Cut and Shoot is a city in eastern Montgomery County, Texas, United States, about east of Conroe and north of Houston. Until 2006, Cut and Shoot was considered and called a "town". Then, the town council elected for it to be considered and referred to as a "city". The population was 1,070 at the 2010 census.
Name
According to one local legend, Cut and Shoot was named after a 1912 community confrontation that almost led to violence. According to differing versions of the story, the dispute was either over:
The design of a new steeple for the town's only church,
The issue of who should be allowed to preach there, or
The conflicting land claims among church members.
Whatever the circumstances were, a small boy at the scene reportedly said he was scared and declared, "I'm going to cut around the corner and shoot through the bushes in a minute!" This statement apparently stayed in the residents' minds and was eventually adopted as the town's name. It has frequently been noted on lists of unusual place names.
History
The town of Cut and Shoot gained fame when local boxer Roy Harris, a heavyweight contender, fought Floyd Patterson for the heavyweight title in 1958. Harris appeared on the cover of Sports Illustrated and was featured in LIFE. So much mail was addressed to "Roy Harris, Cut and Shoot, Texas" that the U. S. Postal Service granted a franchise post office to the town. Population statistics were not reported for the community until the mid-1970s, when the number of residents was 50. By 1980, the incorporated community reported a population of 809, had a new city hall, and supported a school and several businesses.
As of the 2010 United States Census, there were 1,070 people, 371 households, and 289 families residing in the town. The population density was 396.3 people per square mile.The racial makeup of the town was 87.2% White, 1.0% African American, 0.8% Native American, 0.2% Asian, 0.1% Native Hawaiian 8.2% from other races, and 2.4% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 15.0% of the population. Out of 371 households, 77.9% are family households, 34.5% with children under 18 years. 63.6% were husband-wife families. Out of 371 households, 22.1% were non-family households, with 18.1% of householders living alone. The average household size was 2.88; the average family size was 3.23. 27.9% of the population is under the age of 18. 11.9% are over the age of 65. The median age is 37.1. 50.6% of the population is female. As of 2000, The median income for a household in the town was $40,455, and the median income for a family was $47,404. Males had a median income of $36,719 versus $20,833 for females. The per capita income for the town was $15,482. About 5.7% of families and 8.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 7.5% of those under age 18 and 15.5% of those age 65 or over.
Government and infrastructure
Cut and Shoot is governed locally by an elected mayor and five at-large city council positions. The current mayor is Nyla Akin Dalhaus. Current city council members, also known as Aldermen, are Bill Green, Jason Wieghat, Thomas Robinson, Belinda Faulkner, and Ryan Wallace. For the Texas Senate, 87% of Cut and Shoot is in District 3, represented by Republican Robert Nichols. The other 13% is in District 4, represented by Republican Brandon Creighton. For the Texas House of Representatives, Cut and Shoot is in District 16, represented by Republican Will Metcalf. For the United States Senate, Republicans John Cornyn and Ted Cruz represent the entire state. For the United States House of Representatives, Cut and Shoot is in District 8, represented by Kevin Brady. The City of Cut and Shoot is one of the very few statewide municipalities that has no ad valorem property tax within its city limits. The only tax based city income is from a 1% sales tax on taxable goods and services within the city limits. The United States Postal Service Cut and Shoot Post Office is located at 13985 Texas State Highway 105 East. Cut And Shoot includes Groceville, an unincorporated populated place.
