El Paso, Texas
El Paso, Texas | |
|---|---|
 | |
 Seal | |
| Nickname(s): Star of the Southwest," "The Sun City," and "Land of the Sun | |
| Location in the state of Texas Location in the state of Texas | |
| County | El Paso County |
| Government | |
| • Mayor | John Cook |
| Population (2004) | |
• City | 598,590 |
| • Metro | 721,598 |
| Time zone | UTC-7 (MST) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-6 (MDT) |
| Website | www.elpasotexas.gov |
El Paso is the county seat of El Paso County in the U.S. state of Texas. According to the 2005 U.S. Census population estimates, the city had a population of 598,590, making it the sixth-largest city in Texas and the 21st-largest city in the United States. El Paso is second only to San Diego, California in size among all U.S. cities on the U.S.-Mexico border. Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua lies opposite of the Rio Grande (Rio Bravo del Norte)—which separates the two cities—forming a bi-national metropolitan area of 2,280,782, making it the second-largest bi-national metropolitan area on the U.S.–Mexico border.
El Paso is home to the University of Texas at El Paso (founded in 1914 as The Texas State School of Mines and Metallurgy and receiving university status 1967). Fort Bliss, a major United States Army installation, lies to the east and northeast of the city, extending north up to the White Sands Missile Range. The Franklin Mountains extend into El Paso from the north and nearly divide the city into two sections.
El Paso is served by El Paso International Airport, Amtrak via the historic Union Depot, Interstate 10, U.S. Route 54 (known locally as the "North-South Freeway"), U.S. Route 180 (Montana Avenue), U.S. Route 85 (Paisano Drive), U.S. Route 62(also Montana Avenue), Texas Loop 375, Texas Loop 478 (Copia Street-Pershing Drive-Dyer Street), numerous Farm to Market Roads (FM's) and the city's original thoroughfare, Texas 20 (formerly U.S. Route 80).
History
Archeological evidence at the Keystone Wetlands and Hueco Tanks sites indicates thousands of years of human settlement within the El Paso region. The Manso, Suma, and Jumano Indians were identified as present by the earliest Spanish explorers. These people ultimately became assimilated into the local settler population, becoming part of the Mestizo culture that is prevalent in Mexico and is visible throughout the Southwest. Others integrated themselves with the different Mescalero Apache bands that for many years roamed the region.
El Paso del Norte (the present day Ciudad Juárez), was founded on the south bank of the Río Bravo del Norte, (Rio Grande) in 1659. Being a grassland then, agriculture flourished and vineyards and fruits comprised the bulk of the regional production. The Spanish Crown and the local authorities of El Paso del Norte had made several land concessions to bring agricultural production to the northern bank of the river in present day El Paso. However, the Apaches dissuaded production and settlers to cross the river. The water provided a natural defense against them.
The first successful agricultural enterprise that we have records on was Ponce de León Ranch. The land was granted in 1825. Although American traders and trappers had visited the area since 1823, American settlers began to stay for good after the Mexican Cession in 1848. During the Texas Republic period, the area belonged to the Mexican State of Chihuahua. El Paso was never officially a part of the Republic of Texas, and only became part of Texas after Texas was admitted into the Union.
A trading post called Franklin was established during this time some miles away from Ponce's Ranch. Other settlements were also scattered across the region and eventually became part of El Paso itself. Ciudad Juarez dropped the old name of El Paso del Norte and El Paso, Texas kept it.
El Paso was platted in 1859, but grew very slowly due to its remoteness. During the Civil War, Texas, along with most other Southern states, seceded from the Union to join the Confederate States of America in 1861. The Confederate cause was met with great support from El Paso residents. After the war was concluded, the town's population began to grow. With the arrival of Southern Pacific railroads in 1881, the population boomed to 10,000 by 1890 census. With a tempting green valley and a nearly perfect climate year-around, the town attracted a constant stream of newcomers: gamblers, gunfighters, thieves, cattle and horse rustlers, murderers, priests, Chinese railroad laborers, prostitutes, and entrepreneurs.
