South Padre Island

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The beach at South Padre Island Beach at South Padre Island Picture 1114.jpg
The beach at South Padre Island

South Padre Island is a barrier island in the U.S. state of Texas. The remote landform is located in Cameron County, Willacy County, and accessible by the Queen Isabella Causeway. South Padre Island was formed when the creation of the Port Mansfield Channel split Padre Island in two. The resort city of South Padre Island, a popular vacation destination, is located on the island.

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Before the arrival of European settlers in North America, the island was inhabited by native tribes. Western settlement is considered to have been started by Padre Jose Nicolas Balli, who set up a cattle ranch early in the 19th century. He and his family were driven out by the Mexican–American War and were unable to return because of the American Civil War.

Most of the island was closed by the National Park Service until 1962, after which settlement was not allowed, and incomers began to establish an economy on the island and neighboring Port Isabel. By 1978, the island had a population of around 314; a decade later, it had a population of 1,012 and 111 businesses. Being mainly coastline, the island's main source of income is tourism, with tens of thousands of college students flocking to the island every Spring Break. In winter, the island hosts "winter Texans": people (often retirees) from colder states who winter in the warm Texas climate. Isla Blanca Park, a preserve and recreational park, is located at the southern end of the island. [1]

See also

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Laguna Madre (United States)</span> Hypersaline lagoon in Texas, US

The Laguna Madre is a long, shallow, hypersaline lagoon along the western coast of the Gulf of Mexico in Nueces, Kenedy, Kleberg, Willacy and Cameron Counties in Texas, United States. It is one of seven major estuaries along the Gulf Coast of Texas. The roughly 20-mile (32 km) long Saltillo Flats land bridge divides it into Upper and Lower lagoons joined by the Intracoastal Waterway, which has been dredged through the lagoon. Cumulatively, Laguna Madre is approximately 130 miles (210 km) long, the length of Padre Island in the US. The main extensions include Baffin Bay in Upper Laguna Madre, Red Fish Bay just below the Saltillo Flats, and South Bay near the Mexican border. As a natural ecological unit, the Laguna Madre of the United States is the northern half of the ecosystem as a whole, which extends into Tamaulipas, Mexico approximately 144 miles (232 km) south of the US border, to the vicinity of the Rio Soto La Marina and the town of La Pesca, extending approximately 275 miles (443 km) through USA and Mexico in total.

Isla Blanca or Blanca Island and their plurals may refer to:

References

  1. "Isla Blanca Park - Cameron County". Cameron County, Texas. Archived from the original on 25 January 2010.

26°15′50″N97°11′20″W / 26.264°N 97.189°W / 26.264; -97.189