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Roma, Texas

Everything Roma is known for

3 songs mention this city

RoadyGoat plays music like this when you drive through Roma. It's free on iPhone, and full songs play through Apple Music.

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Music in Roma

Songs About Roma

Route 90
Clarence "Bon Ton" Garlow
35%
heard it all before
bob wayne
19%
leavin' texas
jerry jeff walker
10%

Artists From Roma

No artists from Roma in the database yet.

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Rivers & Roads in Song near Roma

Songs written about the waterways and highways that run near Roma.

Rio Grande / Río Bravo 162 songs Rio Grande / Río Bravo 249 songs

Musical Heritage

Jose 'Pepe' Maldonado RoadyGoat

Pepe Maldonado picked cotton in the fields around Rio Grande City before he was old enough to know it wasn't his future. At thirteen he decided he'd be an artist instead — and then he taught himself accordion, bass, and bajo sexto, all three. Through the fifties and sixties he worked the Valley playing "El Troquero" and "Amorcito Consentido," and in 1967 a song called "Al Pie de un Crucifijo" carried his name all the way to New York. By the seventies he'd built his own label, Del Sur Records, and a studio called El Rancho Sound, where conjunto groups drove up from Monterrey and Reynosa to cut records. Lydia Mendoza herself made an album there. Eighty-three years old, and the Valley still runs right through his hands.

RoadyGoat → · 11.6 mi away

History of Roma

The Steamboat Capital of the Rio Grande RoadyGoat

Imagine standing on the bluffs overlooking the Rio Grande in 1870. The air would be filled with the sound of steam whistles and the sight of tall-stacked paddlewheelers churning the muddy water. This was Roma's golden age. Because of shallows further upstream, Roma was the head of navigation — the end of the line for river traffic coming up from the Gulf. Steamboat men like Richard King and Mifflin Kenedy, before they became legendary cattle barons, ran the boats that worked this river, hauling cotton and silver out of Mexico and freighting supplies inland. The stone and brick buildings you see in the Roma Historic District were built on the profits of that trade — warehouses, stores, and homes for the merchants who thrived in this bustling port. And then the river itself gave out. Irrigation upstream drew off so much water that by 1874 the channel at Roma had dropped nearly three feet, and by the 1880s the levels were too low for commercial navigation at all. The steamboats vanished, leaving Roma a perfectly preserved monument to the riverboat era.

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Roma, TX RoadyGoat

The Roma National Historic Landmark District contains over 30 structures built before 1900, including the Customs House, the John Vale/Noah Cox House, the Leocadia Garcia House, Ramirez Hall, the Manuel Guerra Building, the Néstor Saenz Store, the Edward Hord Office, the Filomeno Gongora House, and Our Lady of Refuge Church. These landmarks provide a glimpse into Roma's rich history and architectural heritage.

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Hollywood on the Rio Grande: 'Viva Zapata!' RoadyGoat

In 1951, the quiet town of Roma was transformed into a bustling movie set. Director Elia Kazan and a crew from 20th Century Fox arrived to film the epic 'Viva Zapata!', starring Marlon Brando as the Mexican revolutionary Emiliano Zapata. They chose Roma because its historic plaza and beautifully preserved 19th-century architecture looked more like a vintage Mexican town than any place they could find in Mexico itself. Local residents were hired as extras, and for a few months, Hollywood stars walked the same streets you’re driving on now. The film, written by John Steinbeck, became a classic, and Roma’s role in it is a major point of pride. If you visit the Roma Bluffs, you can see the very buildings and landscapes that appeared on the silver screen, a lasting connection between this small border town and the golden age of Hollywood.

