Castolon

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Castolon was a town in the southwestern part of Brewster County , it was on the banks of the Rio Grande . The place is now part of the Big Bend National Park and was also known under the name Santa Helena.

geography

Catolon is 661 meters above sea level on the east bank of the Rio Grande. The place has a semi-arid climate . The temperatures are on average over 30 degrees Celsius from April to October, and over 35 degrees from May to September. The annual rainfall averages 260 mm, with an average of more than 35 mm rainfall was measured in the months June to September.

history

Cipriano Hernandez, who was from Mexico, bought land on the east bank of the Rio Grande in 1903, named it Santa Helena, built a farm and a store. By irrigating his land with water from the Rio Grande, Hernandez managed to build a high-yielding farm. This resulted in more Mexican families moving to the area and establishing farms and other places. About one and a half kilometers downstream from Castolon the place El Ojito was founded, about three kilometers upstream the place La Coyota. Down the river, the towns of Terlingua Abaja and about eight kilometers away Buenos Aires emerged, so that the population, which was almost exclusively agricultural, grew to around 300 inhabitants.

When the revolution broke out in Mexico in 1910 , residents on the American side of the river felt threatened and asked the US Army for protection. As a result, a cavalry unit was stationed in Castolon in 1911, which patrolled along the Rio Grande.

The area's agricultural success attracted Texas investors, who used farm equipment and irrigation systems with pumps to increase yield. Initially, the main focus was on growing alfalfa , from 1921 on a larger amount of cotton , which from 1923 onwards could also be processed on site by installing an egrenizing machine . From 1923 to 1942 more than 500 tons of cotton were processed.

Against the backdrop of the turmoil in Mexico, a mounted unit who lived in tents was stationed in Castolon in 1916. In 1919 it was decided to set up a permanent camp for cavalry units, which was called Camp Santa Helena. It was never used by the US Army, however, because by the time it was completed in 1920, the situation at the border had calmed down so much that it was no longer necessary to station troops. The US Army rented Camp Santa Helena in 1921 to the local company La Harmonia, the area's largest agricultural and trading company, which bought the site in 1926. In 1926 a post office was opened, which led to the fact that the place was renamed Castolon, as there was already a post office in Texas with the name Santa Helena.

The place began to decline in 1927 as U.S. immigration authorities began to tighten enforcement of immigration laws. In order to avoid deportation, numerous Mexican families left Castolon. In the late 1930s the population had dropped to 25 residents. La Harmonia stopped cotton production in 1942.

When Big Bend National Park was established in 1944, Castolon became part of the national park and the population continued to decline to three in the early 1960s. The post office was closed in 1954, and in 1957 Cartledge, the owner of the La Harmonia company, sold all of its properties to the national park, but was able to continue operating his department store until 1960.

Today only employees of the national park administration and the operators of the department store licensed by the national park live in Castolon. In addition to the department store, Castolon has the oldest preserved adobe house in the national park (Alvino House) and the ruins of numerous houses and two cemeteries.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Data from the Western Regional Climate Center
  2. ↑ On the history of the La Harmonia company
  3. ^ Kohout, Martin Donnell: "CASTOLON, TX" . In: Handbook of Texas Online, published by the Texas State Historical Association
  4. ↑ Pictures of the current situation in Castolon
  5. ↑ Picture of the Alvino house and a short history of the place on the side of the Big Bend National Park

Web links

Extensive photo and map material on Castolon at the "Portal to Texas History"

Coordinates: 29 ° 7 ′ 48 ″  N , 103 ° 30 ′ 47 ″  W.