53 and the average family size is 3.10.
In the city the population is spread out with 27.9% under the age of 18,
10.2% from 18 to 24, 28.8% from 25 to 44, 20.5% from 45 to 64, and 12.6% who
are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 34 years. For every 100
females there are 92.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there
are 88.5 males.
The median income for a household in the city is $34,940, and the median
income for a family is $42,536. Males have a median income of $31,321 versus
$22,562 for females. The per capita income for the city is $18,621. 14.5% of
the population and 11.1% of families are below the poverty line. Out of the
total people living in poverty, 19.6% are under the age of 18 and 9.3% are
65 or older.
Sites of interest
Amarillo is the home of The Big Texan, which was made famous by offering
visitors a free 72 ounce beef steak if they eat it (and the rest of the full
dinner, including roll and salad) in under an hour.
Palo Duro Canyon State Park is America's second largest canyon, after the
Grand Canyon. The canyon is located south of Amarillo.
In Palo Duro Canyon, an outdoor musical called Texas Legacies plays nightly
during the summer.
Near I-40, the Cadillac Ranch is a monument of painted Cadillac automobiles
that were dug into the ground head first.
The Amarillo Museum of Art is located in the campus of Amarillo College. It
underwent a major renovation in early 2004.
Notable natives
Terry Funk
Rick D. Husband
Carolyn Jones
Paul Lockhart
Amarillo Slim
J. D. Souther
Colleges and universities
Amarillo has 2 higher education institutions. Amarillo College is a two-year
fully-accredited community college. Wayland Baptist University, a private
university which is based in Plainview, has a campus in Amarillo and offers
various 4-year degrees. (http://www.wbu.edu/a/a06b05/am/default.htm) Another
university close to Amarillo is West Texas A&M University which is in nearby
Canyon, Texas.
Sports teams
The city is home to the Amarillo Dillas, a Central Baseball League Minor
league baseball team. Also, they have a minor league hockey team called the
Amarillo Gorillas which is part of the Central Hockey League. There is also
an indoor minor league football team called the Amarillo Dusters, which play
in the Intense Football League.
Media and journalism
Amarillo's primary newspaper is the Amarillo Globe-News.
Amarillo mention in entertainment
Cast Away - Tom Hanks' character was near the Amarillo part of I-40.
George Strait - Had a country hit called "Amarillo By Morning."
The Grapes of Wrath - The Joad Family passed Amarillo during their trip.
"(Get Your Kicks) on Route 66" - popular jazz song written by Bobby Troup
and sung by Nat King Cole in 1946.