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Guerra, Manuel

1894

Manuel Guerra, banker, rancher, and Democratic leader in Starr County politics, the son of Jesús Guerra Barrera, was born in Mier, Tamaulipas, in 1856. The claims of the Guerra family to land in South Texas originated in 1767, when José Alejandro Guerra secured two Spanish land grants that straddled the Rio Grande. Unlike many Hispanic families with property north of the border, the Guerras did not lose their land to aggressive Anglo ranchers and speculators. In fact, the Guerras' business enterprises and ranch holdings grew in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. After living in Mier and Corpus Christi, in 1877 Manuel Guerra settled in Roma, Texas, where he launched his successful career in business and ranching and married Virginia Cox. In 1894 he won a seat on the Starr County Commissioners Court and formed an alliance with Sheriff W. W. Shely that dominated county politics until Shely became incapacitated with a nervous disorder in 1905. For the next decade Guerra ruled as the political boss of Starr County. His reign was marked by the mobilization of lower-class Mexican-American laborers, who formed a majority of the local population, by widespread corruption and outbursts of violence, by close cooperation with the dominant political figure of the lower Rio Grande valley, James B. Wells of Cameron County, and by challenges from a growing movement of Anglo farmers and businessmen organized in the northern part of Starr County under the leadership of rancher Edward Cunningham Lasater . The political turbulence came to a climax with the election of 1906 and its aftermath. After both Guerra's Democrats and Lasater's Republicans organized large forces of armed men, the district judge, a Democrat, was murdered in his sleep the night before the election, and drunken rioting erupted in the county seat, Rio Grande City, the next day. Less than three months later, in January 1907, a Republican organizer and customs inspector, Gregorio Duffy, was killed in a gunfight involving Guerra's cousin, Deodoro, who was the newly elected sheriff. Under pressure from Republican prosecutors, a federal grand jury indicted Manuel and Deodoro Guerra, two deputies, and a Texas Ranger, for conspiring to murder a federal official, but all the defendants eventually won acquittals. Guerra's legal victory in 1909 did not end his political problems. The collapse of a short-lived accommodation with Lasater, a state investigation confirming local charges of corruption on the part of the Guerra ring, and the development of a factional split in his party prompted the Hispanic boss to endorse a legislative scheme to organize a new county for the dissidents in the northern part of Starr County. With the formation of Brooks County in 1911, Guerra was able to complete the consolidation of his control over Starr County politics. He died on June 9, 1915, but his family continued to rule Starr County until the post-World War II era. See also BOSS RULE .

Tsha Handbook →

Ramirez, Mario Efrain

1950

Mario Efrain Ramirez, celebrated physician, Starr County judge, educator, member of the University of Texas Board of Regents, and son of Efren Manuel and Maria del Carmen (Hinojosa) Ramirez, was born in Roma, Texas, on April 3, 1926. He had three younger siblings: Maria del Carmen, Efren Ramirez, Jr., and Roel. In 1940 Efren Ramirez, Jr. died from an infection after he was initially misdiagnosed, and his death, in part, inspired Mario E. Ramirez to become a physician. At the age of sixteen, Ramirez graduated from high school in Rio Grande City in 1942. He attended the University of Texas at Austin but left in January 1945 because the University of Tennessee Medical School granted him early admission. Ramirez graduated in June 1948 and completed his internship and residency at Shreveport Charity Hospital in 1950. In 1949 he married Sarah Aycock, a nursing student. This couple had five children: Mario Ramirez, Jr.; Patricia Anne Kittleman; Norman M. Ramirez; Jaime E. Ramirez; and Roberto L. Ramirez. In 1950 Ramirez returned to Texas and opened his general medical practice in Roma, where for much of his career he was the only practicing physician. In 1951 the Starr County Commissioners Court appointed him the county health officer, and he served from 1951 to 1969. In the early 1950s he accepted an appointment as a U.S. public health officer at border quarantine stations in Roma, Falcon Dam, and Rio Grande City. From 1955 to 1957 Ramirez served in the United States Air Force. He was assigned to the 6048th Air Base Wing at Haneda Airport in Tokyo, Japan, and worked at the Tokyo International Airport Dispensary, where servicemen obtained medical supplies or medicine. He ended his tour in Laredo, Texas, and was honorably discharged on April 8, 1958, at the rank of captain. In 1958 Ramirez returned to Roma and opened the Manuel Ramirez Memorial Clinic and Hospital. The fifteen-bed facility, which Ramirez named in honor of his grandfather, was the first hospital in Roma. In 1964 it expanded to include twenty-one beds and a surgical wing; it continued operating until 1975. As the only hospital in Starr, Zapata, and Jim Hogg counties, the facility often relied on visiting specialists from as far as ninety miles away, such as Laredo surgeon Leonides Cigarroa, Sr. , who drove to Roma once a week to perform surgery on Ramirez’s patients. During one visit, Ramirez inspired Cigarroa’s teenaged nephew, Francisco, to pursue a career in medicine. Francisco Cigarroa later went on to become an accomplished transplant surgeon, the first Hispanic president of the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, and the first Hispanic chancellor of the University of Texas System. In 1967 Ramirez achieved considerable notoriety after Hurricane Beulah, one of the strongest hurricanes in Texas history, flooded Texan and Mexican communities throughout the lower Rio Grande Valley. Ramirez spearheaded medical relief efforts in Roma, Rio Grande City, Camargo, and Ciudad Miguel Aleman and cared for or organized the treatment of thousands of displaced people. U.S. Surgeon General William H. Stewart later commended Ramirez with a special citation for his leadership role. In 1969 Ramirez was appointed Starr County judge to finish the term of a departing judge. He was then elected to two additional terms in 1970 and 1974. During his tenure, he cleared a backlog of court cases, improved county finances, and strengthened the region’s infrastructure, including the construction of the Starr County Memorial Hospital, which opened in Rio Grande City in 1975. Ramirez relocated his medical practice to Rio Grande City that year and served as the hospital’s first chief of staff. In addition to serving Starr County as a judge and health officer, Ramirez also directed the Starr County Migrant Health Project and the Starr County Mental Health and Mental Retardation Program, served one term as president of the Hidalgo-Starr County Medical Society in 1963, and sat on

