Oldham County Courthouse
Oldham County is one of 254 counties in Texas. It is a rural area. 14 ranches, most with absentee landowners, take up 800,000 acres of the county. Towns within the county are Vega, the county seat, Adrian, Wildorado and Boys Ranch. Boys Ranch is home to approximately 215 youth and 75 adult staff.
Drive into Vega, Texas from any direction and you are on historic ground. From the north, you cross land once traversed by Kiowas and Comanche Indians, and settled by pioneers. Old Tascosa which is located on the Boys Ranch campus in north Oldham County lays claim to the wild, wild west with such infamous residents as Billy the Kid. From east or west you track the Spanish explorer Coronado. Today, these routes are major highways 385 and Interstate 40. Old Route 66 runs through the county from Wildorado to Adrian with Oldham County as the “Mid-point” attracting many Route 66 tourists.
Major crops are wheat producing 784,000 bushels on 60,000 acres and grain sorghum producing 500,00 cwt on 24,910 acres. Approximately 30,000 head of beef cattle and 30,000-40,000 stocker calves are raised. The average rainfall is 15.83 inches with an average temperature in January of 50 degrees and in July of 89 degrees. The average elevation is 3,600 feet.
In 2003, Oldham had a per capita personal income (PCPI) of $22,661. This PCPI ranked 145th in the State. The State average was $29,074. **2000-2003 Regional Economic Information System, Bureau of Economic Analysis.
