125-700: Pecos County ( / ˈ p eɪ k ə s / PAY -kəs ) is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas . As of the 2020 census , its population was 15,193. The county seat is Fort Stockton . The county was created in 1871 and organized in 1875. It is named for the Pecos River . It is one of the nine counties that comprise the Trans-Pecos region of West Texas . Archeological digs at Tunas Peak uncovered prehistoric hunter-gatherer artifacts. Fourteen clusters of stones interpreted as wickiup and tipi rings indicate human habitation. A ring midden in
250-1054: A city , town , or village . A few counties directly provide public transportation themselves, usually in the form of a simple bus system. However, in most counties, public transportation is provided by one of the following: a special district that is coterminous with the county (but exists separately from the county government), a multi-county regional transit authority, or a state agency. In western and southern states, more populated counties provide many facilities, such as airports, convention centers , museums, recreation centers , beaches, harbors, zoos, clinics, law libraries , and public housing . They provide services such as child and family services, elder services, mental health services, welfare services, veterans assistance services, animal control , probation supervision, historic preservation, food safety regulation, and environmental health services. They have many additional officials like public defenders , arts commissioners, human rights commissioners, and planning commissioners. There may be
375-446: A consolidated city-county or independent city exists, a city council usually governs city/county or city affairs. In some counties, day-to-day operations are overseen by an elected county executive or by a chief administrative officer or county administrator who reports to the board, the mayor, or both. In many states, the board in charge of a county holds powers that transcend all three traditional branches of government. It has
500-424: A county fire department and a county police department – as distinguished from fire and police departments operated by individual cities, special districts, or the state government. For example, Gwinnett County, Georgia , and its county seat, the city of Lawrenceville , each have their own police departments. (A separate county sheriff's department is responsible for security of the county courts and administration of
625-490: A depth of 12,621 feet (3,847 m). In the nearby Apache and Glass Mountains, the basement rock is made of metamorphosed sandstone and Precambrian-aged granite. The entire area is also underlain by layered mafic rocks, which are thought to be a part of Pecos Mafic Igneous Suite, and extends 220 miles (360 km) into the southern US. It has been dated to 1163 mya. Each period from the Paleozoic Era has contributed
750-830: A different formation was formed in the different parts of the Permian Reef Complex. The Cisuralian Epoch contained two ages, the Wolfcampian and the Leonardian , both of which have a geological formation in the Permian Basin named after them. The Wolfcampian Formation lies conformably on top of the Pennsylvanian Formation and is the first formation from the Permian Period. Its composition varies depending on its location in
875-465: A few counties bear names of Native American , French, or Spanish origin. Counties are most often named for people, often political figures or early settlers, with over 2,100 of the 3,144 total so named. The most common county name, with 31, is Washington County , for America's first president, George Washington . Up until 1871, there was a Washington County within the District of Columbia , but it
1000-450: A financial boom period for the county. Towns such as Red Barn, Iraan (combination of the names Ira and Ann Yates), and Bakersfield rose up in response to oil-related employment opportunities. The population of the county more than doubled during the 1920s. Oil production helped to stabilize the local economy. The town of Iraan, Texas, prides itself on being the birthplace of cartoon caveman Alley Oop , when creator V.T. Hamlin worked in
1125-400: A land area of 20,057 square miles (51,947 km ). The least extensive county is Kalawao County, Hawaii , with a land area of 11.991 square miles (31.058 km ). The least extensive county equivalent in the 50 states is the independent city of Falls Church, Virginia , with a land area of 1.999 square miles (5.177 km ). If U.S. territories are included,
1250-453: A large number of counties, and many Western states were sparsely populated when counties were created by their respective state legislatures. The five counties of Rhode Island and eight of the 14 counties of Massachusetts no longer have functional county governments, but continue to exist as legal and census entities. Connecticut abolished county governments in 1960, leaving its eight counties as mere legal and census entities. In 2022,
1375-601: A max thickness of 660 feet (200 m). During the formation of the Atoka, uplift was still occurring in the region, leading to increased sedimentation as the surrounding highlands were eroded. The increased sedimentation led to the formation of medium- to coarse-grained sandstone. In the Atoka Formation, the first reef structures that formed in the Delaware Basin are visible. The Strawn Formation formed after
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#17327752911281500-599: A maximum thickness of 1,150 feet (350 m) but thins out significantly as it approaches the basin margins due to transgressive onlap . The Brushy Canyon Formation also contains small reef patches, ripple marks , and crossed bedded strata , that indicate that the Delaware Basin had a shallow water environment at this time. The next unit of the Delaware Mountain Group is the Cherry Canyon , which had multiple different sub-units and extended into
1625-415: A population over 100,000; 137 counties have a population over 500,000; 45 counties have a population over 1,000,000; and 14 counties have a population over 2,000,000. At the other extreme, 35 counties have a population under 1,000; 307 counties have a population under 5,000; 709 counties have a population under 10,000; and 1,492 counties have a population between 10,000 and 50,000. At the 2000 U.S. Census ,
1750-463: A rapid enough pace to keep up with rising sea levels . The Capitan Reef also found a stable foundation on the reef debris and talus that rested on its slopes, and this foundation allowed the reef to grow outward. In some locations, nutrients and minerals were so abundant that the Capitan Reef grew out almost 50 km from the starting point. The third stage of the Capitan Reef is the death of
1875-549: A small settlement known as Sheffield sprang up in eastern Pecos County on land owned by Will Sheffield ; it served as a supply point for the surrounding ranches. In 1913, construction of the Kansas City, Mexico and Orient Railway across Pecos County caused a boom in land speculation and community growth, as did irrigation projects along the Pecos River. The town of Girvin , named for rancher John H. Girvin, grew around
2000-702: A source of water, and the Delaware Basin was located near a marginal sea. Thanks to the Hovey Channel, this sea transported water into the Delaware Basin. Global temperatures during this time were warm, as the world climate was changing from icehouse to greenhouse. This rise in global temperatures also led to the melting of ice masses located towards the South Pole, which then led to a rise in sea levels. The Permian Period has been split up into main Epochs , each of which has separate subdivision. In each sub epoch,
2125-859: A specific lithology to the Tobosa Basin, accumulating into almost 6,600 feet (2,000 m) of sediment at the start of the Pennsylvanian Period (323.2–298.9 mya). The Montoya Group is the youngest rock formation in the Tobosa Basin and was formed in the Ordovician Period (485.4–443.8 mya), and sit directly on the igneous and metamorphic basement rocks. The rocks from the Montoya Group are described as light to medium grey, fine to medium grained crystalline calcareous dolomite . These rocks were sometimes inter-bedded with shale , dark grey limestone, and, less commonly, chert .