Tsha Handbook →

Roma-San Pedro International Bridge

1928

Erected by the Starr County Bridge Company, this single span steel suspension bridge was built over the Rio Grande in 1928. This is the only surviving suspension bridge constructed on the international border of the United States and Mexico. The 700-foot long steel bridge was designed by engineer George Cole of Houston, and built by Joseph Erastus Pate. It represents an early business enterprise between the United States and Mexico. This crossing point has been in continuous use from prehistoric times to the present. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 1996

Historical Marker →

Roma - The Stone City on the Rio Grande

1765

Roma's 19th-century stone buildings on the Rio Grande form one of the best-preserved examples of border architecture in the United States. Elia Kazan filmed Viva Zapata! here in 1952.

Historical Marker →

Mier Expedition, The

1842

A body of Texans intent on invading Mexico camped here on December 21, 1842. After being made prisoners at Salado, Mexico, they drew beans, white for life in prison, black for death. 17 members of the expedition were shot by order of General Santa Anna, March 25, 1843. Erected by the State of Texas 1936

Historical Marker →

Peyote

Peyote ( Lophophora williamsii ) is a comparatively small, spineless cactus indigenous to the Rio Grande valley of Texas and to northeastern Mexico. Roma, Texas, is a center for its collection. The entire plant is carrot-shaped, with a slightly flattened, hemispherical head, depressed in the center, which protrudes above the ground for an inch or two. This head, grayish-green in color and covered with small tufts of silky hairs, is cut off and dried and is commonly known as a button and erroneously called a mescal button. Its importance lies in its narcotic properties and its use by Indians over a wide area. The innocent-looking plant has an amazing reputation. To the missionary it is a diabolic root and an insidious evil; to the Indian it is a panacea, a giver of visions, the door to an earthly paradise; to the scientist it is a potential medicinal drug whose properties and whose effects on the human system are not completely understood. Chemical analysis shows that the plant contains nine narcotic alkaloids of the isoquinoline series, some of them strychnine-like in physiological action, the others morphine-like. The plant has not proved to be of commercial value in this country except as it is used by the Indians. In parts of Europe it seems to have the status of a patent medicine. The physiological reaction usually is visual hallucinations (frequently color visions), as well as kinaesthetic, olfactory, and auditory derangements. There are no ill after-effects, and the drug is not known to be habit-forming. The Tarahumara, Huichols, and other Indian groups of northern Mexico have used peyote for as long as they can remember. The Carrizos and Lipan Apaches also knew of its use before historic records. In more recent years the use has spread to other groups. The Kiowa Apaches say they obtained the plant and its ritual from the Lipans in the 1880s and then introduced it to the Kiowas and Comanches. The Tonkawas are reported to have obtained it from the Carrizos. In the late 1880s and early 1890s it spread rapidly throughout most of the plains area. With the extermination of the buffalo the Indians' old way of life with its accompanying rituals rapidly disappeared, and the Indians grasped at any cultural straw that seemed to give meaning to a disintegrating way of life. Peyote, because of its narcotic properties and the resulting visions, with the accompanying rite functioning as an integrating factor, gave meaning and euphoria to an almost completely disorganized people. The rite, differing slightly from group to group but with the same basic pattern throughout the plains area, is held infrequently, usually when someone is ill and occasionally to celebrate an anniversary. Meetings usually last one night, although the Tonkawas' rites are said to have lasted four days and nights. After proper ceremonial cleansing, prayers, and ceremonial smoking of tobacco, the peyote buttons are passed. Whether dried or green the plant is bitter and nauseating, and the retching that frequently results is considered as cleansing, physically and spiritually. Individual reactions differ according to the participant's constitution, his physical condition, the amount of peyote eaten, and cultural factors that condition the visions. The ceremonial is repeated until about sunup when it concludes with four morning prayers. Then comes the ceremonial breakfast, relaxation, and a tribal dinner at noon. The rite is a combination of two or three basic complexes, depending on the tribe. Christian influences include prayers addressed to Jehovah through Christ. Some few tribes place the Bible on the altar. The importance of the rite lies in its giving the individual participant a feeling of contentment, of peacefulness, of the worthwhileness of life. It brings the tribe together and gives it a sense of unity as a people. The cult is dying out because of the rigors of participation and the acquisition of White ways by younger members of the tribe, which make th

