Shiner, Texas

Shiner is a city in Lavaca County, Texas, United States. The town was named after Henry B. Shiner who donated 250 acre for railroad right of way. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 2,069.

History
In 1887, Henry B. Shiner donated 250 acres for a depot and right-of-way for the Aransas Pass Railway and the town grew around these transportation facilities. The town was incorporated in 1890. Czech and German immigrants soon became the dominant ethnic groups, and Shiner developed a cohesive Czech community that still heavily influences the town's culture. Ranching was an important part of the town's history.

Shiner is the home of the Spoetzl Brewery, the oldest independent brewery in Texas. The brewery is most well known for producing Shiner Bock, a dark German/Czech-style beer that is now distributed in 41 states.

Shiner is also the home of the historic Kaspar Companies, one of the oldest continuously operating manufacturing companies in America. Kaspar Companies is a manufacturing conglomerate that consists of Kaspar Wire Works, Ranch Hand Truck Accessories, Texas Precious Metals, Kaspar Sho-Rack (a newsrack), Kaspar Custom Fabrication.

Geography
Shiner is located at 29.43083°N, -97.17222°W (29.430856, -97.172115). According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 2.4 sqmi, of which, 2.4 sqmi of it is land and 0.41% is water.

Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there were 2,070 people, 882 households, and 572 families residing in the city. The population density was 849.9 people per square mile (327.6/km²). stg There were 1,016 housing units at an average density of 417.1 per square mile (160.8/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 85.60% White, 10.87% African American, 0.05% Native American, 0.29% Asian, 1.93% from other races, and 1.26% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 6.09% of the population.

There were 882 households out of which 26.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.1% were married couples living together, 10.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 35.1% were non-families. 33.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 22.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.25 and the average family size was 2.86.

In the city the population was spread out with 21.8% under the age of 18, 5.4% from 18 to 24, 23.1% from 25 to 44, 20.9% from 45 to 64, and 28.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 45 years. For every 100 females there were 80.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 74.9 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $28,205, and the median income for a family was $40,250. Males had a median income of $28,167 versus $17,426 for females. The per capita income for the city was $16,942. About 7.4% of families and 11.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 10.7% of those under age 18 and 21.0% of those age 65 or over.

Education
The City of Shiner is served by the Shiner Independent School District and home to the Shiner High School Comanches. Also, the city is served by Shiner Catholic School which operate St.Paul High School and St. Ludmila Elementary School.

Media
Shiner's weekly newspaper, The Shiner Gazette, was established in 1892.

Locations and events

 * Official Shiner Texas Home Page at ShinerTX.com including Calendar of Events
 * Spoetzl Brewery
 * G.H.A.S.P G.H.A.S.P. Great Houston and Austin to Shiner Pedal.
 * Kaspar Wire Works, manufacturers of Sho-Rack brand newspaper racks
 * Texas Precious Metals, is an independent nationwide dealer of precious metals.
 * Ranch Hand Truck Accessories an American manufacturer of after market heavy duty truck accessories.
 * Boedeker Plastics, plastics materials distributor and machine shop
 * Wolters Memorial Museum
 * EDB Museum
 * Saints Cyril and Methodius Catholic Church
 * St. Ludmila Elementary and St. Paul High School
 * Shiner Catholic Church Spring and Fall Picnic
 * Shiner Catholic Church Strudel Bake
 * Gaslight Theatre
 * Half Moon Holidays
 * Historic Old Town Shiner (H.O.T.S)
 * Rotary Club Craft and Hobby Show
 * Annual Shiner Area Big Buck Contest
 * FFA Stock Show
 * Eagle Scout Capital of Texas

Notable people
Shiner is the hometown of five Major League Baseball players:
 * Ross Youngs (1917–26), outfielder, member of Baseball Hall of Fame
 * Vic Roznovsky (1964–69), catcher
 * Carroll Sembera(1965–70), pitcher
 * Jeremy Fikac (2001–04), pitcher
 * Logan Ondrusek (2010– ), pitcher