2250-547: A thickness of 1,480 feet (450 m) in some places. Karstification of the Fusselman Formation shows that a drop in sea level occurred, but sea levels rose again during a transgressive event, which lead to the creation of the Wristen Formation. Sea levels would then drop again, which led to major exposure, erosion, and karstification of these formations. The Thirtyone Formation was developed during
2375-585: A total area of 4,765 square miles (12,340 km), of which 1.0 square mile (2.6 km) (0.02%) is covered by water. It is the second-largest county by area in Texas. Pecos County is home to one of the largest oil fields in the United States, the Yates Oil Field, which is in the extreme eastern part of the county, along the Pecos River. The field covers about 41 sq mi (110 km) near
2500-529: A train stop on the Kansas City, Mexico and Orient Railway that served as a cattle-shipping point. Construction of Texas State Highway 290 linking Fort Stockton to Big Bend National Park gave a boost to tourism. In the 1980s, the economy of Pecos County continued to be based on farming, ranching, oil and gas production, and tourism. The Yates Oil Field in Crockett , and Pecos counties in 1927 resulted in
2625-428: Is Lake . Words from Native American languages, as well as the names of Native American leaders and tribes, lend their names to many counties. Quite a few counties bear names of French or Spanish origin, such as Marquette County being named after French missionary Father Jacques Marquette . The county's equivalent in the state of Louisiana, the parish (Fr. paroisse civile and Sp. parroquia ) took its name during
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#17327752911282750-572: Is 343 sq mi (890 km ), whereas in Utah it is 2,427 sq mi (6,290 km ). The most extensive county or county equivalent is the Yukon–Koyukuk Census Area, Alaska , with a land area of 145,505 square miles (376,856 km ). All nine of the most extensive county equivalents are in Alaska. The most extensive county is San Bernardino County, California , with
2875-408: Is an unusual case because it encompasses multiple entire counties in one city. Each of those counties is coextensive with one of the five boroughs of the city: Manhattan (New York County), The Bronx (Bronx County), Queens (Queens County), Brooklyn (Kings County), and Staten Island (Richmond County). Permian Basin (North America) The Permian Basin is a large sedimentary basin in
3000-859: Is called the Bone Spring Limestone , which reaches a max thickness of 2,000 feet (600 m) and lies directly below the Capitan Reef Complex . The Bone Spring limestone can be divided into two formations: the Victorio Peak Member, which consists of massive beds of limestone measuring up to 98 feet (30 m); and the Cutoff Shale Member, which is formed from black, platy, siliceous shale and shaley sandstone. The Bone Spring Limestone consists of several fossils, such as bryozoans, crinoids, and spirifers , but lack algae and sponges that are plentiful in
3125-412: Is divided into generalized facies belts differentiated by the depositional environment in which they formed, influenced by sea level, climate , salinity , and access to the sea. Lowering sea level exposes the peritidal and potentially, the shelf margin regions, allowing linear channel sandstones to cut into the shelf, extending beyond the shelf margin atop the slope carbonates, fanning outward toward
3250-500: Is either done at the state level or at the municipal level. In Connecticut and parts of Massachusetts, regional councils have been established to partially fill the void left behind by the abolished county governments. The regional councils' authority is limited compared with a county government—they have authority only over infrastructure and land use planning, distribution of state and federal funds for infrastructure projects, emergency preparedness, and limited law enforcement duties. In
3375-399: Is greater than the populations of 41 U.S. states, and is only slightly smaller than the combined population of the 10 least populous states and Washington, D.C. It also makes the population of Los Angeles County 17.4 times greater than that of the least populous state, Wyoming. The second most populous county is Cook County, Illinois , with a population of 5,275,541. Cook County's population
3500-401: Is important to keep in mind that tectonics played a major part. During this period, the supercontinent of Pangaea , which lasted from 335 to 175 mya, started undergoing breakup. Pangea was clustered together near the equator and surrounded by the superocean Panthalassa, with the Permian Basin located on its western edge within 5–10 degrees of the equator. Any reef building environment would need
3625-562: Is improbable since the debris came from the reef, which was not dolomitic. The Bell Canyon Formation is the next unit in the Delaware Mountain Group, and it is the age equivalent unit to the Capitan Reef Formation which formed on the shelf. The Bell Canyon Formation consists of "un-fossiliferous, dark-gray to black, platy, fine-grained limestone". All the Cherry Canyon Formation and the bottom part of
3750-455: Is larger than that of 28 individual U.S. states and the combined populations of the six smallest states. The least populous county is Loving County, Texas , with 64 residents in 2020. Eight county equivalents in the U.S. territories have no human population: Rose Atoll , Northern Islands Municipality , Baker Island , Howland Island , Jarvis Island , Johnston Atoll , Kingman Reef , and Navassa Island . The remaining three islands in
3875-707: Is more consistent and is characterised as a thick bedded dolomite which integrates into the San Andres Formation as it moves toward the shelf. The middle unit of the Cherry Canyon Formation is the South Wells Member, which is composed of sandstone and integrates itself into the Goat Seep Reef as it moves towards the basin shelf. The upper unit is the Manzanita Member, which consists of dolomite, and gets pinched out underneath
Pecos County, Texas - Misplaced Pages Continue