Tsha Handbook →

Everything Near Roma

88 stories, landmarks & places within ~20 miles — the same local lore RoadyGoat plays as you drive through.

  • Guerra, Manuel · Tsha Handbook

    Manuel Guerra, banker, rancher, and Democratic leader in Starr County politics, the son of Jesús Guerra Barrera, was born in Mier, Tamaulipas, in 1856. The claims of the Guerra family to land in South Texas originated…

  • Ramirez, Mario Efrain · Tsha Handbook

    Mario Efrain Ramirez, celebrated physician, Starr County judge, educator, member of the University of Texas Board of Regents, and son of Efren Manuel and Maria del Carmen (Hinojosa) Ramirez, was born in Roma, Texas, on…

  • Peyote · Tsha Handbook

    Peyote ( Lophophora williamsii ) is a comparatively small, spineless cactus indigenous to the Rio Grande valley of Texas and to northeastern Mexico. Roma, Texas, is a center for its collection. The entire plant is…

  • Guerra, Gustavo A. · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Starr County, Texas, where the Guerra family once held sway for decades. Right here in Roma, Gustavo Guerra was born in 1890. He went on to serve as Starr County sheriff for nearly thirty years,…

  • The Steamboat Capital of the Rio Grande · 0.5 mi

    Imagine standing on the bluffs overlooking the Rio Grande in 1870. The air would be filled with the sound of steam whistles and the sight of tall-stacked paddlewheelers churning the muddy water. This was Roma's golden…

  • Roma, TX · 0.5 mi

    The Roma National Historic Landmark District contains over 30 structures built before 1900, including the Customs House, the John Vale/Noah Cox House, the Leocadia Garcia House, Ramirez Hall, the Manuel Guerra Building,…

  • Hollywood on the Rio Grande: 'Viva Zapata!' · 0.5 mi

    In 1951, the quiet town of Roma was transformed into a bustling movie set. Director Elia Kazan and a crew from 20th Century Fox arrived to film the epic 'Viva Zapata!', starring Marlon Brando as the Mexican…

  • The German Master Builder of Roma · 0.5 mi

    As you explore Roma's historic downtown, pay close attention to the brickwork. The elegant designs you see are the legacy of one man: Heinrich Portscheller. A German who came from a family of builders, he deserted a…

  • Taming the Rio Grande: The Falcon Dam · 0.5 mi

    Just upstream from Roma sits a massive work of engineering that forever changed the Rio Grande: Falcon Dam. Before the 1950s the river was wild, prone to devastating floods and unpredictable droughts that made…

  • Roma-San Pedro International Bridge · 0.7 mi · Historical Marker

    Erected by the Starr County Bridge Company, this single span steel suspension bridge was built over the Rio Grande in 1928. This is the only surviving suspension bridge constructed on the international border of the…

  • Roma-Los Saenz, TX · 1.0 mi

    A notable event in Roma's history is the Mier Expedition of 1842, where a Texan force sought to take control of the city from Mexico. The expedition resulted in the death, capture, or execution of many volunteers,…

  • Roma - The Stone City on the Rio Grande · 1.0 mi · Historical Marker

    Roma's 19th-century stone buildings on the Rio Grande form one of the best-preserved examples of border architecture in the United States. Elia Kazan filmed Viva Zapata! here in 1952.

