Marble Falls was founded in 1887 by Adam Rankin "Stovepipe" Johnson,[8] a former Indian fighter and Confederate general. Johnson had visited the natural marble falls during his pre-war days as a Burnet County surveyor, and wanted to build an industrial city powered by the Colorado River. Johnson facilitated the construction of a railroad to nearby Granite Mountain in 1884, and helped plat the Marble Falls townsite. The sale of lots began in 1887, and Johnson built a home, a college, and a factory near the falls.
Max Starke Dam
The town grew to a population of 1,800 within ten years.[citation needed]
In 1917, Marble Falls elected Ophelia Crosby "Birdie" Harwood as the first woman mayor in Texas, three years before women were allowed to vote.[citation needed]
When the Max Starcke Dam was completed in 1951, the marble falls which had given the town its name were submerged under the new Lake Marble Falls. The town's economy declined through the drought of the 1950s, and prospered as a tourism and retirement location, beginning in the 1970s. Beginning in the 1980s, Marble Falls has grown into the retail and entertainment center for the Highland Lakes area.[9]
Geography
Marble Falls is located on the banks of Lake Marble Falls. According to the Handbook of Texas website, the former falls were flooded by the lake, which was created by a shelf of limestone running diagonally across the Colorado River from northeast to southwest. The upper layer of limestone, brownish on the exterior but a deep blue inside, was so hard and cherty it was mistaken for marble. The falls were actually three distinct formations at the head of a canyon 1.25 miles (2.01 km) long, with a drop of some 50 feet (15 m) through the limestone strata. The natural lake and waterfall were covered when the Colorado River was dammed with the completion of Max Starcke Dam in 1951. Lake Marble Falls sits between Lake Lyndon B. Johnson to the north and Lake Travis to the south. The falls for which the city is named are now underwater but are revealed every few years when the lake is lowered.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 12.2 square miles (31.6 km2), of which 11.6 square miles (30.0 km2) is land and 0.62 square miles (1.6 km2), or 5.21%, is water.[5]
As of the 2020 United States census, there were 7,037 people, 2,789 households, and 1,664 families residing in the city.
2010 census
As of the census[3] of 2010, there were 6,077 people, 2,486 households, and 1,542 families residing in the city. There were 28,235 housing units. The racial makeup of the city was 83.1% White, 3.9% African American, 0.7% Native American, 0.8% Asian, 9.1% from other races, and 2.4% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 24.2% of the population.
There were 2,486 households, out of which 29.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 42% were married couples living together, 14.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 38% were non-families. The average household size was 2.41 and the average family size was 3.08.
J. Frank Dobie (1888–1964), folklorist, writer, and newspaper columnist owned a ranch in Marble Falls
Gerald Lyda (1923–2005), general contractor and cattle rancher, born and raised in Marble Falls[14]
Leonel Manzano, silver medal winner in the 1500m at the 2012 London Olympics, NCAA 1500m Champion, member of the USA 2008 Beijing Olympic Team and the USA 2012 London Olympic Team
^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.[12]