4000-778: Is no formal level of government (municipality, public education, or otherwise) existing below that of the county in the state. In most Midwestern and Northeastern states, counties are further subdivided into townships or towns , which sometimes exercise local powers or administration. Throughout the United States, counties may contain other independent, self-governing municipalities . In New England, counties function at most as judicial court districts and sheriff's departments (presently, in Connecticut only as judicial court districts—and in Rhode Island , they have lost both those functions and most others but they are still used by
4125-410: Is rarely a county responsibility, execution of capital punishment is never a county responsibility, and the state's responses to prisoners' appeals are the responsibility of the state attorney general , who has to defend before the state appellate courts the prosecutions conducted by locally elected district attorneys in the name of the state. Furthermore, county-level trial court judges are officers of
4250-562: Is simultaneously a city, which is a municipality (municipal corporation), and a county, which is an administrative division of a state, having the powers and responsibilities of both types of entities. The city limit or jurisdiction is synonymous with the county line, as the two administrative entities become a non-dichotomous single entity. For this reason, a consolidated city-county is officially remarked as name of city – name of county (i.e., Augusta–Richmond County in Georgia). The same
4375-416: Is the establishment of the reef and its rapid growth. Due to the slower rates of subsidence of this time, the reef was able to build itself up quickly. Once the reef reached sea level, it began to grow horizontally, since it could not grow vertically anymore. The reef environment during the first stage of development was described as warm (around 68 °F (20 °C)), shallow, high energy, clear water that
4500-711: Is thought to indicate the dehydration and rehydration process of the gypsum and anhydrites. There is also evidence of evaporite calcitization . The reef system was buried until it was exposed in the Mesozoic Era as a result of tectonic activity by the Laramide Orogeny . The deep water shale and carbonate reefs of the Delaware and Midland Basins and the Central Basin Platform would become lucrative hydrocarbon reservoirs. The Permian basin
4625-506: Is true of the boroughs of New York City , each of which is coextensive with a county of New York State. For those entities in which the city uses the same name as the county, city and county of name may be used (i.e., City and County of Denver in Colorado). Similarly, some of Alaska 's boroughs have merged with their principal cities, creating unified city-boroughs. Some such consolidations and mergers have created cities that rank among
4750-537: Is uniquely partitioned into five counties, referred to at the city government level as boroughs . Some municipalities have been consolidated with their county government to form consolidated city-counties , or have been legally separated from counties altogether to form independent cities . Conversely, counties in Connecticut and Rhode Island , eight of Massachusetts's 14 counties , and Alaska's Unorganized Borough have no government power, existing only as geographic distinctions. The United States Census Bureau uses
4875-482: Is used in 48 states, while Louisiana and Alaska have functionally equivalent subdivisions called parishes and boroughs , respectively. Counties and other local governments exist as a matter of U.S. state law , so the specific governmental powers of counties may vary widely between the states, with many providing some level of services to civil townships , municipalities , and unincorporated areas . Certain municipalities are in multiple counties ; New York City
5000-652: The Alaska Constitutional Convention wanted to avoid the traditional county system and adopted their own unique model with different types of boroughs varying in powers and duties. In some states, these powers are partly or mostly devolved to the counties' smaller divisions usually called townships , though in New York, New England and Wisconsin they are called "towns". The county may or may not be able to override its townships on certain matters, depending on state law. The newest county in
5125-589: The Atoka Formation . The Morrow is an important reservoir consisting of clastic sediments , sandstones and shales, deposited in a deltaic environment. The Pennsylvanian Period also led to the development of other geologic formations, although none had the importance of the Morrow Formation. The Atoka Formation lies conformably on top of the Morrow Formation, and is characterized by its fossil-rich limestone inter-bedded with shale, reaching
Pecos County, Texas - Misplaced Pages Continue
5250-498: The Capitan Formation as it moves into the basin margins. All four members of the Cherry Canyon Formation have undergone dolomitization near the basin margins. This is evident since the calcite / aragonite bioclastic debris that existed as a part of this formation has been preserved as molds in dolomite. It has been suggested by some authors that the clasts and debris might have been dolomitic upon deposition, but that
5375-458: The City and County of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania ; City and County of San Francisco, California ; and Lynchburg-Moore County, Tennessee A consolidated city-county may still contain independent municipalities maintaining some governmental powers that did not merge with the rest of the county. For example, the government of Jacksonville–Duval County, Florida , still provides county-level services to
5500-604: The Delaware Mountain Group , which can be further subdivided into rock divisions based on location in the Permian Reef Complex. The first formation that makes up the Delaware Mountain Group is the Brushy Canyon Formation , and it lies in the Delaware Basin. The Brushy Canyon Formation is made up of thin interbedded layers of alternating fine grained and massive quartz sandstone, as well as shaley brown to black sandstone. This formation reaches
5625-553: The Devonian Period . This formation is characterized by its limestone, chert, and shale beds, some of which had a peak thickness of 980 feet (300 m). this formation had many different types of limestone, including light-colored siliceous, chert -dominated, crinoid -rich, and sandy limestone. The Thirtyone Formation is very similar to the formation of the Mississippian Period, which is likely because there