Show all 88 nearby places
  • Guerra, Manuel, Store · 1.0 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving through Roma, and look to your right for a glimpse of early Texas commerce. This building, erected in 1884, was the store and residence of Manuel Guerra. What makes it special? It was designed by Heinrich…

  • Memorial Hospital · 1.0 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving through Roma, and this building you see has seen some serious history. It was built way back in <say-as interpret-as="date" format="y">1853</say-as> by E. R. Hord, a man who served both the Texas State…

  • Nuevo Santander Land Grants · 1.0 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving through the land once known as Nuevo Santander, established by the legendary José de Escandón. Between 1749 and 1755, he organized expeditions to settle this vast territory, founding towns and missions.…

  • First Chapel in Roma · 1.0 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving through Roma, and right here you're passing the site of the First Chapel, built around 1840. This humble structure was a labor of love, constructed by volunteers using donated materials. For over a…

  • Ramirez Hall · 1.0 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving through Roma, and right here is Ramirez Hall. It was built in the late 1800s on land bought in 1872 by Lino Ramirez. Look for the incredible brickwork around the windows and doors – that was the signature…

  • Heinrich Portscheller · 1.1 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past Roma, where a German immigrant left his mark on the Rio Grande Valley. Heinrich Portscheller arrived after the Civil War, finding work in this bustling port town. He set up a brickyard, using family…

  • Evergreen, TX (Titus County) · 1.4 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Titus County, not far from Mount Pleasant. Right here, between White Oak Creek and the Sulphur River, used to be a place called Evergreen. It started in the mid-1870s when Green Logan homesteaded…

  • Loma Vista, TX · 1.4 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Zavala County, and right here is the site of Loma Vista. It started around 1874 when A.D. Everett and his family settled here, drawn by the good cattle ranching country. They named the community…

  • Mier Expedition, The · 1.9 mi · Historical Marker

    A body of Texans intent on invading Mexico camped here on December 21, 1842. After being made prisoners at Salado, Mexico, they drew beans, white for life in prison, black for death. 17 members of the expedition were…

  • A City Born from the Colonias · 2.6 mi

    The most important story about Escobares is how it came to be. Until 2005, this wasn't a city at all. It was a collection of 'colonias'—unincorporated, often impoverished communities common along the border. Residents…

  • Engineering a City from Scratch · 2.6 mi

    When Escobares incorporated in 2005, it took on a job most towns finished a century ago. Strung along the river bluffs between Roma and Rio Grande City, this was a place that had grown up outside any city limits, which…

  • The Spanish King's Land Grant · 2.6 mi

    Look at the landscape around you. The way the property lines run is a direct legacy of the Spanish Empire. In the mid-eighteenth century the land north of the Rio Grande in the Mier jurisdiction was handed out to José…

  • Escobares, TX · 2.6 mi

    Once a census-designated place, Escobares transformed into a city in 2005, incorporating parts of Garceno, North Escobares CDPs, and additional areas. This pivotal moment marked a significant change, as the population…

  • Mission Mier a Visita · 3.8 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving through South Texas, near Roma, and just off the road, you're passing the vicinity of Mission Mier a Visita. Established way back in 1750, this mission was part of Jose de Escandon's ambitious plan to…

  • Los Arrieros, TX · 8.6 mi · Tsha Handbook

    Los Arrieros is on the Rio Grande off U.S. Highway 83 ten miles northwest of Roma-Los Saenz in western Starr County. It is an old Spanish-speaking community dating to the eighteenth century. The name is Spanish for mule…

  • Mission San Augustin de Laredo a Visita, Site of the · 9.6 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the site of Mission San Augustin de Laredo, established way back in <say-as interpret-as="date" format="y">1749</say-as>. This wasn't just any mission; it was part of a massive colonization effort…

  • Salineño, TX · 9.8 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're rolling through Starr County, heading towards Salineño, a community that's been here for about 250 years. Its roots run deep, back to 1734 when ranching began in this area, part of Spanish Nuevo Santander. By…

  • San Jose de la Mulada Ranch · 10.0 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving through Starr County, heading past the historic San Jose de la Mulada Ranch. This spread started way back in 1767 when the king of Spain granted the land, Porcion 74, to Pedro Lugo. Just twenty years…

  • Trooper Eduardo Chavez Memorial Highway · 10.8 mi · Historical Marker

    Honors TX DPS Trooper Eduardo Chavez, killed May 2, 2006, in a patrol-car crash on US-83 in Starr County while racing to back up his brother, fellow DPS Trooper Enrique Chavez.

  • Indio, TX (Presidio County) · 10.9 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving west of Presidio, deep in Presidio County, near the Rio Grande. Right here, this area was once known as Indio. Back in 1917, during the Mexican Revolution, tensions flared. Mexican bandits fired on a U.S.…

  • Indio, TX (Zavala County) · 10.9 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Zavala County, and right here was the town of Indio, originally called East Side. Promoters picked this spot in 1908 to colonize the Cross S Ranch. They drilled a well, built a hotel, and cleared…

  • Old Rio Grande City Cemetery · 11.3 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the Old Rio Grande City Cemetery, established around 1848. It's recognized as a Historic Texas Cemetery.

