1985 Map of Encino

About this map

Deep South Texas ranchlands and energy resources define this mid-1980s portrait of the region where Jim Hogg, Brooks, Starr, and Hidalgo Counties converge. The landscape is marked by the expansive Alta Mesa Oil Field and Rincon Oil and Gas Field, illustrating the industrial footprint of petroleum extraction across these brushy plains. Historic ranching settlements like San Antonio Viejo, Agua Nueva, and Santa Elena are connected by a network of rural roads, while the Southern Pacific railroad line runs north-south through the eastern corridor, serving towns such as Encino and Linn. Natural water features, often intermittent in this climate, include Laguna Salada and the notable Sal del Rey in the southeast. This survey provides a clear view of the transition from traditional grazing lands to the mid-century oil and gas economy that reshaped the Rio Grande Valley hinterlands.