Wichita Falls | ||
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City | ||
Wichita Falls, Texas | ||
The "restored Falls" of the Wichita River in Wichita Falls, Texas, off Interstate 44
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Nickname(s): Falls Town | ||
Location in the state of Texas |
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Coordinates: 33°53′49″N 98°30′54″W / 33.89694°N 98.51500°WCoordinates: 33°53′49″N 98°30′54″W / 33.89694°N 98.51500°W | ||
Country | United States | |
State | Texas | |
County | Wichita | |
Government | ||
• Type | Council-Manager | |
• City Council | Mayor Glenn Barham Stephen Santellana DeAndra Chenault Brian Hooker Tim Ingle Tom Quintero Michael Smith |
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• City Manager | Darron Leiker | |
• Deputy City Manager | Jim Dockery | |
Area | ||
• City | 70.1 sq mi (183.1 km2) | |
• Land | 70.66 sq mi (183.0 km2) | |
• Water | 0.04 sq mi (0.1 km2) | |
Elevation | 948 ft (289 m) | |
Population (2010) | ||
• City | 104,553 | |
• Estimate (2013) | 104,898 | |
• Rank | US: 271st | |
• Density | 1,500/sq mi (570/km2) | |
• Urban | 99,437 (US: 301st) | |
• Metro | 151,201 (US: 268th) | |
Time zone | CST (UTC-6) | |
• Summer (DST) | CDT (UTC-5) | |
ZIP codes | 76301-11 | |
Area code(s) | 940 | |
FIPS code | 48-79000 | |
GNIS feature ID | 1376776 | |
Website | City of Wichita Falls |
Wichita Falls (/ˈwɪtʃᵻtɔː/ WITCH-ə-taw) is a city in and the county seat of Wichita County, Texas, United States. Wichita Falls is the principal city of the Wichita Falls Metropolitan Statistical Area, which encompasses all of Archer, Clay, and Wichita Counties. According to the 2010 census, the city had a population of 104,553, making it the 29th-most populous city in Texas. In addition, Wichita Falls' central business district is five miles (8 km) from Sheppard Air Force Base which is home to the Air Force's largest technical training wing and the Euro-NATO Joint Jet Pilot Training (ENJJPT) program, the world's only multi-nationally manned and managed flying training program chartered to produce combat pilots for both USAF and NATO.
Of interest is the Newby-McMahon Building (otherwise known as "world's littlest skyscraper"), constructed downtown in 1919 and featured in Robert Ripley's Ripley's Believe It or Not!.
The Choctaw Native Americans settled the area in the early 19th century from their native Mississippi area once Americans negotiated to relocate them after the Treaty of Dancing Rabbit Creek. American settlers arrived in the 1860s to form cattle ranches. The city was officially titled Wichita Falls on September 27, 1872. On that day, a sale of town lots was held at what is now the corner of Seventh and Ohio Streets – the birthplace of the city. The Fort Worth & Denver City Railway arrived in September 1882, the same year the city became the county seat of Wichita County. 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. This area is now referred to as the Depot Square Historic District, which has been declared a Texas Historic Landmark.