Everything Medina is known for
Songs written about the waterways and highways that run near Medina.
The Medina River, originating from springs in the Edwards Plateau, is a vital water source in south central Texas. It's formed by the convergence of its North and West prongs in Medina, Texas, and flows for 120 miles before merging with the San Antonio River.
The Medina River's water supply is largely produced by springs due to the Balcones Fault, which serves as an ecological dividing line. Species like the California Fan Palm are found only west of this fault line, highlighting the river's role in shaping local biodiversity.
Zapata is renowned for its hang gliding records. More world records in hang gliding have been set from Zapata than any other location globally. The World Record Encampment has been taking place at the Zapata County Airport since 2000, with the current world record of 472 miles set by Dustin Martin in July 2012.
In 1746, Jose de Escandon was selected by Spanish officials to be chief colonizer for the lower Rio Grande Valley, then a part of Mexico's northern frontier. A native of Spain, Escandon (b. 1700) had proven himself a capable administrator and military leader as part of the Spanish forces in Mexico. Escandon took over 700 people, including missionaries, soldiers, and Indians, on his initial exploration of the area. His findings from this venture allowed him to complete his colonization plans. By 1748, thirteen settlements had begun in the area, which came to be called Nuevo Santander after Escandon's home province. A total of nineteen settlements, including Laredo, San Ygnacio, Falcon, and Lopeno, owe their foundings to Escandon. Escandon issued royal land grants in tracts known as "porciones," and in return the settlers were to fulfill certain requirements. The final inspection of the land grants, known as the General Visitation of 1767, marked the beginning of private and individual land ownership in this part of the state, as valid applicants were given possession of their "porciones." The colonization efforts also resulted in the farming and ranching settlements from which grew the immense cattle industry of South Texas. (1986)
Manuel Box Bravo, county judge and civil-rights advocate, the son of David and Emma (Box) Bravo, was born at El Ambrado Ranch in Hidalgo County, Texas, on May 2, 1901. His mother came from the distinguished Box family, pioneers who settled in Houston County during the mid-1830s. Manuel, the oldest of eight children, lived and went to school near his birthplace on the banks of the Rio Grande. Though hard economic conditions forced him to quit school after completing the eighth grade, he graduated from McAllen High School in 1924. On October 24, 1919, he married Josefa Villarreal Pérez in Edinburg; they had three sons and one daughter. He worked in the Hidalgo County courthouse tax collector's office and later earned promotion to chief deputy in the delinquent tax department. In 1921 Bravo, a devout Catholic, became a charter member of the Knights of Columbus , an affiliation he maintained until his death. In the late 1920s he helped establish and served as president of the Edinburg Council of the League of United Latin American Citizens . In 1932 he won the primary election of the Democratic party for district clerk of Hidalgo County. A year later he and his family moved to Zapata, where he engaged in several self-employed business ventures. In the November 3, 1936, general election, Bravo won by an overwhelming majority as a write-in candidate for county judge from the Partido Viejo (as supporters called the Democratic party). On January 1, 1937, he became the new county judge. He ordered county officials to begin the practice of keeping minutes of school board meetings, records of expenditures, inventories of school supplies and equipment, and auditable accounts. Despite the fact that the county was economically very poor and the educational system was in a state of neglect, his fiscal management of the school budget allowed for improvements in school facilities, approved accreditation standards for all grade levels, more certified teachers, and better playground facilities. He purchased school buses and established a veterans vocational training school with classes in vocational agriculture, distributive education, trade and industrial training, and basic preparatory courses. In 1952 Bravo successfully campaigned to get the taxpayers to approve the first bond election in the history of Zapata County. Bravo supported Lyndon B. Johnson 's farm bill of 1949, a bill that provided for telephone service to rural communities. He also solicited government assistance during droughts; in 1952 he lobbied for the establishment of a Soil Conservation Service Office for Zapata County. During the 1940s Bravo became actively involved in civil rights when he joined Alonso S. Perales and José T. Canales in condemning racial discrimination in Texas. On September 13, 1943, the Zapata County Commissioners Court approved a resolution endorsing the Good Neighbor Policy. In 1949, during the Felix Longoria affair , Bravo brought the incident to Johnson's attention. During World War II Bravo was chairman of the War Fund in Zapata County, which exceeded the established goal by 45 percent. For his loyalty, patriotism, and public spirit in a time of national crisis, the American Red Cross and the United States Treasury War Finance Committee honored him with awards. In the 1950s the construction of the International Falcon Reservoir meant the inundation of the entire town of Zapata (the county seat of Zapata County) and other neighboring communities. Bravo fought the government for just compensation for the people. Throughout Johnson's political career Bravo was a personal friend and confidant. He retired from public office on October 1, 1957. In 1973 he served as a member of the local citizens' advisory committee to the Texas Constitutional Revision Committee. He died in Zapata on September 18, 1984, and is buried in the Zapata County Cemetery family plot.
