Get to know El Paso, TX
The city of El Paso sits on the far western corner of Texas on the Rio Grande, across the border from Ciudad Juarez. The area was originally home to maize farmers. As the Spanish and Mexican immigrants began to inhabit the area, they were incorporated into the Mestizo culture. The region felt little impact with the Texas Revolution in 1836. The village was self-governing, with both Mexican and Texan government representatives negotiating until Texas took firm control of the area in 1846. The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo of 1848 made El Paso an official American settlement, and the Compromise of 1850 put the city in the Texas boundary. The town grew after the Civil War and was incorporated in 1873. The arrival of the railroads in 1881 brought lawless residents to the town, leading the nickname “Six Shooter Capital” before the area was pressured by authorities to fix its vice problem. The city grew with Prohibition-era bootlegging, but the subsequent agricultural economic depression before the Great Depression hit El Paso hard. With the onset of World War II, military expansion in the area as well as the discovery of oil in the Permian Basin help pull the economy up. While the post-war expansion slowed by the 1960s, the city experienced continued growth as more land was annexed and because of the significant economic relationship with Mexico. In 2010 El Paso was awarded the title of an All-American City and has been considered one of the safest cities in the country for decades. The city has a large military presence, with Fort Bliss, William Beaumont Army medical Center, and Biggs Army Airfield all located in El Paso. It is also the medical hub of West Texas and Southern New Mexico. Popular attractions include Franklin Mountains State Park, the largest urban park in the country, Ysleta Mission, the oldest continuously operated parish in Texas. In addition to its many arts and music festivals, the city has been the backdrop for a number of movies, including Django Unchained (2012) and No Country for Old Men (2007). The city also is host to the second oldest consecutive college football contest, the Sun Bowl.
Quick Facts
Population: 679,024
Median Household Income: $41,221
Median Property Value: $119,200