During the climax of the Wild West era, El Paso was dubbed as the "Gunfight Capital of the World"[citation needed]. Due to its remoteness and lawlessness, the city earned its reputation as the "roughest and toughest[citation needed]" town to ever exist, known for having an intimidating town marshal, Dallas Stoudenmire, who would shoot first and ask question later. The "Four Dead in Five Seconds Gunfight" took place here on April 14, 1881. This was prior to the Gunfight at the OK Corral. Dallas Stoudenmire, the sixth marshal in eight months, was hired to clean a remote, violent and wild town. Stoudenmire was an effective marshal who used terror to control the City Council and intimidated a violent-hardened town. On May 28, 1882, the City Council wanted to fire the marshal. Upon learning of their plan, Stoudenmire entered the Council Chambers and started pacing around lecturing and making threats. The next second, he quickly pulled out and twirled his pistols, growling a warning, "I can straddle every God-damn aldermen on this council!" The terrified Council members jolted and quickly changed their minds. The council voted in Stoudenmire's favor and reassured him that he would retain his position as a town marshal. Satisfied, Stoudenmire glared at them for a few seconds before putting away his pistols. Knowing Stoudenmire's deadly reputation, the wise Mayor diffused the tense situation when he coughed and asked for an abrupt adjourment. A potential fatal incident was averted when the marshal walked out.
Prostitution and gambling flourished until World War I, when the Department of the Army pressured El Paso authorities to crack down on vice. Many of these activities continued in neighboring Ciudad Juárez, especially during the Prohibition, which benefitted bars and saloons on the Mexican side of the border.
The Mexican Revolution (1910-1920) began in 1910, and Ciudad Juárez was the focus of intense fighting. Occasionally, stray shots killed civillians on the El Paso side. El Paso became a center of intrigue as various exiled leaders including Victoriano Huerta and (for a time) Pancho Villa were seen in the city. In January 1914, General John Joseph Pershing was stationed at Fort Bliss, where he was responsible for security along the border and mounted the ill fated Pancho Villa Expedition against Pancho Villa after the infamous raid on Columbus, New Mexico on March 9, 1916. The cavalry under Pershing were paid in gold, in competition with Pancho Villa, who offered $50 per machine gun. (When World War I began, Pershing's cavalry had to remain in the Army for the duration of the war, and were no longer paid in gold.)
In the 1930's, El Paso became the birthplace of several locally and nationally well-known businesses and events. In 1930, Conrad Hilton opened his first highrise hotel in El Paso, the now Plaza Hotel[citation needed]. In 1934, Walter T. Varney and Louis Mueller established the passenger airline called Varney Speed Lines in El Paso and operated out of the El Paso International Airport[citation needed]. After the airline was taken over in 1937 by Robert Six, he relocated its headquarters to Denver, Colorado and renamed it with the more recognized name of Continental Airlines, as it is known to this day. Additionally, the college football Sun Bowl has been held in El Paso since 1935.
After World War II, Werner von Braun and other German rocket scientists were brought to Fort Bliss in El Paso, along with many of the V2 rockets and rocket parts, starting the American rocket program; they were later moved to Huntsville, Alabama. One V2 rocket is still on display at Fort Bliss. The popular drink, the Margarita, was another famous invention given a home in El Paso. It was first mixed in the El Paso Juarez area at Tommy's Place Bar on July 4, 1945 by Francisco "Pancho" Morales. Morales originally left bartending in Mexico to become a US citizen[citation needed]. His story is captured in a 1973 Texas Monthly article "The Man Who Invented the Margarita" by Brad Cooper, and later in his obituary in the Washington Post[citation needed].
From World War II until the 1980s, El Paso boomed into a sprawling city. The expansion of Fort Bliss from a frontier post to a major Cold War military center brought in thousands of soldiers, dependents, and retirees. The industrial economy was dominated by copper smelting, oil refining, and the proliferation of low wage industries (particularly garment making), which drew thousands of Mexican immigrants. New housing subdivisions were built, expanding El Paso far to the west, northeast and east of its original core areas.
