McAllen

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Promotion: Nearby Map of Hidalgo County

McAllen is on U.S. Highway 83 about sixteen miles west of Weslaco and thirty-five miles west of Harlingen in southern Hidalgo County. It is situated on land that was part of porciones 63 and 64, granted respectively by Spain to Antonio Gutiérrez and Juan Antonio Villareal in 1767. Gutiérrez and his heirs inhabited the land at least up to 1883, and Villareal's heirs lived on his land for at least fifty years prior to 1852. The Santa Anita Ranch was established around 1797 by José Manuel Gómez, who received the land grant from Spain in 1800. He raised cattle, sheep, goats, and horses on his ranch and helped to continue colonizing the area. His great-granddaughter Salomé Ballí, who inherited the land in the early 1800s, married John Young, a Brownsville businessman, about 1848 (see YOUNG, SALOMÉ). They proceeded to acquire land in the surrounding area, and in 1852 Young applied for porciones 64 and 65 in southern Hidalgo County. Young died in 1859, leaving his holdings to his widow and son, John J. Young, with John McAllen, Young's assistant, as manager. McAllen married Salomé Ballí de Young in 1861, and in 1862 they had a son, James Ballí McAllen. They continued adding land to the ranch, which was renamed the McAllen Ranch. The site of present-day McAllen was within the ranch's boundaries.

By 1903 there were scattered ranches in the area, and in March of that year the Hidalgo Irrigation Company was organized. On August 20, 1904, the Hidalgo and San Miguel Extension (now the Sam Fordyce Branch) of the St. Louis, Brownsville and Mexico Railway reached the Santa Anita Ranch. John McAllen and his son James donated land to have the railroad cross their land. On December 5 the McAllen Townsite Company was formed by Uriah Lott, Leonidas C. Hill, Sr., John McAllen, James Ballí McAllen, and John J. Young. The new community, which was named for John McAllen, had the depot nearest to the county seat, Hidalgo, eight miles to the south. That year the community also had a general store owned by Manuel Samano and a restaurant as well as a cluster of eight or nine tents. In 1907 a post office named McAllen was established. The new community did not grow very rapidly and was endangered by a competing community that was established on May 16, 1907, two miles east of it by William Briggs, O. E. M. Jones and John Closner. The second town came to be known as East McAllen. By 1908 the Rio Bravo Irrigation Company was finishing a canal to it, and a hardware store and furniture store were under construction there. East McAllen also had five stores, two taverns, and two lumberyards and an estimated population of 300. Around 1909 W. E. Stuart constructed the town's first brick building, the First State Bank building. That year the town's first newspaper, the McAllen Monitor, began. By 1911, 5,000 acres was under cultivation in East McAllen with produce consisting of cotton, alfalfa, broom corn, citrus fruits, grapes, and figs. East McAllen had an estimated population of 1,000 that year, and West McAllen had ceased to exist. In 1911 the town applied for and was issued a charter of incorporation under the name McAllen. In 1916, 20,000 New York state troops were stationed at McAllen to help with border disturbances. The resulting economic boom increased the population from 1,200 in 1916 to 6,000 in 1920.

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Alicia A. Garza | © TSHA

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Adapted from the official Handbook of Texas, a state encyclopedia developed by Texas State Historical Association (TSHA). It is an authoritative source of trusted historical records.

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Adoption Status:
This place has been adopted and will not be available until January 4, 2025
Adopted by:
Rio Grande Lodge No. 81 AF & AM
Dedication Message:
In Memory of Brother John McAllen

Belongs to

McAllen is part of or belongs to the following places:

Currently Exists

Yes

Place type

McAllen is classified as a Town

Location

Latitude: 26.21897850
Longitude: -98.24489200

Has Post Office

Yes

Is Incorporated

Yes

Population Count, 2021 View more »

143,920

Place Type Population (Year/Source) Currently Exists
College or University Yes

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