5750-571: The Fusselman Formation , is mostly made up of light grey, medium to coarse grained dolomite. The thickness of this formation varies from 49 to 164 feet (15 to 50 m), and parts of the Fusselman Formation were also subject to karstification , which indicates a drop in sea level. The second rock group that formed during the Silurian Period is called the Wristen Formation, which is mud, shale, and dolomite rich rock that reaches
5875-603: The Mid-Atlantic and Midwest , counties typically provide, at a minimum, courts, public utilities , libraries, hospitals, public health services, parks, roads, law enforcement, and jails. There is usually a county registrar, recorder, or clerk (the exact title varies) who collects vital statistics , holds elections (sometimes in coordination with a separate elections office or commission), and prepares or processes certificates of births, deaths, marriages, and dissolutions (divorce decrees). The county recorder normally maintains
6000-530: The Midland College /Williams Regional Technical Training Center, located alongside Interstate Highway 10, in Fort Stockton. The center was built in 1996 through a joint effort by Midland College , and by leaders of Fort Stockton education, business, and government as a means to enhance higher education and workforce development in this part of West Texas. Fort Stockton and Pecos County are part of
6125-566: The New York City Borough of Manhattan), with 72,033 persons per square mile (27,812 persons/km ) in 2015. The Yukon–Koyukuk Census Area, Alaska , is both the most extensive and the least densely populated county or county equivalent with 0.0380 persons per square mile (0.0147 persons/km ) in 2015. In the 50 states (plus the District of Columbia), a total of 981 counties have a population over 50,000; 592 counties have
6250-525: The Ouachita–Marathon thrust belt separated by the Central Basin Platform. The basin contains sediment dating to Pennsylvanian , Wolfcampian ( Neal Ranch and Lenox Hills Formations ), Leonardian ( Avalon Shale ), and early Guadalupian times. The eastward-dipping Delaware basin is subdivided into several formations (figure 2) and contains about 25,000 feet (7,600 m) of laminated siltstone and sandstone . Aside from clastic sediment,
6375-503: The Precambrian supercontinent and the formation of the modern Permian Basin geometry, shallow marine sedimentation onto the ancestral Tobosa Basin characterized the passive margin , shallow marine environment. The Tobosa Basin also contains basement rock that dates back to 1330 million years ago (mya), and that is still visible in the present-day Guadalupe Mountains . The basement rock contains biotite-quartz granite, discovered at
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#17327752911286500-576: The Province of Maine founded York County . Massachusetts followed in 1643. Pennsylvania and New York delegated significant power and responsibility from the colony government to county governments and thereby established a pattern for most of the United States, although counties remained relatively weak in New England . When independence came, the framers of the Constitution left
6625-437: The U.S. Minor Outlying Islands ( Midway Atoll , Palmyra Atoll and Wake Island ) have small non-permanent human populations. The county equivalent with the smallest non-zero population counted in the census is Swains Island, American Samoa (17 people), although since 2008 this population has not been permanent either. The most densely populated county or county equivalent is New York County, New York (coextensive with
6750-582: The USGS counts Guam's election districts (villages) as county equivalents. The U.S. Census Bureau counts the 3 main islands in the U.S. Virgin Islands as county equivalents, while the USGS counts the districts of the U.S. Virgin Islands (of which there are 2) as county equivalents. Common sources of county names are names of people, geographic features, places in other states or countries, and animals. Quite
6875-689: The United States Census Bureau and some other federal agencies for some federal functions), and most of the governmental authority below the state level is in the hands of towns and cities . In several of Maine's sparsely populated counties, small towns rely on the county for law enforcement, and in New Hampshire several social programs are administered at the state level. In Connecticut, Rhode Island, and parts of Massachusetts, counties are now only geographic designations, and they do not have any governmental powers. All government
7000-471: The county seat ("parish seat" in Louisiana, "borough seat" in Alaska, or " shire town " in several New England counties). The county seat usually resides in a municipality. However, some counties may have multiple seats or no seat. In some counties with no incorporated municipalities, a large settlement may serve as the county seat. The power of county governments varies widely from state to state, as does
7125-478: The median land area of U.S. counties was 622 sq mi (1,610 km ), which is two-thirds of the median land area of a ceremonial county of England , and a little more than a quarter of the median land area of a French département . Counties in the western United States typically have a much larger land area than those in the eastern United States. For example, the median land area of counties in Georgia
7250-573: The 1990 Republican gubernatorial nominee, was reared in Fort Stockton. 30°47′N 102°43′W / 30.78°N 102.72°W / 30.78; -102.72 County (United States) In the United States , a county or county equivalent is an administrative or political subdivision of a U.S. state or other territories of the United States which consists of a geographic area with specific boundaries and usually some level of governmental authority. The term " county "
7375-451: The 50 states and District of Columbia. There are an additional 100 county equivalents in the territories of the United States . The average number of counties per state is 62, with a range from the three counties of Delaware to the 254 counties of Texas . Southern and Midwestern states generally tend to have more counties than Western or Northeastern states, as many Northeastern states are not large enough in area to warrant
7500-461: The 50 states and the District of Columbia. If the 100 county equivalents in the U.S. territories are counted, then the total is 3,244 counties and county-equivalents in the United States. The idea of counties originated with the counties of England . English (after 1707, British ) colonists brought to their colonies in North America a political subdivision that they already used in