With the election of Raymond Telles, the city's first Hispanic mayor in 1957, the demand for civil rights amongst the Hispanic population began. Streching into the tumultuous 1960's, and converging with America's anti-war and civil rights demonstrations, great strides were achieved that became evident in the 1970's.
In 1963, the U.S. agreed to cede a long-disputed part of El Paso to Mexico due to changes in the course of the Rio Grande, which forms the international boundary between the two countries. The area boundaries were rationalized and the Rio Grande was re-channelled. A former island in the river was re-developed. The Chamizal National Memorial, administered by the National Park Service is now a major park in El Paso; El Chamizal is the corresponding park in Juárez.
Since 1990, the local economy has been adversely affected by competition with low wage labor abroad, and the closure of the main copper smelter due to fluctuant metal prices, and excessive lead contamination found throughout many of the surrounding areas. The passage of the North American Free Trade Agreement has been a mixed blessing, with local transport, retail, and service firms expanding, but with the accelerated loss of many industrial jobs. El Paso is very sensitive to changes in the Mexican economy and the regulation of cross border traffic; the Mexican peso devaluation of late 1994 and increasingly stringent controls of cross border traffic after the September 11, 2001 Terrorist Attack were felt strongly in El Paso. (In contrast to most every other border city and popular belief, the commercial traffic at the ports of entry went un-interrupted during the immediate aftermath of 9/11.)
Since the 1849 establishment of Fort Bliss in the El Paso area, El Paso has seen many booms in population. More recently, the BRAC commission has marked the base to receive more the 18,000 troops, which is estimated to add 547 million dollars to the El Paso economy. The expected 50,000 people destined for El Paso (18,000 troops & 30, 000 family members) will bring to El Paso a rise in population that has not been seen since the Mexican Exodus of the 1910's in which the town's population grew by at least 60,000 people that were trying to escape the carnage of the Mexican Revolution. El Paso is also home to the El Paso International Airport and a high school dedicated to Captain John L. Chapin.
Recent city-wide projects funded through the election of bonds have once again pushed the urban sprawl onward for El Paso. The most prominent of these projects was the complete refurbishment of the Plaza Theater in Downtown El Paso. The project was completed on March 17, 2006 at a cost of $38 Million. The completion of a new freeway on the city's eastern edge the city should experience the historical urban sprawl that accompanies such freeway construction. With the arrival of military personnel and expansion of Biggs Army Airfield, the city is also constructing a new "Inner Loop" (Loop 375 to Fred Wilson Avenue) that will connect the eastern section of the city to the Army Airfield. Once completed, Biggs Army Airfield is expected to be larger than the current space at Fort Bliss.
Also of concern is how the large increases of population in Juarez, Mexico will affect El Paso. Historically, these two towns have always been interconnected. Already evident is the air quality and traffic flowing inside the El Paso area, for these respsective figures reflect the values of a metro area that is populated by at least two-million people. Many underestimate the area's infrastructure needs by allocating resource values for only the El Paso population and not the metropolitan population that is interconnected chiefly through the actions of commerece that stems from El Paso, Juarez, and the New Mexico cities of Las Cruces, Santa Teresa, Sunland Park and Alamogordo.
Geography
El Paso is located at 31°47′25″N 106°25′24″W / 31.79028°N 106.42333°W (31.790208, -106.423242)Template:GR. It lies at the intersection of three states (Texas, New Mexico, and Chihuahua) and two countries (the USA and Mexico). It is the only major Texas city on Mountain Time. When Ciudad Juárez was on Central Time[citation needed], it was possible to celebrate New Year's twice in the same evening by travelling a very short distance across the state and into another country. Both cities are now on Mountain Time.