International Falcon Reservoir is located on the Rio Grande east of Zapata (its center point is 26°34' N, 99°10' W). The huge lake is bounded by Starr and Zapata counties, Texas, and the county and city of Nuevo Ciudad Guerrero, Tamaulipas, Mexico. The dam and reservoir provide for water conservation, flood control, hydroelectric energy, and recreation. The project is owned, authorized, and operated by the United States and Mexico through the International Boundary and Water Commission . The project is named for the relocated town of Falcon, which in turn was renamed in 1915 after the wife of founder José Eugenio Ramírez, María Rita de la Garza Falcón. The idea of a dam six miles east of the present site began about 1935, and the lake was approved by treaty at its present location in the late 1940s. Work began in 1951, and deliberate impoundment started on August 25, 1953. The reservoir was dedicated by presidents Dwight D. Eisenhower and Adolfo Ruiz Cortines on October 19, 1953. The five-mile-long rolled earthfill and concrete embankment was completed on April 8, 1954. The first power was generated commercially on October 11, 1954. The dam is 150 feet above the riverbed, with a crest elevation of 323 feet above sea level. Almost two miles of the dam is in the United States, and nearly three miles is in Mexico. The cost of the lake to the United States was $35 million. Flood-control benefits to the United States had totaled $130 million by January 1, 1986. All lands on the United States side, except for Falcon State Park , are privately owned above 307 feet. Boating and fishing are common on the lake. Americans are allowed on both sides without immigration or customs inspection if they do not land in Mexico or take aboard anything from Mexico. Fishing is prohibited below the dam because of sudden water surges based on irrigation needs and controlled by computer from Brownsville. The area of the lake varies from 87,000 acres at elevation 301.2 feet to 115,400 acres at the maximum elevation of 314.2 feet. The reservoir has a summer storage capacity of 2,371,220 acre-feet. Each country has three 14,750-horsepower turbines running three 10,500-kilowatt generators at each plant. Four units are possible if needed. Under terms of the treaty the United States receives 58.6 percent of the conservation storage and Mexico 41.4 percent; financing of the project was based on the same percentages. The drainage area above the dam is 164,482 square miles; 87,760 is in the United States and 76,722 in Mexico. The United States side provides nine public access areas, including the dam itself, along which runs a two-lane highway connecting Farm Road 2098 and Mexican Highway 2.