7625-589: The Atoka, also during the Pennsylvanian Period, and reached a max thickness of 660 feet (200 m). In this formation, there was a significant increase in reef mounds . The Strawn Formation is primarily made up of massive limestone, along with "fine to medium-grained sandstone, dark to light-grey shale, and occasional reddish-brown, greenish-gray, bituminous shale". A great number of different fossil types were preserved in this formation, including brachiopods , foraminifera , bryozoans , corals , and crinoids. The Pennsylvanian Period also includes two other formations,
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#17327752911287750-533: The Basin, with the northernmost part being more rich in shale. The thickness of this formation also varies, reaching a maximum of 1,600 feet (500 m). The Wolfcampian is made up primarily of grey to brown shale and fine-grained, chert-dominated, brown limestone. There are also interbedded layers of fine-grained sandstone found within the formation. The primary formation that remains from the Leonardian Age
7875-562: The Bell Canyon Formation have thin interbeds of dark-colored bioclastic limestone and fine-grained sandstone. As these formations move towards the basin margins, the sandstone wedges out and the limestone thickens into massive, meters thick beds, containing reef talus . The Goat Seep Reef Formation lies on the shelf margin and integrates with the Getaway Formation in the basin and the San Andres Formation towards
8000-997: The British metropole : the counties. Counties were among the earliest units of local government established in the Thirteen Colonies that would become the United States. Virginia created the first counties in order to ease the administrative workload in Jamestown . The House of Burgesses divided the colony first into four "incorporations" in 1617 and finally into eight shires (or counties) in 1634: James City , Henrico , Charles City , Charles River , Warrosquyoake , Accomac , Elizabeth City , and Warwick River . America's oldest intact county court records can be found at Eastville, Virginia , in Northampton (originally Accomac) County , dating to 1632. Maryland established its first county, St. Mary's in 1637. In 1639,
8125-508: The Canyon and Cisco Formations, which are significant due to the major oil reservoirs discovered in them. The Permian Period was a time of major reef building to transform the Permian Reef Complex into a major reef system, with Permian-aged rock formations making up 95% of the present-day outcrops in the Permian Basin. When considering any type of reef building that occurred in the Permian, it
8250-820: The Capitan Reef being one of the most famous examples. In the Guadalupian, reefs were abundant globally, and grew in places such as the Delaware Basin, the Zechstein Basin in Eastern Europe, along the Tethys Ocean , and in cool water shelves in the Panthalassa Ocean . The end of this golden age for reef building occurred due to the "end-Guadalupian reef crisis", which involved global drops in sea levels and regional salinity fluctuations. The movement and collision of micro-continents during
8375-499: The Central Basin Platform, which is encircled by faults, and the Midland and Delaware Basins on either side. Mississippian sediments are absent either due to erosion or nondeposition. Marine shales were deposited in the center of the Delaware, Midland and Val Verde basins, while the basins' periphery saw the deposition of shallow marine, carbonate shelf and limestone sediments. The Early Pennsylvanian Morrow Formation underlies
8500-437: The Delaware Basin and the surrounding shelf environments. The Cherry Canyon Formation can be subdivided into four sub-units, each of which will be discussed briefly. The Lower Getaway member is a limestone that has different characteristics based on its location in the Delaware Basin, and contains patch reefs close to the basin margin. These reefs are often found on limestone conglomerate and breccias . The Upper Getaway Member
8625-424: The Delaware and Midland Basins that grade up-dip into siltstones and evaporites . The Eastern and Northwestern Shelves are subdivided into the San Andres , Grayburg , Queen , Seven Rivers , Yates , and Tansill Formations . The San Simon Channel is a narrow syncline that separated the Central Basin Platform from the Northwestern Shelf during Leonardian and Guadalupian times. The Sheffield Channel separates
8750-430: The Delaware basin also contains carbonate deposits of the Delaware Mountain Group , originating from the Guadalupian times when the Hovey Channel allowed access from the sea into the basin. The westward-dipping Midland Basin is subdivided into several formations (figure 4) and is composed of laminated siltstone and sandstone. The Midland Basin was filled by a large subaqueous delta that deposited clastic sediment into
8875-408: The Guadalupian, the Permian Basin had adequate water circulation with fresh water coming in from the Hovey Channel. Evaporite growth along the bottom portions of the basin showed that the water column was most likely stratified and euxinic , meaning the water was both anoxic and sulfidic . The passageways between the Delaware and Midland Basins were restricted due to tectonic changes, and this caused
9000-747: The Midland Basin, consisting of 1,804 feet (550 m) of limestone accumulated in the Pennsylvanian and 1,099 feet (335 m) in the Permian , with 15 significant petroleum reservoirs from 6,099 feet (1,859 m) to 9,902 feet (3,018 m) in depth. The reef complex consists of Upper Pennsylvanian Strawn, Canyon and Cisco limestones, overlain by Lower Permian Wolfcamp sandstones and shales of terrigenous origin prograding northeast to southwest. The first production well, Seabird Oil Company of Delaware No. 1-B J. C. Caldwell,
9125-489: The Midland College service area. After just four years, the facility, named in honor of Fort Stockton native and center donor Clayton Williams Jr. was doubled in size through fundraising and program development. Oilman and rancher Clayton W. Williams Sr. served for 16 years as a Pecos county commissioner. His father, attorney Oscar Waldo Williams, earlier served a decade as Pecos county judge. Clayton Williams Jr.