The city's elevation is 3,800 feet (1140 m) above sea level. The rustic and reddish North Franklin Peak towers at 7,192 feet above sea level and is the highest peak in the city which can be seen from the distance of roughly 60 miles from all directions. Additionally, this mountain range is home to the famous natural red-clay formation, the Thunderbird, from which the local Coronado High School gets their mascot's name. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 648.9 km² (250.5 mi²).
The 24,000-acre Franklin Mountains State Park is the largest urban park in the United States and resides entirely in El Paso, extending from the north and neatly dividing the city into several sections along with Fort Bliss and the El Paso International Airport.
The Rio Grande Rift, which passes around the southern end of the Franklin Mountains, is where the Rio Grande River flows. The river defines the border between El Paso from Ciudad Juarez, Mexico to the south and west until the river turns north of the border with [[Mexico], separating El Paso from Doña Ana County, New Mexico. An extinct volcano, Mt. Cristo Rey rises within the Rio Grande Rift just to the west of El Paso on the New Mexico side of the Rio Grande River. Other volcanic features include Kilbourne hole and Hunt's hole, which are Maar volcanic craters 30 miles (50 km) west of the Franklin Mountains.
El Paso is surrounded by the Chihuahuan Desert, the easternmost section of the Basin and Range Region.
Areas of El Paso
- Northwest El Paso
- Central El Paso
- Northeast El Paso
- East El Paso
- Mission Valley El Paso (Lower Valley and Ysleta, TX)
Outside of the suburban areas located on the far eastern and western edges of the city limits, suburban enclaves include Socorro, San Elizario, Horizon City, Fabens, Clint, Canutillo, and Montana Vista and in New Mexico; Anthony, Sunland Park, Chaparral, (and becuase of the large percentage of commuters into the city of El Paso) Las Cruces as well.
Flooding
Although the average annual rainfall is only about 8 inches, many parts of El Paso are subject to occasional flooding during intense summer monsoons. In late July and early August 2006, over 15 inches of rain fell in a week, overflowing all the flood-control reservoirs and causing major flooding city-wide. The city staff has estimated damage to public infrastructure as $21 million, and to private property (residential & commercial) as $77 million [1]. Much of the damage was associated with development in recent decades in arroyos protected by flood-control dams and reservoirs.
Climate
- Temperatures average from an average high of 56 °F (13 °C) and an average low of 29 °F (−2 °C) in January to an average high of 96 °F (36 °C [more than 100 °F is possible]) and an average low of 68 °F (20 °C) in August.
- The city's record high is 114 °F (45.5 °C), and its record low is −8 °F (−22 °C).
- The sun shines 302 days per year on average in El Paso, 83 percent of daylight hours, according to the El Paso Weather Bureau. It is from this that the city is nicknamed, The Sun City.
- Rainfall averages 8.74 inches (223 mm) per annum, most of which occurs during the summer monsoonal season that typically starts in July and usually ends in mid-September. During this period, winds originate more from the south to southeast direction and carry moisture from the Pacific Ocean, the Gulf of California and the Gulf of Mexico into the region. As this moisture moves into the El Paso area (and many other areas in the southwest), a combination of orographic uplift from the mountains, and daytime heating from the sun, causes thunderstorms to develop across the region. This is what causes most of the rain in the El Paso area.
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Avg high °F (°C) | 57 (13) | 63 (17) | 70 (21) | 79 (26) | 87 (30) | 96 (35) | 95 (35) | 93 (33) | 88 (31) | 79 (26) | 66 (18) | 58 (14) | 78 (25) |
| Avg low °F (°C) | 31 (0) | 35 (1) | 41 (5) | 49 (9) | 58 (14) | 66 (18) | 70 (21) | 68 (20) | 62 (16) | 50 (10) | 38 (3) | 32 (0) | 50 (10) |
| Rainfall inches (millimeters) | 0.4 (10.16) | 0.4 (10.16) | 0.3 (7.62) | 0.2 (5.08) | 0.3 (7.62) | 0.7 (17.78) | 1.6 (40.64) | 1.5 (38.10) | 1.4 (35.56) | 0.7 (17.78) | 0.3 (7.62) | 0.6 (15.24) | 8.6 (218.44) |
| Source: Weather.com[1] | |||||||||||||
Politics
El Paso City and County vote overwhelmingly Democratic, like most of the Texas–Mexico border area and urban Texas. The El Paso metropolitan area is represented by Silvestre Reyes (D-El Paso) in the U.S. House; in the Texas State House, by Democrats Paul Moreno, Chente Quintanilla, Norma Chavez, Joe Pickett and Republican Pat Haggerty; and in the State Senate, by Eliot Shapleigh (D-El Paso). The mayor of El Paso is John Cook.