  • Fort Ringgold · 11.5 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving near Rio Grande City in Starr County, and right here, Fort Ringgold stood guard over the Rio Grande for almost a century. Established in 1848, this was the southernmost fort in a line built after the…

  • Harrell, William George · 11.5 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through South Texas, maybe near Rio Grande City, where William George Harrell was born. He was a young man heading to Texas A&M when Pearl Harbor was attacked. Rejected by the Army and Navy, he joined the…

  • Headley, Alexander Manford · 11.5 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving near Rio Grande City, Texas, where a Confederate surgeon named Alexander Headley became known as 'el doctor canoso,' the grey-haired doctor. After the Civil War, Headley settled in Camargo, Mexico, just…

  • Laborde House · 11.5 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Rio Grande City, and right here is the LaBorde House, a Parisian-style mansion built in 1899 by French immigrant Francois LaBorde. Designed in Paris and finished by San Antonio architects, it was…

  • LaBorde, Francois · 11.5 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Rio Grande City, a place that was home to one of its most flamboyant characters, Francois LaBorde. Born in France, LaBorde arrived here sometime around 1878, quickly becoming a prominent merchant…

  • Starr County Strike · 11.5 mi · Tsha Handbook

    Right here in Starr County, Texas, in 1966, you're driving through the heart of a major farmworker uprising. It started with Eugene Nelson, an organizer who arrived to help local melon pickers. He formed the Independent…

  • Welch, Stanley Osborne · 11.5 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through the Rio Grande Valley, not far from Rio Grande City. Right here, in 1906, Judge Stanley Welch, a man known as the 'silver-tongued orator of Southwest Texas,' met a violent end. He was in town to…

  • Vera, Daria Arredondo · 11.5 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through the Rio Grande Valley, and right here in Starr County, you're passing through the heart of a historic labor struggle. In <say-as interpret-as="date" format="y">1966</say-as>, Daria Arredondo Vera,…

  • Garcia, Manuel Marius · 11.5 mi · Tsha Handbook

    Manuel M. García, educator, rancher, and philanthropist, the son of Sixto and Dolores (Ramírez) García, was born on June 17, 1872, at Camargo, Tamaulipas, Mexico. The family owned land near Rio Grande City, Starr…

  • Davis, Henry Clay · 11.5 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Starr County, the heart of the Rio Grande Valley, and right here is where Henry Clay Davis, a man known as Clay, made his mark. Arriving in Texas in 1836, Davis was a soldier, a Texas Ranger, and…

  • Kelsey, John Peter · 11.5 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through South Texas, and right here, John Peter Kelsey was building his fortune. Born in New York, he landed in Galveston in 1839, constructing the city's first two-story house. But his ambition stretched…

  • Seabury, Francis William · 11.5 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Starr County, right where Francis William Seabury made his mark. He arrived in Brownsville in 1890, a young lawyer from Virginia, and soon moved to Rio Grande City. There, he became county…

  • Rio Grande City, TX · 11.5 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Rio Grande City, one of the oldest settlements in South Texas, right on the banks of the mighty Rio Grande. This place started life as the Carnestolendas Ranch back in 1762. But it was Henry Clay…

  • Haynes, John Leal · 11.5 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Starr County, near the Rio Grande, where John Leal Haynes once called home. He wasn't just a local politician, serving as Starr County clerk and in the Texas House of Representatives. During the…

  • Perez, Lino, Sr. · 11.5 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Rio Grande City, a place that owes a lot to Lino Perez Sr. He returned here around 1909 and, with family, formed the Rio Grande City Ice, Water, and Light Company in 1910. During World War I, he…

  • Rio Grande City Railway · 11.5 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Starr County, and right here, the Rio Grande City Railway was once a key link. Planned initially as a federal measure during the 1916 border troubles to reach Fort Ringgold, construction stalled.…

  • Starr County · 11.5 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Starr County, a land shaped by Spanish dreams and Texas grit. Back in 1749, José de Escandón was tasked with colonizing this very region. Despite initial reports calling the land unsuitable,…

  • Rio Grande City, TX · 11.6 mi

    Rio Grande City sits a little higher than you might expect for a border town, just above the river's usual level. That elevation, combined with its location right on the Rio Grande, helped make it a vital trading post…

