| Presidio, Texas | |
|---|---|
| — City — | |
| Signpost outside the city of Presidio, Texas | |
| Location of Presidio, Texas | |
| Coordinates: | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Texas |
| County | Presidio |
| Area | |
| • Total | 2.6 sq mi (6.7 km2) |
| • Land | 2.6 sq mi (6.7 km2) |
| • Water | 0.0 sq mi (0.0 km2) |
| Elevation | 2,582 ft (787 m) |
| Population (2000) | |
| • Total | 4,167 |
| • Density | 1,620.1/sq mi (625.5/km2) |
| Time zone | Central (CST) (UTC-6) |
| • Summer (DST) | CDT (UTC-5) |
| ZIP codes | 79845-79846 |
| Area code(s) | 432 |
| FIPS code | 48-59396[1] |
| GNIS feature ID | 1344545[2] |
Presidio is a city in Presidio County, Texas, United States. It stands on the Rio Grande (Río Bravo del Norte), on the opposite side of the U.S.-Mexico border from Ojinaga, Chihuahua. The population was 4,167 at the 2000 census, and had increased to 4,426 as of the 2010 US census.[3]
Presidio is on the Farm to Market Road 170, and U.S. Route 67, 18 miles (29 km) south of Shafter in southern Presidio County. Presidio is about 240 miles from El Paso, which is the closest major city to this town.
Contents |
The junction of the Conchos and Rio Grande rivers at Presidio was settled thousands of years ago by hunting and gathering Indians. By 1200 AD, the local Indians had adopted agriculture and lived in small, closely knit settlements, which the Spaniards later called pueblos.[4] See La Junta Indians
The first Spaniards came to Presidio in 1535, when Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca and his three companions stopped at the Indian pueblo, placed a cross on the mountainside, and called the village La Junta de las Cruces. On December 10, 1582, Antonio de Espejo and his company arrived at the site and called the pueblo San Juan Evangelista. By 1681, the area of Presidio was known as La Junta de los Ríos, or the Junction of the Rivers. There were five Jumanos towns along the Rio Grande to the north of the junction, consisting largely of permanent houses.[5] In 1683 Juan Sabeata, the chief of the Jumano Indian nation, reported having seen a fiery cross on the mountain at Presidio and requested that a mission be established at La Junta. The settlement in 1684 became known as La Navidad en Las Cruces.[6] The missions La Navidad en las Cruces, San Francisco de los Julimes, San Antonio de los Puliques, Apostol Santiago, and Santa María de la Redonda may have been established on the Texas side of the Rio Grande at La Junta.[7]
About 1760, a penal colony and military garrison of sixty men were established near Presidio. In 1830, the name of the area around Presidio was changed from La Junta de los Rios to Presidio del Norte. White American settlers came to Presidio in 1848 after the Mexican War. Among them was John Spencer, who operated a horse ranch on the United States side of the Rio Grande near Presidio. Ben Leaton and Milton Faver, former scalp hunters for the Mexican government, built private forts in the area. The handful of Anglo settlers who came to the region were assimilated into the Hispanic population and their descendants are primarily Spanish speakers today.
During the Mexican Revolution, General Pancho Villa often used Ojinaga as his headquarters for operations and visited Presidio on numerous occasions.
In 1849 a Comanche raid almost destroyed Presidio, and in 1850 Indians drove off most of the cattle in town. A post office was established at Presidio in 1868, and the first public school was opened in 1887.
In 1897, President William McKinley appointed George B. Jackson, an African American former buffalo soldier as customs collector at Presidio, a position that he held until his death in 1900. Jackson, a businessman from San Angelo, was considered the "wealthiest colored man in Texas" in the second half of the 19th century.[8]
In 1930 the Kansas City, Mexico and Orient Railway reached Presidio, and the town incorporated. The population grew from ninety-six in 1925 to 1,671 in 1988, but the number of businesses declined from seventy in 1933 to twenty-two in 1988. At the end of 1988, Presidio experienced a population boom, due in part to previously undocumented resident aliens enrolled in the amnesty program. The population in 1990 was 3,422.
The 1959 movie Rio Bravo featured the town.
As of 2007, Presidio's local economy is based largely upon employment at Presidio Independent School District, United States Customs and Border Protection, and local retail businesses. Formerly, Presidio was home to several truck-farming operations, focused mainly on onions and cantaloupes. Those operations ceased in the late 1990s.
In 2010, Presidio built the world's largest sodium-sulfur battery to provide power when the city's lone line to the United States power grid goes down.[9]
Presidio is located at (29.561272, -104.366522).[10]
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 2.6 square miles (6.7 km2), all land. Presidio is located near the confluence of the Rio Conchos and Rio Grande rivers. The Rio Conchos flows in a northeasterly direction from its source in the Sierra Madre in the state of Chihuahua, Mexico. Commonly referred to as "La Junta" (the joining), the two rivers resulted in plentiful water, creating a flood plain that is ideal for farming.
As of the census[1] of 2000, there were 4,167 people, 1,285 households, and 1,033 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,620.1 people per square mile (626.0/km²). There were 1,541 housing units at an average density of 599.1 per square mile (231.5/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 83.39% White, 0.10% African American, 0.14% Native American, 0.05% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 15.43% from other races, and 0.86% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 94.12% of the population.
There were 1,285 households out of which 49.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 62.6% were married couples living together, 14.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 19.6% were non-families. 18.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.24 and the average family size was 3.73.
In the city the population was spread out with 37.2% under the age of 18, 8.7% from 18 to 24, 25.5% from 25 to 44, 17.4% from 45 to 64, and 11.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 28 years. For every 100 females there were 89.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 84.8 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $18,031, and the median income for a family was $19,601. Males had a median income of $20,469 versus $15,000 for females. The per capita income for the city was $7,098. About 40.4% of families and 43.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 48.3% of those under age 18 and 64.5% of those age 65 or over.
The Consulate of Mexico in Presidio is in the city.[11]
The City of Presidio is served by the Presidio Independent School District, which includes Presidio Elementary School, Franco Middle School, and Presidio High School.
|
|||||||||||||||||