Banco Convention of 1905
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The Banco Convention of 1905, between the United States and Mexico, was negotiated and signed in 1905 and ratified by both nations in 1907. It resulted in 247 exchanges of bancos (land surrounded by bends in the river that became segregated by a cutoff often by the rapid erosion of the river channel) between the two nations from 1910 to 1976. Most of them were in the
Lower Rio Grande Valley The Lower Rio Grande Valley ( es, Valle del Río Grande), commonly known as the Rio Grande Valley or locally as the Valley or RGV, is a region spanning the border of Texas and Mexico located in a floodplain of the Rio Grande near its mouth. The ...
, the
Presidio Valley A presidio ( en, jail, fortification) was a fortified base established by the Spanish Empire around between 16th and 18th centuries in areas in condition of their control or influence. The presidios of Spanish Philippines in particular, were ce ...
and the El Paso-Juarez Valley. In 1927, the convention was applied to the short international border on the Colorado River.


Background

In 1884, a further treaty set out to clarify the 1848
Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo ( es, Tratado de Guadalupe Hidalgo), officially the Treaty of Peace, Friendship, Limits, and Settlement between the United States of America and the United Mexican States, is the peace treaty that was signed on 2 ...
. The Convention of November 12, 1884 established the rules for determining the location of the US-Mexico boundary when the meandering rivers of the international border transferred tracts of land from one bank of the river to the other. The treaty stated that if the river changed course gradually through a process of
soil erosion Soil erosion is the denudation or wearing away of the upper layer of soil. It is a form of soil degradation. This natural process is caused by the dynamic activity of erosive agents, that is, water, ice (glaciers), snow, air (wind), plants, and ...
, then the boundary should follow the new course of the river. However, a sudden change of course, for example one caused by a flood, would not affect the boundary. Nevertheless, the clarifications established in the treaty of 1884 did not resolve the question of land ownership. The Convention of March 1, 1889 established the
International Boundary Commission The International Boundary Commission (french: Commission de la frontière internationale) is a bi-national organization responsible for surveying and mapping the Canada–United States border. The commission was created in 1908 and made permanen ...
(IBC) to apply the rules in the 1884 Convention. It was modified by the Banco Convention of March 20, 1905 to retain the courses of the Rio Grande and the Colorado River as international boundaries in the event of sudden changes. Because the course of the Rio Grande was not static, to maintain the location of the river as the international boundary presented diplomatic and practical challenges. The river changed course frequently where it flowed through areas of relatively loose
alluvial soil Alluvium (from Latin ''alluvius'', from ''alluere'' 'to wash against') is loose clay, silt, sand, or gravel that has been deposited by running water in a stream bed, on a floodplain, in an alluvial fan or beach, or in similar settings. Alluv ...
, doubling back on itself as it wound its way through the Lower Rio Grande Valley. Especially in times of flooding, tracts of land called "bancos" were created by avulsive changes that cut off entire oxbow-shaped meanders. The result of these cut-offs was often confusion regarding sovereignty, land ownership, and law enforcement. The purpose of the 1905 convention was to eliminate these bancos from the effects of Article II of the US-Mexico Convention of 1884, to which they otherwise would have been subject, and to establish a more definitive means to settle matters. Any bancos larger than or with a population over 200 were excluded from the 1905 convention.


Effects

The
International Boundary and Water Commission The International Boundary and Water Commission ( es, links=no, Comisión Internacional de Límites y Aguas) is an international body created by the United States and Mexico in 1889 to apply the rules for determining the location of their intern ...
was charged with implementing the convention. Under the treaty, the following transfers involving
Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...
occurred from 1910 to 1976: :: In 1927 under this convention, the U.S. acquired two bancos from Mexico at the
Colorado River The Colorado River ( es, Río Colorado) is one of the principal rivers (along with the Rio Grande) in the Southwestern United States and northern Mexico. The river drains an expansive, arid drainage basin, watershed that encompasses parts of ...
border with
Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...
. Farmers Banco, covering , a part of the
Cocopah Indian Reservation The Cocopah Indian Reservation is the reservation of the federally recognized Cocopah Indian Tribe (Cocopah: Xawiłł Kwñchawaay), which represents Cocopah peoples in the United States. As of the 2000 census a resident population of 1,025 pers ...
, was ceded to the U.S. with controversy. Fain Banco, of , also became U.S. soil. Below is a list of the 247 bancos that were exchanged under the terms of the 1905 convention. This information is also available as a ''kmz'' file a
this location
''Note:'' For all 247 bancos, aerial images, including orthographic images, provide visible evidence of each location at the stated coordinates. The latitude and longitude coordinates are within the perimeter of each banco and were exactly located, as shown on the maps that were published with the corresponding minutes of the International Boundary and Water Commission, which officially transferred jurisdiction over each banco.


See also

*
International Boundary and Water Commission The International Boundary and Water Commission ( es, links=no, Comisión Internacional de Límites y Aguas) is an international body created by the United States and Mexico in 1889 to apply the rules for determining the location of their intern ...
*
Mexico–United States border The Mexico–United States border ( es, frontera Estados Unidos–México) is an international border separating Mexico and the United States, extending from the Pacific Ocean in the west to the Gulf of Mexico in the east. The border traver ...
*
List of United States treaties This is a list of treaties to which the United States has been a party or which have had direct relevance to U.S. history. Pre-Revolutionary War treaties Before the United States Declaration of Independence in 1776, the sovereign of the United ...
*
Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo ( es, Tratado de Guadalupe Hidalgo), officially the Treaty of Peace, Friendship, Limits, and Settlement between the United States of America and the United Mexican States, is the peace treaty that was signed on 2 ...
*
Resaca (channel) Resaca is the name given to a type of oxbow lake in the southern half of Cameron County, Texas. The resacas constitute former channels of the Rio Grande and are naturally cut off from the river, having no inlet or outlet. History The Rio Grand ...


References

{{Reflist, colwidth=30em 1905 treaties Mexico–United States treaties Treaties involving territorial changes History of the Southwestern United States History of United States expansionism 1905 in Mexico 1905 in the United States Presidency of Theodore Roosevelt Mexican-American history Mexico–United States border Texas border disputes 1905 in Washington, D.C.