GAINES COUNTY

County Offices
101 S Main Street
Seminole 432-758-5411
http://www.co.gaines.tx.us/

Chamber of Commerce
119 SE Avenue B
Seminole 432-758-2352
https://seminoletxchamber.org/

Expansive Gaines County sprawls over 1,489 square miles in West Texas, bordering New Mexico on the west and approximately 85 miles southwest of the metropolitan center of Lubbock. Dominant geographic features include Cedar Lake, the largest of the salt lakes on the Texas plains. Straddling the oil-rich Permian Basin and the southern edge of the agricultural South Plains, Gaines County supports strong energy and agricultural sectors. Along with its status as a top producer of cotton and peanuts and oil, the county provides fertile ground for sorghums, vegetables, sunflowers, peaches, pecans, cattle, sheep, and hogs. Major employers include local industry, healthcare, education, and government.

A strong network of major thoroughfares ensures easy access to regional destinations and points beyond. Transportation efficiencies include the presence of U.S. Highways 62, 180, and 385 and Texas State Highways 83, 115, and 214 along with Gaines County Airport for general aviation needs. The closest commercial airline service is available at Lea County Regional Airport just 35 miles from home in Hobbs, New Mexico. Expanded air travel services can be found at Midland International Airport approximately 70 miles away, or 20 miles further at Lubbock Preston Smith International Airport.

Services

Residents of Gaines County enjoy the best of small-town living with healthcare services that compare with those found in much larger cities. Seminole Hospital District system provides a full continuum of care and a culture that emphasizes innovation and compassion. The wide range of services includes surgery, labor and delivery, family medicine clinics, in-house laboratory services, long-term care facilities, and a convenient in-house pharmacy. The cornerstones of the system are Memorial Hospital, Memorial Healthcare Center, and Memorial Place Assisted Living. Rural health is the focal point of the Seminole Family Medical Clinic, a comprehensive primary care center at Memorial Hospital that also accommodates walk-ins for urgent care visits. Should the need for more advanced care arise, Lubbock is home to Covenant Medical Center and Children’s Hospital and several acclaimed specialty centers under Covenant Health. Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, the University Medical Center Health System (UMC) in partnership with Texas Tech University, provides a world-class teaching hospital and premier research center.

Access to first-rate educational resources begin close to home in Gaines County, recognized as having one of the finest school systems in Texas. Unusually strong support from tax revenues combines with a dedication to excellence that result in a 98 percent graduation rate and one-on-one technology support from kindergarten through high school. Specialized resources include a center for adult education and a success center where students receive the support and guidance needed to progress and practice at their own pace. Two-year degree programs and career training are available at Odessa College in Odessa, serving Ector County residents and those in surrounding Permian Basin communities. With campuses in Midland and Odessa, the University of Texas of the Permian Basin offers a wide range of undergraduate and graduate programs that include a nationally ranked College of Business. The crown jewel of West Texas higher education is located in the city of Lubbock. Recognized as a Tier One Carnegie Designated University, Texas Tech University maintains preeminent research partnerships in a variety of areas. Students can choose from 150 undergraduate majors, 100 master programs, and 50 doctoral programs in 13 colleges that include a school of law, a medical school, and Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center.

Lifestyle

Newcomers to Gaines County will discover a quality community of friendly neighbors, attractive homes, and unique attractions that make this area a wonderful place to live, work, and play. Gaines County Park and its 18-hole championship Golf Course is a hidden Panhandle gem that hosts the Gaines County Pro-Am Tournament. Other popular local recreational destinations include the Gaines County Shooting Range, community and youth centers, RV parks, an Olympic-size pool, sports courts and fields, the Seminole Fishing Hole, and local parks. Annual events draw enthusiastic crowds to special events and festivals including Ag and Oil Appreciation Day that salutes Gaines County as the state’s top cotton, peanut, and oil producer. The vast region surrounding the county supports every imaginable outdoor activity, from hunting and fishing to swimming and camping at nearby lakes. Hikers and nature lovers will find no better place to explore than Big Bend National Park, where night skies are studded with stars and rivers have formed cathedral-like canyons in ancient limestone.

Cultural attractions start just beyond the front doorstep, from summer community theater to fascinating displays that celebrate the region’s past at Gaines County Museum. The crown jewel of the local arts community is the impressive Performing Arts Center, a resource of the Seminole Independent School District that benefits the entire community. The 935-seat auditorium joins a black box theater, scene shop, band hall, and practice rooms to serve as a state-of-the-art resource dedicated to music, speech, and theater appreciation and expression. For star-studded entertainment and world-class performances, Lubbock offers venues the Louise Hopkins Underwood Center for the Arts, Moonlight Musicals Amphitheater, and the spectacular Buddy Holly Hall of Performing Arts and Sciences that houses Ballet Lubbock and Lubbock Symphony Orchestra. The “Hub City” also expands the options for day-long shopping sprees, family fun centers, and wildly popular festivals and celebrations. For the best of small-town living within a short drive from urban attractions or scenic wilderness adventures, discover the good life in Gaines County.

 

COMMUNITIES

Seagraves

Municipal Offices
806-387-2593
https://www.seagravestx.us

Chamber of Commerce
432-758-2352
https://seminoletxchamber.org/

The welcoming small town of Seagraves was once given the slogan, “The City that Oil Built” for the 1950s oil boom that rebuilt the community after a devastating fire in 1928. The surviving buildings from that tragedy have become local treasures, including the Simpson Hotel that earned a Texas Historical Commission Medallion. The Seagraves Museum and Art Center in the C.M. Armstrong building is another proud landmark that showcases a rotating art exhibit, local memorabilia and artifacts, and examples of early pioneer living. Residents of this small rural town enjoy the strong friendships and supportive atmosphere of a close-knit community where school, church, and civic events take center stage. The cooperative and caring attitude that rebuilt Seagraves so long ago is very much alive today. For expanded healthcare and commercial resources, the city of Seminole is just a short drive from home.

 

Seminole

Municipal Offices
432-758-3676
http://www.seminoleedc.org/

Chamber of Commerce
432-758-2352
https://seminoletxchamber.org/

“A great place to live and raise your kids” is one of the most common statements made about the city of Seminole. This relatively small town serves as the seat of government, healthcare, services, commerce, and recreational amenities for the surrounding rural county. Newcomers will discover comprehensive medical and healthcare services, outstanding schools that include a performing arts center, summer theater experiences, historic preservation, active civic and social organizations, and a calendar filled with events and activities that bring friends and family together. The city hosts the county’s biggest events, from the annual rodeo and July Fourth fireworks to the lighted parade in December that heralds Santa’s appearance on the town square. A settlement of Mennonites has developed near Seminole that maintains their own school and church and agrarian traditions. Most of these farming families moved to Texas from New Mexico where regulations around land ownership had become too limiting.