El Paso

The Rio Grande crossing here gave the city its name: El Paso del Norte, the pass of the north, where the Camino Real from Mexico City threaded between the mountains on its way to Santa Fe. In 1659 Spanish friars founded a mission on the south bank, in what is now Ciudad Juárez. After the Pueblo Revolt of 1680 drove Spanish colonists and allied Pueblo peoples south from New Mexico, the refugees founded the settlements of Ysleta and Socorro downstream, among the oldest in Texas; San Elizario grew up later around a Spanish presidio moved there in 1789.

After the Mexican–American War of 1846–1848 the river became the border, and the small settlements on the north bank grew into an American town. Fort Bliss was established in the area in the 1840s, and the arrival of several railways in 1881 turned El Paso into a rough boomtown of saloons, gunfights and trade. During the Mexican Revolution of the 1910s the city became a centre of intrigue, home to refugees and exiled leaders such as Victoriano Huerta.

In the 20th century El Paso grew with Fort Bliss, copper refining and garment factories, and a long dispute over land shifted by the river was settled with the Chamizal agreement of 1963. In 2019 a mass shooting at a Walmart store, targeting Hispanic shoppers, killed 23 people.

El Paso is shaped by the border more than any other large American city. Most residents are Hispanic, mainly of Mexican origin, and Spanish and English mix freely in homes, shops and on the radio. For generations families have lived, worked, studied and shopped on both sides of the river, and the city has often described itself, together with Juárez and Las Cruces, as one metropolitan region of more than two million people.

The Tigua of Ysleta del Sur Pueblo keep their own traditions, feast days and government, and are one of the oldest communities in the state. Catholic faith remains strong, from the old missions to the pilgrimages up Mount Cristo Rey. Day of the Dead is widely observed, and murals across the barrios depict Mexican and Chicano history, saints and local heroes.

The army is the other strong influence: Fort Bliss is one of the largest military installations in the country, and soldiers and their families are part of daily life. The Sun Bowl, UTEP basketball and the Chihuahuas minor-league baseball team draw loyal crowds. The city is the subject of Marty Robbins's 1959 ballad "El Paso", and El Pasoans are known for their friendliness and a relaxed pace.

About 680,000 people live in the city, which makes it the sixth largest in Texas. Fort Bliss, the school districts, the University of Texas at El Paso, hospitals, government work and cross-border trade are among the main employers. Trade across the international bridges with the factories of Juárez is a mainstay of the economy, and many El Pasoans work in logistics and customs.

The city spreads around the Franklin Mountains. The Westside and the north-east are suburban, with newer houses, shopping centres and easy mountain access; the Lower Valley keeps a more rural and traditional feel; and the old barrios near downtown remain the most Mexican in character. The Eastside has grown fastest, with new subdivisions stretching into the desert.

Wages are lower than the national average, and so is the cost of living. Water is a constant concern in the desert, and the city has invested in desalination of brackish groundwater. Immigration and border policy are everyday matters here rather than distant debates, affecting families, businesses and the waits at the bridges.

El Paso's food is border Mexican, related to the cooking of Chihuahua and New Mexico more than to the Tex-Mex of San Antonio. Green and red chile sauces appear in many dishes. Chile con queso, melted cheese with roasted green chile, is a standard starter, and flat enchiladas, sometimes topped with a fried egg, are common. Caldillo, a beef and potato stew with green chile, is a cold-weather favourite.

Burritos are an everyday food, as in Juárez, often small and filled with a single stew such as chile colorado or chile verde. Rolled tacos served in a thin tomato broth and buried in cheese are a local speciality, and gorditas, tamales and menudo, a tripe soup eaten on weekend mornings, are found across the city. Panaderías sell pan dulce, sweet breads, and biscochos, the anise-flavoured cookies of Mexican celebrations.

Texas barbecue and steakhouses are also popular, and Mexican sodas and beers appear on many tables.