Eagle Pass is a city in and the

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or parish (administrative division), civil parish. The term is in use in five countries: Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, and the United States. An equiva ...

of Maverick County, Texas, United States. Its population was 28,130 as of the 2020 census. Eagle Pass borders the city of Piedras Negras, Coahuila,

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

, which is to the southwest and across the

Rio Grande The Rio Grande ( or ) in the United States or the Río Bravo (del Norte) in Mexico (), also known as Tó Ba'áadi in Navajo language, Navajo, is one of the principal rivers (along with the Colorado River) in the Southwestern United States a ...

river.

History

Eagle Pass was the first American settlement on the Rio Grande. Originally known as Camp Eagle Pass, it served as a temporary outpost for the Texas militia, which had been ordered to stop illegal trade with Mexico during the

Mexican–American War The Mexican–American War (Spanish language, Spanish: ''guerra de Estados Unidos-México, guerra mexicano-estadounidense''), also known in the United States as the Mexican War, and in Mexico as the United States intervention in Mexico, ...

.Texas Transportation Commission, ''Texas State Travel Guide, 2008'', p. 232 Eagle Pass is so named because the contour of the hills through which the Rio Grande flows bore a fancied resemblance to the outstretched wings of an eagle.

General A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air force, air and space forces, marines or naval infantry. In some usages, the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colone ...

William Leslie Cazneau (1807–1876) founded the Eagle Pass townsite in the 1840s. In 1850, Rick Pawless opened a

trading post A trading post, trading station, or trading house, also known as a factory in European and colonial contexts, is an establishment or settlement where goods and services could be traded. Typically a trading post allows people from one geogr ...

called Eagle Pass. In 1871, Maverick County was established, and Eagle Pass was named the county seat. During the remainder of the 19th century, schools and churches opened, the mercantile and ranching industries grew, and a

railway Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in railway track, tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel railway track, rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of ...

was built. On April 24, 2007, at 7:00 pm CDT, a tornado tore through outside of Eagle Pass and caused loss of life and property damage. Major damage occurred in southern part of the town. The City of Eagle Pass was sued by the US government in 2008 to gain access to the land and construct a fence on the United States-Mexico border. An ongoing public corruption, bid-rigging, and kickback investigation by the

FBI The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and Federal law enforcement in the United States, its principal federal law enforcement ag ...

and Texas Department of Public Safety has resulted in the arrest and imprisonment of all four Maverick County commissioners, one justice of the peace, and several local government employees and businessmen since October 2012, making it the largest public criminal probe in Eagle Pass and Maverick County history. On February 20, 2015, a federal grand jury in Del Rio indicted a county commissioner and a former county justice of the peace in connection with an alleged bribery, kickback, and bid-rigging scheme, all related to the ongoing public corruption investigation. On February 23, 2015, former Maverick County Commissioner Rodolfo Heredia was sentenced to 10 years in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release, and ordered to perform 1,200 hours of community service after completing his prison term. He was also ordered to pay a maximum of $56,003.88 in restitution to Maverick County. On August 8, 2012, a federal grand jury in the U.S. District Court in Del Rio indicted five Eagle Pass residents, including a former Public Works Department employee, in connection with an estimated $70,000 credit-card fraud scheme. According to the indictment, during 2011, City of Eagle Pass employee Edgar Aguilar obtained five City of Eagle Pass-owned Fuelman credit cards designated for fuel purchases for Public Works department vehicles and distributed them to his accomplices to purchase fuel for their own vehicles and to purchase fuel for others at the city's expense. In some instances, defendants charged individuals a reduced rate for fuel purchased using the city's credit card and then pocketed the cash. On November 29, 2012, Aguilar entered a guilty plea for the charges of theft and fraud, and on May 15, 2013, was sentenced to 42 months in federal prison and ordered to pay $68,373.87 in restitution for his role in the fraudulent scheme. On March 30, 2017, Hector Chavez Sr., the former Eagle Pass city manager, pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI regarding a bribery scheme involving public contracts in Maverick County. Chavez, with the company Chace Management, was charged with receiving $20,000 from the owner of the engineering firm Hejl, Lee, and Associates to bribe a county commissioner to procure a $270,000 contract for the engineering firm. Chavez admitted to having given false information in 2015. Chavez was sentenced to 42 months in federal prison and three years' supervised release on August 21, 2017. On January 11, 2024, following Texas Governor Greg Abbott signing an emergency declaration to close down Shelby Park as a part of Operation Lone Star, the Texas National Guard and Texas Rangers took control of park, blocking the United States Border Patrol from patrolling the area (which is located along the

