Texarkana
| Texarkana, United States | |
|---|---|
| City | |
Texarkana Post Office, located in two states.
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| Nickname(s): The Town That Dreaded Sundown | |
| Motto: Twice as Nice | |
| Coordinates: 33°26′14″N 94°4′3″W / 33.43722°N 94.06750°WCoordinates: 33°26′14″N 94°4′3″W / 33.43722°N 94.06750°W | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Arkansas & Texas |
| County |
Miller County, AR Bowie County, TX |
| Government | |
| • AR Mayor | Ruth Penney-Bell. |
| • TX Mayor | Bob Bruggeman. |
| Elevation | 299 ft (91 m) |
| Population (2010) | |
| • Total | 143,486 |
| Time zone | Central (CST) (UTC-6) |
| • Summer (DST) | CDT (UTC-5) |
| ZIP codes | (AR) 71854 (TX) 75500-75599 |
| Area code(s) | (AR) 870 (TX) 430 & 903 |
| FIPS code | 48-72368 |
| GNIS feature ID | 1369752 |
| Website | Texarkana MSA |
The Texarkana, AR–Texarkana, TX Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA), as defined by the United States Office of Management and Budget, is a two-county region anchored by the twin cities of Texarkana, Texas and Texarkana, Arkansas, and encompassing the surrounding communities in Bowie County, Texas and Miller County, Arkansas. As of the 2010 census, the MSA had a population of 143,486. Texarkana is a subset of the broader Ark-La-Tex region.
Texarkana was founded in 1873 on the junction of two railroads. The name is a portmanteau of TEXas, ARKansas, and nearby LouisiANA. One tradition tells of a Red River steamboat named The Texarkana, c. 1860. Another story mentions a storekeeper named Swindle in Red Land, Louisiana who concocted a drink called "Texarkana Bitters". A third account states that Col. Gus Knobel, a railroad surveyor, coined the name. Local lore suggests that, before Texas's annexation by the US, lawlessness ruled in the area that at times was claimed by various nations.
In 1876, Texarkana, Texas, was granted a charter under an act of the Texas legislature, and a Texarkana, Texas, post office operated from 1886 to 1892. Later, Congressman John Morris Sheppard (D-TX) secured a postal order officially changing the name to "Texarkana, Arkansas-Texas".
The Texarkana metropolitan area was first defined in 1960. Then known as the Texarkana, TX–Texarkana, AR Standard Metropolitan Statistical Area, it consisted of Bowie County, Texas and Miller County, Arkansas. In 1963, the area was renamed the Texarkana, TX–AR Standard Metropolitan Statistical Area, only to return to its original name in 1971.
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