In 1770 residents of Revilla, Mexico, established a village (4.5 mi. W) on land granted by Jose de Escandon. The same year the Spanish built a fort nearby. In 1842 the men on the ill-fated expedition to Mier occupied the village while they foraged for supplies. First named "Habitacion," the town grew to be second largest on the Rio Grande. It was named for friendly Indians living in "carrizo" (cane) huts. In 1858, after Zapata County was created, the name changed to "Bellville" and then back to "Carrizo." In 1898 "Zapata" was chosen for Col. Antonio Zapata, a rancher executed for his part in the 1839 fight to found the Republic of the Rio Grande. Henry Redmond, a well-known area rancher, was the first county judge. Another county judge was Jose Antonio George Navarro, son of Jose Antonio Navarro, one of the two native-born signers of the Texas Declaration of Independence. The elimination of duty free trade along the border in 1903 caused an economic decline. With the coming of irrigation, a rich agricultural area developed. After the construction of Falcon Dam and the flooding of Old Zapata by lake water, the county seat was relocated at this site on land originally granted to Bartolome Cuellar and Jacinto de Cuellar. (1979)
Established in 1750 as a part of Jose de Escandon's project to settle the region and civilize and Christianize the Indians. Erected by the State of Texas 1936
36 stories, landmarks & places within ~20 miles — the same local lore RoadyGoat plays as you drive through.
The Medina River, originating from springs in the Edwards Plateau, is a vital water source in south central Texas. It's formed by the convergence of its North and West prongs in Medina, Texas, and flows for 120 miles…
Zapata (Zapata, TX) placed on the 4A Texas high school baseball stat leaderboards for the 2026 season: Lauro Guerra (3 HR).
You're driving through Medina, a town that transformed itself into the Apple Capital of Texas. For decades, this community in Bandera County was all about livestock and hunting leases. But in 1980, Baxter Adams, Jr.…
You're driving through what was once the wild west of Texas, and right here in Medina, Claude Benton Hudspeth was born. He claimed he taught himself to read and write in a log cabin on the Medina River. By fifteen, he…
Zapata is renowned for its hang gliding records. More world records in hang gliding have been set from Zapata than any other location globally. The World Record Encampment has been taking place at the Zapata County…
Falcon Dam, located on the Rio Grande between Texas and Mexico, serves multiple purposes. It was constructed for water conservation, irrigation, hydroelectric power generation, flood control, and recreational…
In 1746, Jose de Escandon was selected by Spanish officials to be chief colonizer for the lower Rio Grande Valley, then a part of Mexico's northern frontier. A native of Spain, Escandon (b. 1700) had proven himself a…
Manuel Box Bravo, county judge and civil-rights advocate, the son of David and Emma (Box) Bravo, was born at El Ambrado Ranch in Hidalgo County, Texas, on May 2, 1901. His mother came from the distinguished Box family,…
International Falcon Reservoir is located on the Rio Grande east of Zapata (its center point is 26°34' N, 99°10' W). The huge lake is bounded by Starr and Zapata counties, Texas, and the county and city of Nuevo Ciudad…
You're driving through Zapata County, not far from the town of Zapata itself. Right here, you're passing through land that's been ranch country for centuries. The Treviño Circle T Ranch has roots stretching back to the…
You're driving through Zapata County, right where the Rio Grande Plains meet the border. This area might seem a little barren now, but it was settled way back in 1750 by José Vázquez Borrego. He founded Nuestra Señora…
You're driving through Zapata, a town with a name that changed hands more than once. Originally settled around 1750 by colonists from Mexico, it was first called Habitación. Later, it became Carrizo, named for a local…
Established in 1750 as a part of Jose de Escandon's project to settle the region and civilize and Christianize the Indians. Erected by the State of Texas 1936
In 1770 residents of Revilla, Mexico, established a village (4.5 mi. W) on land granted by Jose de Escandon. The same year the Spanish built a fort nearby. In 1842 the men on the ill-fated expedition to Mier occupied…
You're driving through Zapata, the county seat that was once called Carrizo. Formed from Webb and Starr counties back in 1858, this place was named for Antonio Zapata, a pioneer stockman and supporter of the Republic of…
