Ponder, Texas

Town in Texas, United States

33°10′47″N 97°17′9″W / 33.17972°N 97.28583°W / 33.17972; -97.28583CountryUnited StatesStateTexasCountyDentonArea

^[1]

• Total3.39 sq mi (8.77 km²) • Land3.38 sq mi (8.76 km²) • Water0.00 sq mi (0.01 km²)Elevation

732 ft (223 m)Population

(2020)

• Total2,442Time zoneUTC-6 (Central (CST)) • Summer (DST)UTC-5 (CDT)ZIP code

76259

Area code940FIPS code48-58664^[2]GNIS feature ID1344345^[3]

Ponder is a town in Denton County, Texas, United States. The population was 2,442 in 2020.^[4]

History

The community has the name of the local Ponder family.^[5]

Local legend holds that Bonnie and Clyde either robbed the Ponder State Bank or attempted to rob it, only to discover it had gone broke the week before. However, this is not listed in the Barrow Gang's activities.^[6] The robbery in question may have been committed by the less famous but more successful Eddie Bentz.^[7]

Geography

Ponder is located at 33°10′47″N 97°17′9″W / 33.17972°N 97.28583°W / 33.17972; -97.28583 (33.179741, –97.285805).^[8]

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 3.2 square miles (8.3 km²), all land.

Demographics

Historical population
Census	Pop.	%±
1970	208	—
1980	297	42.8%
1990	432	45.5%
2000	507	17.4%
2010	1,395	175.1%
2020	2,442	75.1%
U.S. Decennial Census^[9]

^[10]

**Ponder racial composition as of 2020**^[4]
(NH = Non-Hispanic)^[a]
Race	Number	Percentage
White (NH)	1,749	71.62%
Black or African American (NH)	83	3.4%
Native American or Alaska Native (NH)	15	0.61%
Asian (NH)	29	1.19%
Pacific Islander (NH)	1	0.04%
Some Other Race (NH)	8	0.33%
Mixed/Multi-Racial (NH)	134	5.49%
Hispanic or Latino	423	17.32%
Total	2,442

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 2,442 people, 798 households, and 600 families residing in the town.

Education

Ponder is served by the Ponder Independent School District,^[13] which operates Ponder High School.

Notable person

Joe McQueen (1919–2019), jazz musician, born in Ponder

Photo gallery

Downtown Ponder, Texas
Former site of the Ponder United Methodist Church. The church moved to another building at 104 Remington Park Ln., next to the neighborhood of Remington Park.
Ponder Public Library and Town Hall.
Ponder State Bank, the site of the alleged robbing by Bonnie and Clyde.

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Ponder, Texas.

Notes

^ Note: the US Census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos can be of any race.^[11]^[12]

References

^ "2019 U.S. Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved August 7, 2020.
^ "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved January 31, 2008.
^ "US Board on Geographic Names". United States Geological Survey. October 25, 2007. Retrieved January 31, 2008.
^ ^a ^b "Explore Census Data". data.census.gov. Retrieved May 22, 2022.
^ Moyer, Armond; Moyer, Winifred (1958). The origins of unusual place-names. Keystone Pub. Associates. p. 104.
^ Guinn, Jeff (2009). Go Down Together: The True, Untold Story of Bonnie and Clyde. New York: Simon & Schuster. ISBN 1-4165-5706-7.
^ Newton, Michael. Next to the famous Ranchmans Steak house they have recently built a subway on Bailey Street in 2012. The Encyclopedia of Robberies, Heists, and Capers. New York: Facts On File Inc., 2002. (pg. 32-33) ISBN 0-8160-4488-0
^ "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. February 12, 2011. Retrieved April 23, 2011.
^ "Census of Population and Housing". Census.gov. Retrieved June 4, 2015.
^ Bureau, US Census. "City and Town Population Totals: 2020-2021". Census.gov. Retrieved February 26, 2023.
^ https://www.census.gov/ ^{[not specific enough to verify]}
^ "About the Hispanic Population and its Origin". www.census.gov. Retrieved May 18, 2022.
^ "2020 CENSUS - SCHOOL DISTRICT REFERENCE MAP: Denton County, TX" (PDF). U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved October 3, 2022.