Get to know Edinburg, TX

The city of Edinburg is known as the Gateway City to the Rio Grande Valley.  The town was originally named Chapin in 1908, in honor of one of the developers, Dennis B. Chapin.  It became the county seat of Hidalgo County to protect the county courthouse from flooding from the Rio Grande and make it more centrally located.  Local myth claims that the relocation instead took place in the night when the county records were covertly removed from the previous county seat in the City of Hidalgo.  When Dennis Chapin was involved in the shooting death of two men in San Antonio, Texas, the community decided to change its name.  The town was renamed in 1911 in honor of the prominent businessman John Young who had been born in Edinburg, Scotland, and was incorporated in 1919.  In 2012, it was announced the University of Texas-Pan American in Edinburg would merge with the regional institution the University of Texas at Brownsville.  The new institution is called University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, which garnered media attention for the economic, social, and health care impact it was expected to have on the region.  One popular attraction is the Edinburg Scenic Wetlands, a wildlife rescue and World Birding Center Site.

Quick Facts

Population: 79,002

Median Household Income: $42,498

Median Property Value: $100,900