9250-495: The Montoya Group sequence is made up of carbonate limestone and dolomite which is described as dense, impermeable, and non-porous, and is more commonly found in the Glass Mountains outcrop, with thickness varying from 151 to 509 feet (46 to 155 m). During the Silurian Period, the Tobosa Basin experienced dramatic changes in sea level which led to the formation of multiple rock groups. The first of these groups, called
9375-574: The Shelf. This formation is described as 1,150 feet (350 m) thick, one mile (1,600 m) long, and made up entirely of massive dolomite. In the bottom half of the formation, the dolomite is stratified into massive beds. This formation also contains molds of organisms destroyed by the dolomitization process. The Guadalupian Epoch is one of the most successful in history in terms of reef building, since most Permian reefs reached their maximum in size, diversity, extent, and abundance during this Epoch, with
9500-429: The Tobosa Basin being divided into three sections: the Delaware Basin, the Midland Basin, and the Central Basin Platform. The end of the Mississippian Period also led to the beginning of the formation of the modern Permian Reef Complex. The legacy of the early to mid Paleozoic is almost 6,600 feet (2,000 m) of sediments that were accumulated due to almost uninterrupted sedimentation. The Pennsylvanian Period marked
9625-655: The U.S. Census Bureau began to also count Connecticut's Councils of Governments , which took over some of the regional powers from the state's former county governments, as county equivalents. Territories of the United States do not have counties; instead, the United States Census Bureau also divides them into county equivalents. The U.S. Census Bureau counts American Samoa 's districts and atolls as county equivalents. American Samoa locally has places called "counties", but these entities are considered to be " minor civil divisions " (not true counties) by
9750-473: The U.S. Census Bureau recognized the state's nine Councils of Governments as replacement for the state's eight legacy counties for all statistical purposes; full implementation was completed in 2024. The average U.S. county population was 104,435 in 2019, while the median county, which is Nicholas County, West Virginia , had a population of 25,965 in 2019. The most populous county is Los Angeles County, California , with 10,014,009 residents in 2020. This number
9875-479: The U.S. Census Bureau treats American Samoa's three districts and two atolls as county equivalents). American Samoa's counties are treated as minor civil divisions. Most territories are directly divided into municipalities or similar units, which are treated as equivalent of counties for statistical purposes: The U.S. Census Bureau counts all of Guam as one county equivalent (with the FIPS code 66010), while
10000-690: The U.S. Census Bureau. The number of counties per state ranges from the three counties of Delaware to the 254 counties of Texas . County populations also vary widely: in 2017, according to the Census Bureau, more than half the U.S. population was concentrated in just 143 of the more than 3,000 counties, or just 4.6% of all counties; the five most populous counties, ordered from most to least, are Los Angeles County, California ; Cook County, Illinois ; Harris County, Texas ; Maricopa County, Arizona ; and San Diego County, California . As of 2022 , there are 3,144 counties and county-equivalents in
10125-489: The United States is the city and county of Broomfield, Colorado , established in 2001 as a consolidated city-county , previously part of four counties. The newest county equivalents are the Alaskan census areas of Chugach and Copper River , both established in 2019, and the Alaskan boroughs of Petersburg established in 2013, Wrangell established in 2008, and Skagway established in 2007. A consolidated city-county
10250-566: The area by Comanche Springs about 1840. A United States Army outpost, Fort Stockton , was established in 1858 at Comanche Springs to guard the San Antonio-El Paso Mail. That same year, the Butterfield Overland Mail began service to the army post. The town of Fort Stockton began near the Fort Stockton army post at Comanche Springs as St. Gaul, Texas, but was renamed Fort Stockton in 1880. Pecos County
10375-847: The basin. Aside from clastic sediment, the Midland Basin also contains carbonate deposits originating from the Guadalupian times when the Hovey Channel allowed access from the sea into the basin. The Central Basin Platform (CBP) is a tectonically uplifted basement block capped by a carbonate platform . The CBP separates the Delaware and Midland Basins and is subdivided into several formations, from oldest to youngest Neal Ranch , Lennox Hills , Abo , Yeso , Glorieta , San Andres , Grayburg , Queen , Seven Rivers , Yates , and Tansill Formations (Figure 5). The sequence mainly comprises carbonate reef deposits and shallow marine clastic sediments. The Eastern and Northwestern Shelves are composed of shelf edge reefs and shelf carbonates flanking
10500-577: The beginning of geological processes that would shape the Permian Basin into what we see today. Rifting events during the Cambrian Period (early Paleozoic) left fault zones in the region. These fault zones acted as planes of weakness for faulting that was later initiated by the Ouachita Orogeny . These fault zones caused the Tobosa Basin to be transformed, due to tectonic activity, into the Permian Reef Complex, which comprises three parts:
10625-402: The board. These positions may include county clerk , county treasurer , county surrogate, sheriff , and others. District attorneys or state attorneys are usually state-level as opposed to county-level officials, but in many states, counties and state judicial districts have coterminous boundaries. The site of a county's administration, and often the county courthouse , is generally called
10750-425: The break up of Pangea also caused the destruction of many Guadalupian Reefs. Even with the number of reefs from that epoch that have been destroyed, there are over 100 Guadalupian reefs that remain in the world, the most from any Permian epoch. The growth of the Capitan Reef, which is referred to as a "massive member" due to it being formed from massive limestone, can be described in three stages. The first stage
10875-435: The camp provided a radiocarbon date of 1300 AD. Archeological finds along Tunas Creek include a burial site, pictographs , and artifacts; one is a possible modified Langtry projectile point (2,000 BC to 700–800 AD). The Comanche Trail crossed Pecos County near Horsehead Crossing and through Comanche Springs. The Chihuahua Trail connecting Mexico's state of Chihuahua with Santa Fe, New Mexico , brought travelers through
11000-410: The city and the county at least nominally exist, they are properly classified as counties in their own right. Likewise, the boroughs of New York City are coextensive with counties and are therefore by definition also not county equivalents. There are technically no counties in U.S. territories. American Samoa has its own counties , but the U.S. Census Bureau does not treat them as counties (instead,
11125-421: The county (which merely implements state law). A typical criminal defendant will be arraigned and subsequently indicted or held over for trial before a trial court in and for a particular county where the crime occurred, kept in the county jail (if he is not granted bail or cannot make bail), prosecuted by the county's district attorney, and tried before a jury selected from that county. But long-term incarceration
11250-463: The county jail.) In several southern states, public school systems are organized and administered at the county level. As of 2024 , there were 2,999 counties, 64 Louisiana parishes , 19 organized boroughs and 11 census areas in Alaska, 9 Councils of Government in Connecticut, 41 independent cities , and the District of Columbia for a total of 3,144 counties and county equivalents in