, and the border between the United States and Mexico). This started the Standoff at Eagle Pass.

Geography

The area is served by U.S. Routes 57 and 277, and Farm-to-Market Road 481. Maverick County Memorial International Airport is a general aviation field. The nearest commercial air service is 50 miles away, via the Del Rio International Airport in Del Rio, which is served by

American Airlines American Airlines, Inc. is a major airlines of the United States, major airline in the United States headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas, within the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, and is the Largest airlines in the world, largest airline in the ...

Climate

Eagle Pass has a hot semi-arid climate (

Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Bernd Köppen (1951–2014), German pianist and composer * Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan * Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author ...

: ''BSh''). The average hottest month is August, and the highest recorded temperature was in 1916 and 1944. Typically, the coolest month is January, while the lowest recorded temperature was in 1962. Most precipitation occurs in the spring through fall with a drier winter. The highest monthly average precipitation occurs in September, with a secondary peak in May and June. Late July and August demonstrate a significant, secondary dry season, with very high temperatures and high sun exposure, resulting in high evaporation rates.

Demographics

As of 2020 census, the Piedras Negras Metropolitan Area population was 209,456 inhabitants. The Eagle Pass-Piedras Negras metropolitan area (EP-PN) is one of six binational metropolitan areas along the United States-Mexican border.

2020 census

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 28,130 people, 8,850 households, and 7,053 families residing in the city.

2006

As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2006, 24,847 people, 6,925 households, and 5,588 families resided in the city. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geog ...

was 3,030.3 people/sq mi (1,169.4/km²). The 7,613 housing units averaged 1,029.3/sq mi (397.2/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 42.73% White, 0.27% African American, 0.39% Native American, 0.76% Asian, 22.71% from other races, and 3.13% from two or more races. Hispanics or Latinos of any race were 96.90% of the population. Of the 6,925 households, 43.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 59.0% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 18.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 19.3% were not families. About 17.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.5% had someone living alone who was 65 or older. The average household size was 3.22, and the average family size was 3.69. In the city, the population was distributed as 32.7% under 18, 8.6% from 18 to 24, 25.6% from 25 to 44, 19.9% from 45 to 64, and 13.1% who were 65 or older. The median age was 32 years. For every 100 females, there were 88.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 81.8 males. The median income for a household in the city was $23,623, and for a family was $27,140. Males had a median income of $26,350 versus $17,346 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the city was $11,414. About 26.0% of families and 29.0% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 34.0% of those under age 18 and 39.1% of those age 65 or over.

Economy

The City of Eagle Pass is home to small and large businesses alike, but its primary sectors are retail, import/export, and manufacturing. Two of its largest manufacturers are Mossberg and MicroStar. It was in 2014 when Maverick Arms decided to expand to Eagle Pass after it received assistance from the State of Texas using the Texas Enterprise Fund. The City of Eagle Pass and Maverick County recently adopted matching incentives policies (2020) making it easier for outside businesses to expand operations in the region. Incentives are handled through the city's Economic Development Department. Because of its location along the U.S./Mexico border, the retail sector is healthy due to the large number of visitors Eagle Pass gets from Mexico. It is estimated that on a regular weekday, Eagle Pass gets 6,000 people across into the U.S. vs. 10,000 on the weekend. Many of these visitors stay within the city limits to shop and eat at local restaurants.

