WACO

city, seat (1850) of McLennan county, north-central Texas, U.S. Waco lies along the Brazos River, 97 miles (156 km) south of Dallas. It was founded in 1849 on the site of a Waco (Hueco) Indian village near a Texas Ranger fort (1837) in a farming and plantation area. After the American Civil War it became a river-bridge crossing on cattle trails; later its economy was based almost exclusively on cotton, and the coming of the railroad (1881) stimulated economic growth. World War II brought two large Air Force installations (now closed) and the beginning of industrialization. Waco still depends partly on crops and livestock, but manufacturing (including clothing, machinery, tire, and glass) and service industries (including tourism) have broadened its economic base. The city is the seat of Baylor University (Southern Baptist; 1845), McLennan Community College (1965), and the James Connally Campus of Texas State Technical College (1965), located on a deactivated air base. A violent tornado devastated Waco on May 11, 1953, killing 114 persons. On April 19, 1993, after a 51-day standoff with federal agents, more than 70 members of the Branch Davidian religious cult perished in a fire at their compound near Waco. Lake Waco, formed in 1923 by damming the Bosque River, is a recreational spot just west of the city. Inc. 1856. Pop. (1990) city, 103,590; Waco MSA, 189,123; (1994 est.) city, 105,892; (1995 est.) Waco MSA, 200,111.