Geography of Abilene
Abilene, Texas, the seat of Taylor County. It is 150 miles (240 km) west-southwest of Fort Worth. Abilene is a processing and marketing center for the surrounding farming, ranching, and oil-producing region. Products include appliances, plumbing fixtures, band instruments, and components for the aerospace industry. McMurry University, Abilene Christian University, and Hardin-Simmons University are here.
In 1881 the site of Abilene became the terminus of the Texas and Pacific Railway. The city was founded in 1882 by a group of landowners and named after Abilene, Kansas. It owes its growth to the presence of the railway, the discovery of oil in the area, and the establishment nearby in 1941 of Camp Barkeley, now Dyess Air Force Base.
Population: 115,930.