Government

The

United States Postal Service The United States Postal Service (USPS), also known as the Post Office, U.S. Mail, or simply the Postal Service, is an independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the executive branch of the federal governmen ...

operates a post office located at 410 S Bibb Ave. The United States Border Patrol has two stations in Eagle Pass. The Eagle Pass North Station is at 2285 Del Rio Blvd and the Eagle Pass South Station at 4156 El Indio Hwy. Eagle Pass is the headquarters of the Kickapoo Traditional Tribe of Texas, a

federally recognized tribe A federally recognized tribe is a Native American tribe recognized by the United States Bureau of Indian Affairs as holding a government-to-government relationship with the US federal government. In the United States, the Native American tribe ...

Kickapoo people The Kickapoo people (; Kickapoo language, Kickapoo: Kiikaapoa or Kiikaapoi; ) are an Algonquian languages, Algonquian-speaking Native Americans in the United States, Native American tribe and Indigenous people in Mexico, originating in the regio ...

Transportation

Highways in the area are: * US 57

U.S. Route 57 * US 277

U.S. Route 277 * Texas 131

State Highway 131

Utilities

In 2000, as part of the power exchange between Texas and Mexico, a high-voltage direct current facility equipped with insulated-gate bipolar transistors was built. This facility, built for Central Power and Light (now AEP Texas) by the ABB Group, operates at a bipolar voltage of 15.9 kV, and has a maximum transfer rate of 36 megawatts. The power station enables AEP to purchase electricity from Mexico's Comisión Federal de Electricidad, when needed.

Media

*Eagle Pass ''News Leader'' * ''The News Gram''

Notable people

* Tres Barrera (born 1994), backup catcher for the

Washington Nationals The Washington Nationals are an American professional baseball team based in Washington, D.C. The Nationals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East Division. They play their home games at Na ...

* Rian James (1899–1953), author and screenwriter * Louis Lane (1923–2016) conductor of Cleveland and Atlanta symphonies * Biz Mackey (1897–1965), catcher and manager in Negro League baseball * Robert C. Mathis (1927–2016), retired Air Force four-star general, served as Vice Chief of Staff, U.S. Air Force * Guadalupe Garcia McCall, author and educator * Connie Douglas Reeves (1901–2003), rancher, National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame * Gus Sorola (born 1978), co-founder of Rooster Teeth

Gallery

File:Downtown Eagle Pass IMG_0266.JPG, Downtown Eagle Pass File:Eagle Pass City Hall IMG 0265.JPG, Eagle Pass City Hall at the foot of International Bridge File:Rio Grande at Eagle Pass, TX IMG 1719.JPG, The

at Eagle Pass, Texas, with Piedras Negras in the background File:First United Methodist Church of Eagle Pass, TX IMG 1908.JPG, Historic First United Methodist Church on Quarry Street File:Old map-Eagle Pass-1887.jpg, Map of the city 1887 File:Fort Duncan in Eagle Pass IMG 0262.JPG, The restored Fort Duncan in Eagle Pass is located near the International Bridge. File:Eagle Pass International Bridge IMG 0267.JPG, The International Bridge across the Rio Grande in Eagle Pass File:Library in Eagle Pass, TX IMG_1717.JPG, The Eagle Pass public

library A library is a collection of Book, books, and possibly other Document, materials and Media (communication), media, that is accessible for use by its members and members of allied institutions. Libraries provide physical (hard copies) or electron ...

is located on Main Street east of the Maverick County Courthouse. File:Fort Duncan Medical Center in Eagle Pass, TX IMG_1911.JPG, Fort Duncan Medical Center in Eagle Pass is named after the former US Army outpost. MAVERICK COUNTY COURTHOUSE.jpg, Historic Maverick County Courthouse File:Mall in Eagle Pass, TX IMG_1916.JPG, Mall de las Aguilas on Bibb Street in Eagle Pass

Notes

References

External links

City website
{{Authority control 1850 establishments in Texas Populated places established in 1850 Cities in Maverick County, Texas County seats in Texas Mexico–United States border crossings Texas populated places on the Rio Grande