Demographics
As of the censusTemplate:GR of 2000, there were 563,662 people, 182,063 households, and 141,098 families residing in the city. The population density was 873.7/km² (2,263.0/mi²). There were 193,663 housing units at an average density of 300.2/km² (777.5/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 73.28% White, 3.12% African American, 0.82% Native American, 1.12% Asian, 0.10% Pacific Islander, 18.15% from other races, and 3.40% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 76.62% of the population.
There are 182,063 households, out of which 42.4% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.6% were married couples living together, 18.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 22.5% were non-families. 19.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 7.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.07 and the average family size was 3.54.
In the city the population was spread out with 31.0% under the age of 18, 10.0% from 18 to 24, 29.1% from 25 to 44, 19.2% from 45 to 64, and 10.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 31 years. For every 100 females there were 90.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.0 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $32,124, and the median income for a family was $35,432. Males had a median income of $28,989 versus $21,540 for females. The per capita income for the city was $14,388. About 19.0% of families and 22.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 29.8% of those under age 18 and 17.7% of those age 65 or over.
According to the 2005 United States Census Bureau population estimates, the El Paso metropolitan area had a population of 721,598. Other reliable sources such as the United States Commerece Department estimate the El Paso metropolitan area of reaching slightly over a million [[2]1,056,756]. As of October, 2006, El Paso is ranked the third safest city in the US with a population greater than 500,000 according to an independent private research and publishing company based in Kansas [3].
Sports
Professional teams
El Paso is, as of 2006, the 2nd largest U.S. city by population (behind Austin, Texas) not to have a team in one of the big four professional leagues (NHL, NBA, NFL, MLB). El Paso hosts the annual NCAA Brut Sun Bowl, boxing matches, and occasional NBA and NFL preseason games. El Paso is also the site of the Borderland Derby horse race held in the nearby suburb of Sunland Park.
Independent teams
Other sports include independent league teams like:
- Baseball
- El Paso Diablos (Independent baseball team)
- Soccer
- Hockey
- El Paso Rhinos (Junior hockey, will begin play in fall 2006)
Arenas
- UTEP owns the two largest stadiums in El Paso:
- Don Haskins Center has a capacity of 12,222 and is used for UTEP's basketball teams and special events such as concerts and boxing matches. It is also where the graduation ceremony takes place for UTEP students.
- Sun Bowl Stadium has a capacity of 52,000 and is home to the UTEP Miners football team, coached by Mike Price. It is also home to the annual Brut Sun Bowl, soccer games, and special events such as concerts.
- The other major arena venues include:
- El Paso County Coliseum: (Concerts/Hockey)
- Cohen Stadium: (baseball)
- SISD SAC: (High School football)
- Patriot Stadium: (El Paso Patriots soccer)
- Future major arena venues proposed include:
- Downtown Arena: (Conventions/Sports/Multi-purpose) Included in the controversial Paso Del Norte Group Downtown Rejuvination Proposal. The future arena is to be built on the corner of W. San Antonio Ave. and S. Santa Fe St. adjacent to the current Civic Center. Little has been made known of what accommodations the new arena will have, or when construction will begin.
Education
Public school districts
- El Paso Independent School District (external website: http://www.episd.org) Note: Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor is a graduate of Austin High School.