  • Jose 'Pepe' Maldonado · 11.6 mi

    Pepe Maldonado picked cotton in the fields around Rio Grande City before he was old enough to know it wasn't his future. At thirteen he decided he'd be an artist instead — and then he taught himself accordion, bass, and…

  • Rio Grande City - Fort Ringgold · 11.6 mi · Historical Marker

    Before they faced each other across the bloodiest war in American history, Robert E. Lee and Ulysses S. Grant both served at this remote outpost on the Rio Grande. Fort Ringgold was established in 1848 after the…

  • De Escandon, Jose · 11.6 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the heart of Starr County, a place shaped by the bold vision of Jose de Escandon. Back in the mid-1700s, this guy was the ultimate Texas colonizer. From Tampico all the way up to the San Antonio…

  • Rio Grande City, C.S.A. · 11.6 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past Rio Grande City, which served as a vital Confederate port and customhouse during the Civil War. This booming border town was the South's lifeline, funneling cotton to Europe for cash to buy essential…

  • Site of Cortina Battle · 11.6 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the site of a major showdown with the outlaw Juan Cortina. On December 27th, 1859, Cortina's band of 450 men were surprised at dawn. U.S. Army troops and Texas Rangers, recruited by John S. Ford,…

  • Padre Gustav Gollbach, O.M.I. · 11.6 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the Immaculate Conception Church in Rio Grande City, where Padre Gustav Gollbach served as pastor from 1924 to 1937. A German immigrant, he was ordained in 1906 and served churches across Texas. But…

  • The Rev. Gustav Gollbach, O.M.I. · 11.6 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the site of a remarkable spiritual landmark in the Rio Grande Valley. Father Gustav Gollbach, a German immigrant priest, arrived in Rio Grande City in 1924. Until 1937, he served as pastor here, and…

  • Rancho Davis, Old · 11.6 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past Rancho Davis, Old. Home of Henry Clay Davis, a Kentuckian; came to Texas in 1939. Served with Taylor's army in 1846. Married into the Garza family, pioneer settlers and large landowners in the…

  • Named for Dr. James Harper Starr · 11.6 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving through Starr County, Texas. It was formed from Nueces County and officially organized back in <say-as interpret-as="date" format="y">1848</say-as>. The county is named for Dr. James Harper Starr, a…

  • Starr County · 11.6 mi · Historical Marker

    Formed from Nueces County; created February 10, 1848; organized August 7, 1848. Named for Dr. James Harper Starr 1809-1890; pioneer Texas surgeon and Indian fighter, located at Nacogdoches in 1837; Secretary of the…

  • Immaculate Conception School · 11.6 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the site of the Immaculate Conception School in Rio Grande City. In 1884, the Rev. R. M. Olivier asked the Sisters of the Incarnate Word to start a school here, and by 1885, three nuns were teaching…

  • Bass, Howard L., Home · 11.7 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the 1877 home of John Peter Kelsey, a Starr County judge and large landowner who arrived from New York in 1848. This house is built with lumber salvaged from a sunken steamboat, featuring mesquite…

  • Fort Ringgold: From Frontier Post to Public School · 12.1 mi

    As you pass through the east side of town, look for the historic buildings of Fort Ringgold. What you’re seeing isn't just an old army base; it’s a piece of living history now used by the local school district.…

  • When Rio Grande City was a Port · 12.1 mi

    It's hard to imagine now, looking at this quiet stretch of the Rio Grande, but for the better part of fifty years this town was a working steamboat port. A Kentuckian named Henry Clay Davis — a survivor of the Mier…

  • The Red and Blue Bosses of Starr County · 12.1 mi

    The history of Rio Grande City was shaped by a political system straight out of a novel. For decades Starr County was run by jefes — bosses — and the dominant one was Manuel Guerra, who held this county from 1894 until…

  • The La Borde House: A French Merchant's Dream · 12.1 mi

    If you get a chance to see the historic downtown, look for a striking two-story building with intricate brickwork and elegant verandas—the La Borde House. Built in the late 1890s, it looks like something out of the…

  • Fort Ringgold, C.S.A. · 12.3 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the site of Fort Ringgold, a crucial Confederate outpost during the Civil War. This fort was a vital link in a chain of posts defending the vast Texas frontier, coastline, and border against threats…

  • Old Ringgold Barracks Hospital · 12.3 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the site of the Old Ringgold Barracks Hospital, a fortress of healing that stood guard for decades. Built in <say-as interpret-as="date" format="y">1870</say-as> with unique Moorish architecture and…

