| Official Name: | Cotulla, Texas |
| Settlement Type: | City |
| Pushpin Map: | Texas |
| Mapsize: | 250px |
| Image Map1: | LaSalle County Cotulla.svg |
| Mapsize1: | 250px |
| Subdivision Type: | Country |
| Subdivision Name: | United States |
| Subdivision Type1: | State |
| Subdivision Name1: | Texas |
| Subdivision Type2: | County |
| Subdivision Name2: | La Salle |
| Unit Pref: | Imperial |
| Area Footnotes: | [1] |
| Area Total Km2: | 5.21 |
| Area Land Km2: | 5.21 |
| Area Water Km2: | 0.00 |
| Area Total Sq Mi: | 2.01 |
| Area Land Sq Mi: | 2.01 |
| Area Water Sq Mi: | 0.00 |
| Population As Of: | 2020 |
| Population Total: | 3718 |
| Population Density Km2: | auto |
| Timezone: | Central (CST) |
| Utc Offset: | -6 |
| Timezone Dst: | CDT |
| Utc Offset Dst: | -5 |
| Elevation Ft: | 440 |
| Coordinates: | 28.4342°N -99.2364°W |
| Postal Code Type: | ZIP codes |
| Postal Code: | 78001, 78014 |
| Area Code: | 830 |
| Blank Name: | FIPS code |
| Blank Info: | 48-17216[2] |
| Blank1 Name: | GNIS feature ID |
| Blank1 Info: | 2410247 |
Cotulla ([3]) is a city in and the county seat of La Salle County, Texas, United States.[4] Its population was 3,718 as of the 2020 census.[5]
Immigrant Joseph Cotulla, who was reared in Silesia, then a part of Prussia, migrated to the United States in the 1850s. He joined the Union Army in Brownsville, Texas. He lived in Atascosa County, but arrived in La Salle County in 1868 to establish what became a large ranching operation. After learning that the International-Great Northern Railroad intended to lay tracks in La Salle County, he worked to establish the town that bears his name.
In 1881, Cotulla donated 120 acres of his land to the railroad, and in 1882, a depot was constructed there. In 1883, the town was granted a post office. The same year, Cotulla became the county seat by special election.[6]
Joseph Cotulla's great-grandson, William Lawrence Cotulla (born around 1936), a former storekeeper in Cotulla, is a rancher in La Salle, Dimmit, and Webb Counties. In a 2013 interview with the Laredo Morning Times, William Cotulla noted the community of his birth has changed completely in less than 80 years, having gone through several phases, beginning with emphasis on farming, then ranching, thereafter hunting leases, and now petroleum and natural gas through the Eagle Ford Shale boom.[7] With declining gasoline prices, though, the Eagle Ford boom took a sharp downturn by the fall of 2015.[8]
In 1973, two railroad locomotives collided in Cotulla, and three people were killed as a result.[9] In 2008, the area around Cotulla burned in a huge grass fire.
Cotulla is located at 28.4342°N -99.2364°W (28.434144, –99.236343). This is 81 mi (147 km) southwest of San Antonio.[10]
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 2sqmi, all land. The Nueces River flows through southern Cotulla in a southeastward direction to the Gulf of Mexico, near Corpus Christi.
According to the Köppen Climate Classification system, Cotulla has a humid subtropical climate, abbreviated "Cfa" on climate maps.
| White (NH) | 424 | 11.4% | |
| Black or African American (NH) | 9 | 0.24% | |
| Native American or Alaska Native (NH) | 1 | 0.03% | |
| Asian (NH) | 4 | 0.11% | |
| Some Other Race (NH) | 5 | 0.13% | |
| Mixed/Multi-Racial (NH) | 31 | 0.83% | |
| Hispanic or Latino | 3,244 | 87.25% | |
| Total | 3,718 |
As of the census of 2000, 3,614 people, 1,208 households, and 901 families were residing in the city. The population density was 1,831.8 people per mi2 (708.3/km2). The 1,504 housing units averaged 762.3 per mi2 (294.8/km2). The racial makeup of the city was 83.45% White, 0.64% African American, 0.39% Native American, 0.50% Asian, 12.67% from other races, and 2.35% from two or more races. Hispanics or Latinos of any race were 83.56% of the population.
Of the 1,208 households, 39.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.7% were married couples living together, 17.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.4% were not families. About 22.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.95, and the average family size was 3.50.
In the city, the age distribution was 33.6% under 18, 8.6% from 18 to 24, 24.0% from 25 to 44, 21.3% from 45 to 64, and 12.5% who were 65 or older. The median age was 32 years. For every 100 females, there were 90.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.2 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $23,250, and for a family was $25,951. Males had a median income of $21,199 versus $17,415 for females. The per capita income for the city was $10,856. About 27.9% of families and 30.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 39.0% of those under age 18 and 28.1% of those age 65 or over.
The La Salle County Courthouse in downtown Cotulla has undergone extensive renovation.