- Ysleta Independent School District (external website: http://www.yisd.net)
- Socorro Independent School District (external website: http://www.sisd.net)
- Canutillo Independent School District (external website: http://www.canutillo-isd.org)
- Clint Independent School District (external website: http://www.clintweb.net)
- San Elizario Independent School District
- Fabens Independent School District
- Tornillo Independent School District
- Anthony Independent School District
Private and parochial schools
There are several parochial schools within the El Paso Catholic Diocese that include the following:
Other private schools include the following:
- El Paso Country Day School
- El Paso Jewish Academy
- Radford School. Note: Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor attended Radford.
- St. Clement's Episcopal Parish School
- Covenant Christian Academy
- Father Yermo Schools
- Bethel Christian School
- Community of Faith Christian School
- Faith Christian Academy
- Immanuel Baptist Christian School
- Jesus Chapel Christian School
- Northeast Christian Academy
- North Loop Christian Academy
- Rose of Sharon Christian School
- El Paso Adventist Junior Academy
Two-year colleges
Four-year colleges
Culture
- Tom Lea (1906-2001) was a well-known artist of national repute, and author of The King Ranch. He frequently collaborated with Carl Hertzog, a typographer. Quote from Laura Bush "Tom Lea's Rio Grande also hangs in the Oval Office and it reminds the President of our good friend. Tom Lea was a gifted El Pasoan artist and writer who died at age 97 shortly after my husband's inauguration. The President likes to quote Tom and he used his favorite lines in his acceptance speech at the Republican National Convention. Tom once said, 'We live on the East side of the mountain. It is the sunrise side, not the sunset side. It is the side to see the day coming; not the side to see the day that is gone. The best day is the day coming with eyes wide open and the heart grateful.'"
- Urbici Soler, a Spaniard, came to reside permanently in El Paso, at the behest of Father Lourdes Costa, to carve the massive crucifix on top of Mt. Cristo Rey. This is still the site of annual pilgrimages in October. He became a naturalized American citizen who died and was buried in El Paso.
- Sarah Ioannides is the current Music Director and Conductor of the El Paso Symphony, which is in its 75th season, the oldest symphony in Texas.
- Don Juan de Oñate ordered the Spanish expedition party to rest and announced the true and first Thanksgiving Mass celebration on April 30, 1598. This celebration was the first in North America and before the Pilgrim Thanksgiving in Massachusetts. A massive statute of Oñate can be seen at the El Paso International Airport entrance and is scheduled to be unveiled April 2007.
- Viva El Paso! is the annual returning musical which celebrates El Paso's rich cultural history through dance, dramatic scenes, narration and songs. The story begins with the early Indian settlement and takes through Spanish conquest, Mexican domination and the wild wild South-West. This *two hour lasting outdoor musical is staged at the McKelligon Canyon Amphitheater. Performances in Summer.
Literature
Recognized for its contributions to American literature, El Paso has been home to:
- John Rechy
- Artruo Islas
- Ricardo Sanchez
- Mario T. Garcia
- José Antonio "Tony" Burciaga
- Alicia Gaspar de Alba
Points of interest
Area museums
- The Centennial Museum and Chihuahuan Desert Gardens
- The El Paso Holocaust Museum and Study Center
- The El Paso Museum of Archaeology at Wilderness Park
- The El Paso Museum of Art
- The El Paso Museum of History
- Fort Bliss Museums & Study Center
