South Texas.html |
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South Texas is a region of the U.S. state of Texas that lies roughly south of, or beginning at, San Antonio. The southern and western boundary is the Rio Grande River, and to the east it is the Gulf of Mexico. The population of this region is about 3.7 million. The southern portion of this region is often referred to as the Rio Grande Valley. The eastern portion along the Gulf of Mexico is also referred to as the Coastal Bend.
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Boundaries
There is no defined northern boundary, although it is believed to be at the city of San Antonio and from an east to west line extending from the Rio Grande near Maverick County to the Gulf of Mexico, but turning southeast at or near Lavaca County, and continuing towards the Gulf of Mexico to separate it from East Texas and Southeast Texas. The Rio Grande serves as the western and southern boundaries and separates Texas from Mexico. The eastern portion of South Texas is bordered by the Gulf of Mexico.
Most populous cities
| City | 2000 Census Population1 | County |
| San Antonio | 1,144,646 | Bexar County |
| Corpus Christi | 277,454 | Nueces County |
| Laredo | 176,576 | Webb County |
| Brownsville | 139,722 | Cameron County |
| McAllen | 106,414 | Hidalgo County |
| Victoria | 60,603 | Victoria County |
| Harlingen | 57,564 | Cameron County |
| Edinburg | 48,465 | Hidalgo County |
| Pharr | 46,660 | Hidalgo County |
| Mission | 45,408 | Hidalgo County |
| Weslaco | 26,935 | Hidalgo County |
| San Juan | 26,229 | Hidalgo County |
| Kingsville | 25,575 | Kleberg County |
| San Benito | 23,444 | Cameron County |
| Eagle Pass | 22,413 | Maverick County |
| Alice | 19,010 | Jim Wells County |
Some people consider Houston to be in South Texas for several reasons. Numerous businesses in the Houston region contain 'South Texas' in their titles.2 The South Texas College of Law is located in downtown Houston. The United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas includes the Houston division. And like South Texas, the city has a large Hispanic population. However, Houston is most accurately classified as being within Southeast Texas, a subregion of East Texas.
Counties
- note:Counties listed after Calhoun County are those depicted in light red in the counties picture to the right
- note 2:Bolded counties are those with at least 200,000 in population
Multicultural influences
South Texas is well-known for a strong Hispanic, primarily Mexican American and Tejano (the Spanish term for Texan) influence, due to its proximity with Mexico. However, a large percentage of Tejanos and Mexicans living in South Texas have families and residency going back many generations (about 300 years in some cases) before the U.S. annexation of their lands after the Mexican American War in the 1840s. The disputed area between the Nueces River south of San Antonio and Corpus Christi, and the Rio Grande was a republic of its own not recognized by Mexico and the United States, known as the Republic of the Rio Grande from 1838 to 1847 and its capital was in Laredo, Texas.
Transportation
Air Travel
- San Antonio International Airport
- Corpus Christi International Airport
- Laredo International Airport
- Valley International Airport
- Victoria Regional Airport
- McAllen-Miller International Airport
- Brownsville/South Padre Island International Airport
- Alice International Airport
Major Highways
Interstate Highways
United States Routes
Texas State Highways
Texas Highway 4
Texas Highway 16
Texas Highway 44
Texas Highway 107
Texas Highway 255
Texas Highway 336
Texas Highway 359
Texas Highway 361
Texas Highway 495
International Bridges
Laredo
- Gateway to the Americas International Bridge
- Juarez-Lincoln International Bridge
- Texas-Mexican Railway International Bridge
- World Trade International Bridge
- Colombia-Solidarity International Bridge
Eagle Pass
- Eagle Pass-Piedras Negras International Bridge
- Camino Real International Bridge
- Union Pacific International Railroad Bridge
Brownsville
- Brownsville & Matamoros International Bridge
- Veteran's International Bridge
- Gateway International Bridge
Los Indios
Falcon Hights
Hidalgo
Pharr
Progreso
Rio Grande City
Roma
Tourism
- The Alamo in San Antonio
- Aransas National Wildlife Refuge
- Fiesta Texas in San Antonio
- King Ranch near Kingsville
- Mirador de la Flor (Selena Memorial Statue) in Corpus Christi
- Mustang Island near Corpus Christi
- Padre Island National Seashore near Corpus Christi
- San Antonio River Walk
- SeaWorld San Antonio
- South Padre Island in the Rio Grande Valley
- Texas State Aquarium in Corpus Christi
- USS Lexington in Corpus Christi
Education
Colleges
- Alamo Community College District
- Coastal Bend College
- Del Mar College
- Laredo Community College
- South Texas College
- Texas State Technical College
Universities
Public Universities
- Texas A&M International University (Laredo)
- Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi
- Texas A&M University-Kingsville (Texas A&I)
- Texas A&M University-San Antonio
- University of Houston-Victoria
- University of Texas at Brownsville
- University of Texas–Pan American
- University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio
- University of Texas at San Antonio
- University of Victoria
Private Universities
- Our Lady of the Lake University
- St. Mary's University
- University of the Incarnate Word
- Trinity University
- Wayland Baptist University
Sports
The only major professional sports teams in South Texas are the San Antonio Spurs in the NBA and the San Antonio Silver Stars in the WNBA.
Area Codes
- 210 - San Antonio
- 361 - Corpus Christi, Alice, Victoria, Kingsville
- 956 - Rio Grande Valley, Laredo
- 830 - Eagle Pass, San Antonio
- 979 - only the southern half of this area is in South Texas
See also
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