| Official Name: | Tatum, New Mexico |
| Settlement Type: | Town |
| Mapsize: | 250px |
| Pushpin Map: | New Mexico#USA |
| Pushpin Map Caption: | Locations of Tatum in New Mexico##Location in the United States |
| Subdivision Type: | Country |
| Subdivision Name: | United States |
| Subdivision Type1: | State |
| Subdivision Name1: | New Mexico |
| Subdivision Type2: | County |
| Subdivision Name2: | Lea |
| Unit Pref: | Imperial |
| Area Footnotes: | [1] |
| Area Total Km2: | 4.12 |
| Area Land Km2: | 4.11 |
| Area Water Km2: | 0.02 |
| Area Total Sq Mi: | 1.59 |
| Area Land Sq Mi: | 1.58 |
| Area Water Sq Mi: | 0.01 |
| Population As Of: | 2020 |
| Population Total: | 706 |
| Population Density Km2: | 171.96 |
| Population Density Sq Mi: | 445.43 |
| Timezone: | Mountain (MST) |
| Utc Offset: | -7 |
| Timezone Dst: | MDT |
| Utc Offset Dst: | -6 |
| Elevation Ft: | 3996 |
| Coordinates: | 33.2553°N -103.3111°W |
| Postal Code Type: | ZIP codes |
| Postal Code: | 88213, 88267 |
| Area Code: | 575 |
| Blank Name: | FIPS code |
| Blank Info: | 35-76620 |
| Blank1 Name: | GNIS feature ID |
| Blank1 Info: | 2413367 |
Tatum is a town in Lea County, New Mexico, United States. The population was 798 at the 2010 census,[2] up from 683 in 2000.
Tatum is located in northern Lea County. U.S. Route 380 passes through the town, leading west to Roswell and east to Plains, Texas. New Mexico State Road 206 crosses US 380 in the center of Tatum, leading north to Portales and south to Lovington, the Lea county seat.
According to the United States Census Bureau, Tatum has a total area of 4.1sqkm, of which 0.02sqkm, or 0.47%, are water.[3]
According to the Köppen Climate Classification system, Tatum has a cold semi-arid climate, abbreviated "BSk" on climate maps. The hottest temperature recorded in Tatum was 115F on June 28, 1994, while the coldest temperature recorded was -16F on January 11, 1962, and January 13, 1963.
As of the census[4] of 2000, there were 683 people, 267 households, and 194 families residing in the town. The population density was 578.8sp=usNaNsp=us. There were 391 housing units at an average density of 331.3sp=usNaNsp=us. The racial makeup of the town was 65.45% White, 1.02% African American, 0.59% Native American, 0.15% Pacific Islander, 30.31% from other races, and 2.49% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 37.34% of the population.
There were 267 households, out of which 31.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 61.0% were married couples living together, 7.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.3% were non-families. 25.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.56 and the average family size was 3.08.
In the town, the population was spread out, with 28.1% under the age of 18, 6.9% from 18 to 24, 25.5% from 25 to 44, 23.7% from 45 to 64, and 15.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 96.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.6 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $28,833, and the median income for a family was $33,393. Males had a median income of $31,111 versus $19,750 for females. The per capita income for the town was $11,728. About 16.6% of families and 18.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 21.8% of those under age 18 and 21.6% of those age 65 or over.
Tatum Airport is a town-owned, public-use airport located three nautical miles (6 km) east of the central business district of Tatum.[5]