- Insights El Paso Science Museum
- Magoffin Home State Historic Site
- The National Border Patrol Museum
- Railroad & Transportation Museum of El Paso
- War Eagles Air Museum
- Gene Roddenberry Planetarium
Sites within the city limits
- Abraham Chavez Theatre
- Chamizal National Memorial
- The El Paso Zoo
- Fort Bliss
- Franklin Mountains State Park
- Judson F. Williams Convention Center
- McKelligon Canyon
- Plaza Hotel
- The Plaza Theatre
- Union Depot
- University of Texas at El Paso
- Ysleta Mission
Sites within the surrounding area
- Carlsbad Caverns National Park
- Guadalupe Mountains National Park
- Hueco Tanks State Park
- Lincoln National Forest
- Maar volcanic craters
- Socorro Mission
Nearby cities and counties
- Alamogordo, New Mexico
- Arrey, New Mexico
- Ciudad Juarez, Chihuahua
- Columbus, New Mexico
- Deming, New Mexico
- Dona Ana
- Hatch, New Mexico
- Las Cruces, New Mexico
- Mesilla, New Mexico
- Organ, New Mexico
- Rincon, New Mexico
- Salem, New Mexico
- Santa Teresa, New Mexico
- Sunland Park, New Mexico
- White Sands Missile Range
- Tularosa, New Mexico
Transportation
Airports
Passenger rail
- The historic Union Depot with service provided by Amtrak
Major highways
- Interstate 10
- U.S. Route 54 Patriot Freeway
- U.S. Route 62
- U.S. Route 85 Cesar E. Chavez Border Highway
- U.S. Route 180
- SH 20
- SH 178
- SH 478
- SL 375 Purple Heart Memorial Freeway; includes Border Highway portion of U.S. Route 85
- NM 28
Mass transit
- Sun Metro Mass Transit system operates a system of medium to large capacity natural gas powered buses all around the city of El Paso. Amusingly, before 1987 Sun Metro was named Sun City Area Transit (SCAT).
- El Paso County Transit makes trips with small capacity buses mainly in the Eastern El Paso area.
- Proposed is a highly controversial light-rail system (Sun Metro Area Rapid Transit) that will connect the Central Buisness District's border point-of-entries to the city's historical thoroughfare, Texas Highway 20. If materialized, the light-rail system will connect the Central Buisness District's border point-of-entry, Paso del Norte Port of Entry/Puente Santa Fe to the Texas Tech Medical Center complex located on Texas Highway 20 (Alameda Avenue) on the eastern edge to the University of Texas at El Paso via Texas Highway 20 (North Mesa Street) on the northwestern edge.
El Paso crossings
- Bridge of the Americas/Cordova Bridge
- Paso Del Norte Port of Entry (No Commercial Traffic)
- Stanton Street Port of Entry (No Commercial Traffic)
- Ysleta Port of Entry
Surrounding area crossings
- Santa Teresa Port of Entry (located in Santa Teresa, New Mexico, 10 miles West of the El Paso city limits)
- Fabens Port of Entry (located in Fabens, Texas, 16 miles East of the El Paso city limits)
- Fort Hancock Port of Entry (located in Fort Hancock, Texas, 43 miles East of the El Paso city limits)
Media
Newspapers
- El Paso Times, English language news daily.
- El Diario de El Paso, Spanish language news daily.
- El Paso Inc.
- Newspaper Tree, an online newspaper that is progressive in nature.
El Paso had another English language daily newspaper, El Paso Herald-Post, but that newspaper ended publication in 1997.
Magazines
Radio stations
- AM
- FM
- 88.5 KTEP University
- 89.5 KKLY Christian Radio (K-Love)-previously identified as KXCR
- 91.1 KVER Spanish
- 92.3 KOFX Oldies
- 93.1 KSII Top-40
- 93.9 KINT Tejano
- 95.5 KLAQ Rock
- 94.7 KHRO Spanish Alternative
- 96.3 KHEY Country
- 97.5 KBNA Spanish
- 99.1 XHEPR Classic Rock
- 99.9 KTSM Adult Contemporary
- 102.1 KPRR Hip-Hop/R&B
- 103.5 XHEM Spanish Pop
- 104.3 XHTO Top-40
El Paso also shares radio stations with nearby cities Las Cruces, New Mexico and Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua.
