1955 Map of San Elizario

About this map

San Elizario serves as the focal point of this borderland study, situated along a complex network of irrigation and drainage infrastructure in the Rio Grande Valley. The landscape is defined by the proximity of the United States-Mexico border and the Texas-Chihuahua line, where the Rio Grande and the Riverside Canal run nearly parallel. The settlement pattern reveals a town deeply integrated with its agricultural surroundings, featuring a local Church and Cem positioned near the dense web of waterways like the San Elizario Lateral and Del Monte Lateral. Transportation is anchored by the historic Jefferson Davis Highway (Old Spanish Trail) to the north and the South Loop Road to the south. This 1950s documentation, updated in the late 1960s, highlights the essential role of water management through features such as the Agrias Canas Drain and Camino De La Rosa Lateral, which sustained the valley's productivity.