11375-464: The county; 79.4% were White , 3.7% Black or African American , 0.8% Native American , 0.5% Asian , 13.5% of some other race, and 2.1% of two or more races . About 67.3% were Hispanic or Latino (of any race). Public education in Pecos County is provided by three school districts : Buena Vista , Fort Stockton , and Iraan-Sheffield Independent School Districts . Pecos County is home to
11500-423: The end of the Permian Period, the supercontinent of Pangaea was beginning its break up, which drastically changed the conditions that were previously favourable for reef growth. Change in tectonics limited the exchange of sea water in the Hovey Channel, which then led to a salinity increase in the Permian Basin. The reef could not survive this drastic change in water salinity , and was therefore destroyed. Up until
11625-399: The four independent municipalities within its borders: Atlantic Beach , Baldwin , Jacksonville Beach , and Neptune Beach . The term county equivalents is used by the United States Census Bureau to describe divisions that are comparable to counties but called by different names: Consolidated city-counties are not designated county equivalents for administrative purposes; since both
11750-461: The general law of the state or by a charter specific to that county. States may allow only general-law counties, only charter counties, or both. Generally, general-law local governments have less autonomy than chartered local governments. Counties are usually governed by an elected body, variously called the county commission , board of supervisors , commissioners' court , county council , county court , or county legislature . In cases in which
11875-626: The geographically largest cities in the world, though often with population densities far below those of most urban areas. There are 40 consolidated city-counties in the U.S., including Augusta–Richmond County; the City and County of Denver, Colorado; the City and County of Honolulu, Hawaii ; Indianapolis–Marion County, Indiana ; Jacksonville–Duval County, Florida ; Louisville–Jefferson County, Kentucky ; Lexington–Fayette County, Kentucky ; Kansas City–Wyandotte County, Kansas ; Nashville–Davidson County, Tennessee ; New Orleans–Orleans Parish, Louisiana ;
12000-405: The judicial branch of the state government rather than county governments. In many states, the county controls all unincorporated lands within its boundaries. In states with a township tier, unincorporated land is controlled by the townships. Residents of unincorporated land who are dissatisfied with county-level or township-level resource allocation decisions can attempt to vote to incorporate as
12125-560: The least extensive county equivalent is Kingman Reef , with a land area of 0.01 square miles (0.03 km ). In some states, a municipality may be in only one county and may not annex territory in adjacent counties, but in the majority of states, the state constitution or state law allows municipalities to extend across county boundaries. At least 32 states include municipalities in multiple counties . Dallas , for example, contains portions of five counties, while numerous other cities comprise portions of four counties. New York City
12250-416: The legislative power to enact laws for the county; it has the executive power to oversee the executive operations of county government; and it has quasi-judicial power with regard to certain limited matters (such as hearing appeals from the planning commission if one exists). In many states, several important officials are elected separately from the board of commissioners or supervisors and cannot be fired by
12375-686: The matter to the states. Subsequently, state constitutions conceptualized county governments as arms of the state. Louisiana instead adopted the local divisions called parishes that dated back to both the Spanish colonial and French colonial periods when the land was dominated by the Catholic Church . In the twentieth century, the role of local governments strengthened and counties began providing more services, acquiring home rule and county commissions to pass local ordinances pertaining to their unincorporated areas . In 1955, delegates to
12500-508: The most prominent sponges that made up the Capitan Reef was the sponge family Guadalupiidae , a sponge that first appeared on Glass Mountains in the mid Permian and had spread into the Delaware Basin by the late Permian. There were more environmental changes to mark the second stage of the formation of the Capitan Reef. This period of growth was marked by eustatic changes in global sea levels, due to frequent glaciations . The reef experienced major growth vertically at this stage and grew at
12625-521: The next most common source of county names are geographic features and locations, with some counties even being named after counties in other states, or for places in other countries, such as the United Kingdom (the latter is most common in the area of the original Thirteen Colonies in the case of the United Kingdom, or in places which had a large number of immigrants from a particular area for other countries). The most common geographic county name
12750-424: The official record of all real estate transactions. Other key county officials include the coroner / medical examiner , treasurer , assessor , auditor , comptroller , and district attorney . In most states, the county sheriff is the chief law enforcement officer in the county. However, except in major emergencies where clear chains of command are essential, the county sheriff normally does not directly control
12875-458: The oil production activities in the basin. The Permian Basin is also a major source of potassium salts ( potash ). Potash mines are located in Lea and Eddy counties , New Mexico, and are operated by the room and pillar method. Halite (rock salt) is produced as a byproduct of potash mining. The Delaware Basin is the larger of the two major lobes of the Permian Basin within the foreland of
13000-607: The oilfields. Although first published in the Des Moines Register in 1932, Hamlin claimed to have originated the idea while he watched dinosaur bones being dug up by oil equipment. Visitors to Iraan can visit the Alley Oop Museum found on Alley Oop Lane. Fort Stockton pays tribute to the agile roadrunner with its Paisano Pete the Roadrunner statue. According to the U.S. Census Bureau , the county has
13125-463: The period. The Permian Basin comprises several component basins, including the Midland Basin, which is the largest; Delaware Basin , the second largest; and Marfa Basin, the smallest. The Permian Basin covers more than 86,000 square miles (220,000 km ), and extends across an area approximately 250 miles (400 km) wide and 300 miles (480 km) long. The Texas cities of Midland , Odessa and San Angelo serve as headquarters for some of
13250-448: The police departments of city governments, but merely cooperates with them (e.g., under mutual aid pacts). Thus, the most common interaction between county and city law enforcement personnel is when city police officers deliver suspects to sheriff's deputies for detention or incarceration in the county jail. In most states, the state courts and local law enforcement are organized and implemented along county boundaries, but nearly all of
13375-410: The reef system. Ocean currents in the Permian played a huge role in setting up the climate of the region and for aiding in the growth and death of the Capitan Reef. The climate of the basin region was hot and arid , which is shown in the evaporite deposits that can be found in the back reef region. The end in growth and accumulation of the Permian Reef Complex was influenced by tectonics . During