You're driving through Zapata County, near the Rio Grande, where ruins mark the site of a pivotal Spanish colonial venture. Back in 1750, José Vázquez Borrego established Hacienda Nuestra Señora de los Dolores right…
Lopeño is on U.S. Highway 83 in southeastern Zapata County. It replaced old Lopeño and four other small farming and ranching communities-San Pedro, San José, Santa Fé and El Tigre-the residents of which were descendants…
You're driving along the Texas-Mexico border, a place that saw plenty of action during the Civil War. Right here, back in 1863, Confederate General Hamilton Bee met with Albino López, a Mexican official, to try and…
Falcon is on U.S. Highway 83 two miles west of the Starr-Zapata county line. It was moved from an original Falcon at the junction of Medio Creek and the Rio Grande in southeast Zapata County during the flood in August…
Ramireño is on U.S. Highway 83 and Ranch Road 3169 five miles southeast of San Ignacio and eight miles northwest of Zapata in Zapata County. Originally it was two miles south of its current site on the banks of the Rio…
You're driving through Zapata County, not far from where the Bustamante Ranch got its start way back in 1802. Pedro Bustamante, a rancher and contemporary of Colonel Antonio Zapata himself, fought off raiding Indians…
Escobas is on Escobas Creek and Farm Road 16 nineteen miles northeast of Zapata in Zapata County. The area, which was part of the José de Escandón colony of Nuevo Santander, was originally settled by Mexican rancheros…
Nueva Dolores is on high land above the Rio Grande just west of U.S. Highway 83 twenty miles south of Laredo in the northwestern corner of Zapata County. It is on land that originally belonged to José Vázquez Borrego ,…
You're driving through Zapata County, a place where Mexican-American political influence has been strong for generations. Right here, in <say-as interpret-as="date" format="y">1925</say-as>, Antonio Victor Navarro…
You're driving through Zapata County, near the site of Uribeño. This settlement began in 1803 as a Spanish army grant, struggling against raids, heat, and floods. By 1826, the sons of the original grantee had returned…
You're driving through Zapata County, near the site of Old Ramireño. This settlement began in <say-as interpret-as="date" format="y">1784</say-as> when Don Jose Luis Ramirez, granted land by the King of Spain, moved his…
You're driving through what was once Bustamante, a community settled by Don Pedro Jose Bustamante and his family way back in 1822. He brought settlers, livestock, and built a sandstone blockhouse to fend off Indian…
You're driving past Poblacion de Dolores, the oldest Spanish settlement on the north bank of the Rio Grande. It was founded on August 22, 1750, by Jose Vasquez Borrego, a lieutenant under Jose de Escandon. This was a…
You're driving through South Texas, near the Rio Grande, and right here, in what is now Zapata County, you're passing through the story of María Ygnacia Gutiérrez de Lara Uribe. After her husband died, she crossed the…
You're driving through San Ygnacio, a town with a history as rugged as its sandstone buildings. It was settled in 1830, right on the Rio Grande, by folks looking for a new start. Right here, this community became a key…
Established in 1830, San Ygnacio was originally a Mexican pueblo. It was founded by settlers from Guerrero, Tamaulipas, who settled on the outskirts of the Uribeno Ranch. The early days of the community were marked by…
You're driving through San Ygnacio, a town with roots stretching back to the late 1820s. It began as a ranch settlement, named for a saint in Mexico, and grew into a regional trade center. This unique border town, built…
The Treviño-Uribe Rancho, built in 1830, stands as the oldest building in San Ygnacio and is now a National Historic Landmark. This structure is a testament to the town's early settlement and represents the Mexican…
Imagine a life where your home had to be a fortress. That was reality here at the Treviño–Uribe Rancho. Constructed around 1830, this fortified home provided refuge for the Treviño and Uribe families and other settlers…
You're driving past the home of Jesus Trevino, the founder of San Ygnacio. He built this house back in 1830, not just as a home, but as a fortress to protect his family and neighbors from frequent Indian raids. Later,…
You're driving through Lopeno, a village with roots stretching back to 1749. Colonel Jose de Escandon brought colonists to this frontier, and the Sanchez family was granted over 6,000 acres. Later, Benito Ramirez built…