Television stations
El Paso was the largest city in the United States without a PBS television station until 1978. In fact, the city had only three English-speaking channels, and cable subscribers in the 1970s and 1980s could receive four Los Angeles independent channels: KTLA-TV Channel 5, KCAL-TV Channel 9 (then KHJ-TV), KTTV-TV Channel 11 and KCOP-TV Channel 13. All but KTLA has been discontinued on cable. When UPN and the WB networks join to become The CW, El Paso will get it's own CW station, but only on digital television and cable. KTLA will continue to air on cable however. El Paso's current television stations are as follows:
Trivia
- The term "pachuco" came from the Mexican Spanish slang word for El Paso, probably originating early in the 20th century, then spreading westward throughout the Southwest, following the line of migration associated with Mexican railroad workers (traqueros).
- The El Paso City Council voted to spend $112,000 to hire a private security firm to guard the city's police station.
- El Paso is featured in a cycle of three songs by country singer Marty Robbins.
- List of famous people from El Paso, Texas.
Filmed In El Paso
- "Take the High Ground!" (1953), starring Richard Widmark and Karl Malden.
- "Manos: The Hands of Fate" (1966) , which is reputed to be one of the worst films ever made, was shot in and around El Paso. It premiered in 1966 at the downtown Capri Theater.
- “The Getaway” (1972) starring Steve McQueen and Ali MacGraw.
- “The Bad News Bears in Breaking Training” (1977) starring William Devane.
- "Big Wednesday" (1978) starring Jan Michael Vincent, and Gary Busey.
- "When you Comin’ Back Red Ryder" (1979) starring Hal Linden, and Lee Grant.
- "Resurrection" (1980) starring Ellen Burstyn.
- "Second Hand Hearts" (1981) starring Robert Blake, and Barbara Harris.
- "The Border" (1982) starring Jack Nicholson and Harvey Keitel.
- "Wrong is Right" (1982) starring Sean Connery.
- "Lone Wolf McQuade (1983) starring Chuck Norris and David Carradine.
- "Paris, Texas (1984) starring Harry Dean Stanton and Dean Stockwell.
- “Fandango” (1985) starring Kevin Costner and Judd Nelson. Wedding scenes were filmed in front of Mission San Elizario in San Elizario, Texas (near El Paso).
- "Death of an Angel (1985) starring Nick Mancuso.
- "Lost in America (1985) starring Albert Brooks and Julie Hagerty.
- “Extreme Prejudice” (1987) starring Nick Nolte and Powers Boothe.
- “Wild at Heart” (1990) starring Nicolas Cage and Laura Dern.
- "Blue Sky" (1994) starring Jessica Lange and Tommy Lee Jones.
- "Last Man Standing" (1996) starring Bruce Willis, Bruce Dern, Christopher Walken, Karina Lombard.
- "Courage Under Fire" (1996) starring Denzel Washington and Meg Ryan had all the Persian Gulf War scenes shot at the Indian Cliffs Ranch.
- “Lolita” (1997) starring Jeremy Irons and Melanie Griffith.
- “On the Border” (1998) starring Casper Van Dien, Bryan Brown, Daniel Baldwin.
- “Committed” (2000) starring Heather Graham.
- “Traffic” (2000) starring Benicio Del Toro, Michael Douglas, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Dennis Quaid and Don Cheadle.
- "The Original Latin Kings of Comedy"(2002) featuring George Lopez, Cheech Marin, Joey Medina, Alex Reymundo, and Paul Rodriguez. It was shot at the Abraham Chavez Theater.
- “Kingpin (NBC pilot)” (2003) starring Yancey Arias and Brian Benben.
- “Saving Jessica Lynch” (2003) starring Laura Regan.
- "The Day After Tomorrow" (2004) starring Dennis Quaid and Sela Ward. All the border scenes, the refugee camp scene, and the U.S. Embassy scene were all shot in and around El Paso.
- “Man on Fire” (2004) starring Denzel Washington and Dakota Fanning.
- “RX” (2005) starring Colin Hanks, Eric Balfour and Alan Tudyk.
- “Glory Road” (2006) starring Josh Lucas.
External links
- El Paso County Website
- Visit El Paso
- Guide to El Paso
- The University of Texas at El Paso
- Texas Tech University at El Paso
- El Paso, Texas from the Handbook of Texas Online