13500-582: The relationship between counties and incorporated cities. The powers of counties arise from state law and vary widely. In Connecticut and Rhode Island , counties are geographic entities, but not governmental jurisdictions. At the other extreme, Maryland counties and the county equivalent City of Baltimore handle almost all services, including public education , although the state retains an active oversight authority with many of these services. Counties in Hawaii also handle almost all services since there
13625-548: The rest of the Permian Reef Complex. Rocks from the Bone Spring Limestone are predominantly found in the Delaware Basin, but the Victorio Peak Member extends into the shelf margin area. The Guadalupian Epoch was named after the Guadalupe Mountains , since this epoch in the Permian is when reef building was at its most efficient. Lasting from approximately 272–260 mya, this epoch was dominated by
13750-617: The salinity of the water to rise. The growing temperatures in the late Permian combined with the increase in salinity caused the extinction of the Capitan Reef, as well as the formation of evaporites with the basin. The layers of evaporites that formed as a result of increased salinity is called the Castile Formation . This formation consists of alternating layers of gypsum / anhydrite and limestone, as well as massive beds of gypsum/anhydrite, salt , and some limestone. The unit measures almost 4,300 feet (1,300 m) in total and
13875-445: The shale beds are "grey to black, hard, platy, pyritic, organic, and very siliceous". The Mississippian Limestone ranges from 49 to 171 feet (15 to 52 m) in thickness, while generally being thinner towards the southern part of the Tobosa Basin. The Barnett Shale is the second formation to have developed during the Mississippian Period. It consists mainly of silty brown shale and fine-grained sandstone and siltstone. This Formation
14000-521: The southern margin of the Midland Basin from the southern shelf and the Ouachita–Marathon thrust-belt during Leonardian and Guadalupian times. The Hovey Channel is a topographical low located on the southern edge of the Delaware Basin, allowing access to the Panthalassa sea during Guadalupian times. The Hovey Channel was originally an anticline which formed during Precambrian faulting, and
14125-484: The southwestern part of the United States . It is the highest producing oil field in the United States, producing an average of 4.2 million barrels of crude oil per day in 2019. This sedimentary basin is located in western Texas and southeastern New Mexico . It is named after the Permian geologic period, the final period of the Paleozoic era, as it contains some of the world's thickest deposits of rocks from
14250-556: The state's French and Spanish colonial periods. Before the Louisiana Purchase and granting of statehood, government was often administered in towns where major church parishes were located. Of the original 19 civil parishes of Louisiana that date from statehood in 1807, nine were named after the Roman Catholic parishes from which they were governed. The structure and powers of a county government may be defined by
14375-421: The substantive and procedural law adjudicated in state trial courts originates from the state legislature and state appellate courts. In other words, most criminal defendants are prosecuted for violations of state law, not local ordinances, and if they, the district attorney, or police seek reforms to the criminal justice system, they will usually have to direct their efforts towards the state legislature rather than
14500-399: The term "county equivalent" to describe places that are comparable to counties, but called by different names. Louisiana parishes, the organized boroughs of Alaska, independent cities, and the District of Columbia are equivalent to counties for administrative purposes. Alaska's Unorganized Borough is further divided into 11 census areas that are statistically equivalent to counties. In 2024,
14625-520: The town of Iraan. Discovered in 1926, it has produced over a billion barrels of oil, and most industry estimates give it more than another billion in recoverable reserves. The Yates Oil Field was one of the first giant fields to be found in the Permian Basin . As of the 2020 United States census , there were 15,193 people, 4,868 households, and 3,334 families residing in the county. As of the 2010 United States census , 15,507 were people living in
14750-477: Was completed in 1948. The Permian Basin is the thickest deposit of Permian aged rocks on Earth which were rapidly deposited during the collision of North America and Gondwana ( South America and Africa ) between the late Mississippian through the Permian. The Permian Basin also includes formations that date back to the Ordovician Period , 445 million years ago ( mya ). Prior to the breakup of
14875-440: Was dissolved by the District of Columbia Organic Act . Jefferson County , for Thomas Jefferson , is next with 26. The most recent president to have a county named for him was Warren G. Harding , reflecting the slowing rate of county creation since New Mexico and Arizona became states in 1912. The most common names for counties not named after a president are Franklin (25), Clay (18), and Montgomery (18). After people,
15000-553: Was established by the Texas Legislature in 1871 originally out of Presidio County . In 1871, Pecos County was organized and St. Gaul was named the county seat. About 1,100 people were living in the county that year. By 1890, the county had 227 cattle and 150 sheep, and 1,300 acres (5.3 km) were planted in corn. By 1900, the area's economy had become almost completely dominated by cattle and sheep ranching, though plots of wheat, rye, corn, and oats were grown. Around 1900,
15125-596: Was formed during the Lopingian Epoch . The individual layers ( laminae ) of gypsum/anhydrite are between 0.039 inches (1 mm) and 3.9 inches (10 cm) in thickness, which is thought to correlate with the basin salinity on a year by year basis. The Capitan Reef had been altered diagenetically early on in its history, especially after the deposition of the Castile Formation. There is evidence of fabric alteration throughout this formation, which
15250-521: Was free from debris and which had a normal salinity level of 27 to 40 ppt (parts per thousand). The basin water provided plenty of nutrients, since there was continuous upwelling of water that mixed newly brought marine water with anoxic water from the basin floor. The makeup of the reef is described as being built primarily from erect sponges, which have large, rigid skeletons, and abundant red algae , microbial micrite , and inorganic cement . The microbial micrite worked to trap sediment . One of
15375-411: Was little to no change in the environment during this time. The Mississippian Limestone is the main formation to develop during this Period. This formation, similar to the previously mentioned Thirtyone Formation, is composed primarily of limestone and shale. The limestone beds are described as being "brown to dark brown, micro-crystalline to very finely crystalline, commonly sandy, and dolomitic", while
15500-567: Was much thicker than the Mississippian Limestone, ranging from 200 to 460 feet (60 to 140 m). The increased thickness can be explained by increased sedimentation in the area, which was likely caused by tectonic activity in the region. The Ouachita Orogeny occurred during the Late Mississippian, leading to tectonic activity in the region. The subsequent folding and faulting caused by this Orogeny led to
15625-550: Was the main source of sea water for the Delaware Basin. The closing of the Hovey Channel towards the end of the Permian Period eventually caused the death of the Permian Reef, as without water being brought in through the Channel, salinity levels rose drastically in the Delaware Basin and the reef could not survive. The Horseshoe Atoll is a westward-tilting arcuate chain of reef mounds 175 miles (282 km) long located in
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