Map of Crane city, Texas

Crane is a city in and the county seat of Crane County, Texas, United States. Its population is about 3,680 as of 2018. An oil boomtown since the 1920s, Crane is still in the center of a prominent oil-producing region. It is the only significant town in sparsely populated Crane County, and contains the only post office in the county.

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Crane location map. Where is Crane city?

History

While the post office dates from 1908, the discovery of oil in 1926 in the Permian Basin brought in enough fortune-seekers to populate a town. Streets are named for the children of O.C. Kinnison, the realtor who drew up the town map. By 1930, Crane was a full-fledged boomtown, with churches and private businesses operating next to the more nefarious elements of frontier life. As in other oil boomtowns, development of services lagged behind temporary dwellings for the workers, although paved roads and other basic infrastructure were added following incorporation in the early 1930s.

Peak population as reported by the U.S. Census was in 1960 at 3,796, and it has declined slightly since, although the town remains the center for serving the oil fields in Crane County.

The Museum of the Desert Southwest, the area’s museum of local history, is operated by the Crane County Historical Commission.

Crane Road Map

Crane city Satellite Map

Geography

Crane is located in eastern Crane County at 31°23′35″N 102°21′3″W / 31.39306°N 102.35083°W / 31.39306; -102.35083 (31.392949, –102.350751). According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 1.0 square mile (2.7 km), all of it land.

The main highway through Crane is U.S. Route 385, which leads north 32 miles (51 km) to Odessa and south 21 miles (34 km) to McCamey.

Climate

As is typical for the region, Crane has a hot semiarid climate (Köppen BSh) with hot to sweltering summers with occasional thunderstorms and pleasant, dry winters with cold to freezing mornings.

See also