In the world of real estate, there is a mantra that is universal, and it is this “Location, Location, Location”. It is because of location, location, location that America Unraveled has chosen San Angelo as Texas’ Top Town.
Life in San Angelo
San Angelo is located in the Concho Valley in West Texas. It’s climate borders on being subtropical. The average year has 50 days with below freezing temperatures, but snow and sleet are pretty rare. In the summer if you like warmth and sometimes heat San Angelo is the place to be. The average number of days in the summer when San Angelo is 100 degrees is 18. The average temperature throughout the year is 65.4 degrees.
There are 251 days of sunshine for those who are partial to sunshine as opposed to rain. Speaking of rain, the average rainfall per year is 21 inches. Weather wise this location has it all from warm to hot, to moderate cold and, mostly, plenty of sunshine.
There are 100,450 residents in San Angelo. The median age is 33.5. The number of people who are 25 and older that have a Bachelor’s Degree is 22%. The average home sales in 2014 was $160,000 and the median household income in San Angelo in 2014 is $44,516. There are 10 Hospitals and Medical Facilities located in San Angelo.
San Angelo has a number of nicknames as well: Angelo, the River City, the Concho City, the Pearl of the Conchos and finally the Oasis of West Texas.
History
Prior to the arrival of Europeans, San Angelo was the gathering place of the Jumano people. Up until the 1600’s this land had been occupied by indigenous people for over 1000 years. It was in 1632 that a Spanish mission was established by the Franciscans who had come to serve the Indians.
Over numerous years in the 1800’s, because of San Angelo’s location, it was claimed by Spain, Mexico, the Republic of Texas and finally by the United States in 1846. The current city was founded in 1867, and the U.S. Army built Fort Concho there to protect the city and the territory around San Angelo. The cavalry that occupied the fort was the famous Black Cavalry and better known as the “Buffalo Soldiers” by the Indians.
The town was a trade center for farmers and the settlers. San Angelo also had a dark side for it was known for its saloons, brothels, and gambling houses.
In the 1880’s when San Angelo became the county seat, and the railroads passed through the town, San Angelo began to grow quickly. As a result of this growth, in 1928 San Angelo College was founded. It was the first institution of higher learning in the region. Today it is Angelo State University.
During World War II Goodfellow Air Force Base was built to train pilots for the war. And because of it’s location, San Angelo became a regional hub of the oil and the gas industry as it is today.
San Angelo’s Economy
San Angelo has been rated as one of the best small cities for business and employment. In 2013 “Forbes” magazine rated this Top Town in Texas 4th in the nation’s “Best Small Cities for Jobs”. In 2010 “Kiplinger’s Personal Finance” rated San Angelo as one of the “Best Cities of the Next Decade” and in 2009 “CNN Money” listed San Angelo as one of the best cities to launch a small business. Why so many accolades for San Angelo?
Let’s go back to the mantra we began with Location, Location, Location – there are many oil fields that lay to the west, and the oil-field service companies are based in San Angelo. The corporations employ large numbers of people.
The Agriculture industry is strong as well. Producers Livestock Auction is located in San Angelo. This is the largest facility in the nation for sheep and lamb auctions and in the top 5 in the nation for cattle auctions. There are many folks who work in the cattle and lamb meat processing industry.
Some of the other employers in San Angelo are the two Agricultural Research Centers, the telecommunication industry, Sitel, Verizon, and Blue Cross which employ over 1,000 people. The three medical centers in San Angelo employee over 3,000 people and serve a large region in West – Central Texas. Angelo State University employees a large amount of people and the largest employer is Goodfellow Air Force Base. The economy is strong in San Angelo and that is another reason it is the Top Town in Texas.
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