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Sugar Land Texas Information

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| History | General Information | Geography | Demographics | Crime Rates |

History

     Sugar Land is on Oyster Creek and U.S. Highway 90A, east of the Brazos River and seven miles northeast of Richmond in northeastern Fort Bend County. The area was originally granted to Samuel M. Williams in 1828 for his service as secretary to Stephen F. Austin. Nathaniel F. Williams purchased the land from his brother in 1838, and there he and a third brother, Matthew R. Williams, operated Oakland Plantation, which grew cotton, corn, and sugarcane. The Williams brothers established their raw-sugar mill in 1843. In 1853 Oakland Plantation was purchased by Benjamin F. Terry and William J. Kyle, who were instrumental in extending the Buffalo Bayou, Brazos and Colorado Railway through the property. A post office was established in Sugar Land in 1858. After the deaths of Terry in 1861 and Kyle in 1864 the plantation began to languish. The post office was closed in 1886. E. H. Cunningham of San Antonio accumulated more than 12,000 acres of the property over time and invested more than $1 million in a sugar refinery, a new raw-sugar mill, a paper mill, and the fourteen-mile Sugar Land Railroad in the 1890s. Sugar Land was one of the rail stations. In 1890 a second post office opened. At that time much of the labor force was leased from the nearby state prison farms. The inmates worked in the wet sugarcane fields, many falling victim to the periodic epidemics of fevers. The brutal working conditions caused bitter convicts to call Sugar Land the "Hell hole on the Brazos."

     In 1892 the town had one physician and a population of 500. From 1906 to 1908 Isaac H. Kempner of Galveston and William T. Eldridge of Eagle Lake acquired the Ellis and Cunningham plantations and the Cunningham Sugar Company, modernized the facilities, and made the community a company town for the Imperial Sugar Company, the Sugarland Industries, and Sugar Land Railroad (Missouri Pacific). By 1914 the population had dropped to 200, but the number of businesses had increased to include a paper manufacturer and a bank. In 1919 the interests were managed by Sugarland Industries, which operated the farm and ranch and mercantile interests. In 1913 the sugar company built 8½ miles of levee, along with twenty miles of drainage ditches, to keep the Brazos River from flooding Sugar Land. Between 1917 and 1928 dredging of the many shallow pools, lakes, creeks, and Oyster Creek reclaimed acreage to provide necessary drainage and more farmland. The last sugarcane crop in Fort Bend County was harvested in 1928. Plant disease and the high federal protective tax on cane sugar ended local cane farming, and thereafter raw sugar was imported for the refinery. In 1925 the population was listed at 1,000; four years later that figure had expanded to 2,500. With the Great Depression the town lost residents, and in 1936 population was registered at 1,500, where it remained through the 1940s. In 1946 the Kempner family became sole owners of the town. By 1956 some 2,285 people called Sugar Land home. The town was incorporated in 1959, a year after Imperial Sugar and Sugarland Properties, Incorporated, also owned by the Kempner family, began selling the businesses, homes, and land for development. T. E. Harmon was the first mayor. By 1964 the population had increased to 3,100. In 1970 the town listed 3,499 citizens and twenty-eight businesses. In 1980 it had 4,173 residents and ninety-five businesses. Spurred by development from nearby Houston, the population had climbed in 1988 to 14,898, and businesses numbered 423. In 1989 the population was 19,874. In 1990 it was 24,529. 

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General Information

Sugar Land is a city located in Fort Bend County, Texas. As of the 2000 census, the Houston suburb had a total population of 63,328.

Sugar Land is home to the headquarters for the Imperial Sugar company. The company's main refinery was once located in this city, but it has been shut down. The business offices remain. Offices and headquarters for companies such as Flour Daniel, Unocal, and scores of others are located here. Because of these headquarters, this city is an economic force in the Houston Metropolitan Area.

The 1974 movie Sugarland Express takes place in Sugar Land. The movie's title spells the name of the city incorrectly.

Sugar Land is widely considered the wealthiest suburb in the Houston area. Many celebrities live in and around Sugar Land, including Olympic gold medalist Tara Lipinski. Still more celebrities simply keep houses in the upscale, but quaintly suburban Commonwealth subdivision, such as Hakeem Olajuwon, Charles Barkley, and a number of local luminaries. It is also the hometown and area represented by House Majority Leader Tom DeLay.

The area, like much of Texas, is known to be a Republican stronghold, as much of its citizens are college-educated, white-collar, and mostly employed in Houston's renowned energy industry.

Sugar Land also contains what could possibly be the largest Asian community within Texas, as nearly a quarter of its residents are Asian-American. Most are of mainland Chinese and Taiwanese descent working in Houston's education, oil exploration and international trade fields.

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Geography

Sugar Land is located at 29°35'58" North, 95°36'51" West (29.599580, -95.614089)1.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 64.5 km² (24.9 mi²). 62.4 km² (24.1 mi²) of it is land and 2.1 km² (0.8 mi²) of it is water. The total area is 3.33% water.

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Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there are 63,328 people, 20,515 households, and 17,519 families residing in the city. The population density is 1,015.0/km² (2,629.1/mi²). There are 21,090 housing units at an average density of 338.0/km² (875.6/mi²). The racial makeup of the city is 66.00% White, 5.20% African American, 0.24% Native American, 23.80% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 2.32% from other races, and 2.41% from two or more races. 7.98% of the population are Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There are 20,515 households out of which 51.2% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 74.5% are married couples living together, 8.4% have a female householder with no husband present, and 14.6% are non-families. 12.6% of all households are made up of individuals and 2.9% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is 3.06 and the average family size is 3.36.

In the city the population is spread out with 31.2% under the age of 18, 6.2% from 18 to 24, 28.7% from 25 to 44, 27.2% from 45 to 64, and 6.7% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 37 years. For every 100 females there are 95.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 91.5 males.

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Crime Rates in Sugar Land Texas

Sugar Land TX Crime Statistics (2002 - New Crime Data)

Crime Type   2002 Total Per 100,000 People National per 100,000 People Overall Sugar Land Crime Index 1937 2928.33 4118.8 Sugar Land Murders 1 1.51 5.6 Sugar Land Forcible Rapes 12 18.14 33.0 Sugar Land Robberies 61 92.22 145.9 Sugar Land Aggravated Assaults 107 161.76 310.1 Sugar Land Burglaries 256 387.02 746.2 Sugar Land Larceny/Thefts 1387 2096.84 2445.8 Sugar Land Motor Vehicle Thefts 113 170.83 432.1 Sugar Land Arsons   0 0 N/A

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