  • Fort Ringgold · 12.3 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the site of Fort Ringgold, established back in October of <say-as interpret-as="date" format="y">1848</say-as> as Ringgold Barracks. It was named for Major David Ringgold, who died from wounds…

  • Robert E. Lee House · 12.4 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past the site of a house that once overlooked the Rio Grande steamboat dock, a landscape that was once part of northern Mexico. This was no ordinary home; its main rooms were lined with military maps of…

  • Falcon Heights, TX · 12.4 mi

    Falcon Heights, a census-designated place in Starr County, Texas, has seen significant changes over the years. Initially listed in the 2000 U.S. census with a population of 335, it underwent territorial reductions…

  • One Dam, Two Countries · 14.1 mi

    This isn't just a road across the river — it's about five miles of engineered earth and concrete holding back the Rio Grande, and it belongs to two countries at once. Falcon Dam is built and run jointly by the United…

  • Las Lomas, TX · 14.6 mi

    Las Lomas, a community in Starr County, Texas, has seen significant changes over the years. Once characterized by dilapidated shacks and unpaved streets, the area has been transforming. Emanuella Grinberg of CNN…

  • Texas HS Baseball Leaders 2026: Rio Grande City (Rio Grande City) · 14.9 mi

    Rio Grande City (Rio Grande City, TX) placed on the 5A Texas high school baseball stat leaderboards for the 2026 season: Deandre Rodriguez (0.551 avg, 9 HR); Robert Rios (5 HR); Hiram Lopez (3 HR).

  • B and E Colonia, TX · 16.0 mi · Local history

    B and E Colonia, Texas, occupies a unique position along the Rio Grande, not due to any natural harbor or mineral deposit, but largely as an economic and cultural byproduct of cross-border dynamics. Its origins trace…

  • Falcon, Old · 16.6 mi · Historical Marker

    You're driving past Falcon, Old. In 1746, Col. Jose de Escandon was commissioned by the Viceroy of New Spain to lead the colonization of this area. The first settlers arrived 3 years later and were assigned land on…

  • La Puerta, TX · 16.7 mi

    La Puerta, a small community in Starr County, Texas, has seen significant changes over the years. It first appeared as a census-designated place in the 2000 U.S. census with a population of 1,636. However, prior to the…

  • El Sauz, TX (Starr County) · 18.2 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Starr County, not far from Rio Grande City. Right here, in 1901, the legendary outlaw Gregorio Cortez met his end. Cortez had been on the run, a fugitive across South Texas, but his flight ended…

  • Garza Falcón, María Gertrudis de la · 18.2 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through South Texas, a land of vast ranches and storied names. Right here, you're near the territory once controlled by María Gertrudis de la Garza Falcón. Born in 1734, she inherited a massive land…

  • Rio Grande-Falcon Thorn Woodland · 18.2 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Starr County, along the Rio Grande, and you're passing through one of the last wild places in the United States. This is the Rio Grande-Falcon Thorn Woodland, a unique ecosystem that's home to…

  • Solis, Rosa [Mother Teresa Solis] · 18.2 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving past Point Isabel, a small Texas town that became the unlikely starting point for a remarkable spiritual journey. Back in 1853, a twelve-year-old girl named Rosa Solis heard French nuns speaking about…

  • Roma-Los Saenz, TX · 18.2 mi · Tsha Handbook

    Roma-Los Saenz is a port of entry on U.S. Highway 83 and the Rio Grande, directly across from Ciudad Miguel Alemán, Tamaulipas, Mexico, in southwestern Starr County. Roma and Los Saenz are actually two adjoining…

  • Gonzáles, Margarita · 18.2 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Starr County right now, possibly near Rio Grande City. Imagine a woman named Margarita Gonzáles, who in 1767 was granted over 6,000 acres of land by the Spanish government. This massive tract,…

  • Hord, Edward R. · 18.2 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through the Rio Grande Valley, a region that saw plenty of action back in the day. Edward R. Hord, a Virginia native, landed here in 1846 and jumped right into the Mexican War. But his real Texas story…

  • Garza, Gilberto A. · 18.2 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Starr County, near Roma-Los Saenz, the birthplace of Gilberto A. Garza. Born in 1874, Garza became a significant Democratic party leader in this region. He served as chairman of the Starr County…

  • Garza, Higinio, Jr. · 18.2 mi · Tsha Handbook

    You're driving through Starr County, near Roma-Los Saenz, where Higinio Garza, Jr. served as county judge for thirty years. That's right, thirty years, from 1914 to 1944. He was a key political figure in this area, an…

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