History of Corpus Christi, Texas

Map of Corpus Christi in 1887
Historical population
Census Pop. %±
1860175—
18702,1401,122.9%
18803,25752.2%
18904,38734.7%
19004,7037.2%
19108,22274.8%
192010,52228.0%
193027,741163.6%
194057,301106.6%
1950108,28789.0%
1960167,69054.9%
1970204,52522.0%
1980231,99913.4%
1990257,45311.0%
2000277,4547.8%
2010307,95311.0%

Corpus Christi is a coastal city in the South Texas region of the U.S. state of Texas. The county seat of Nueces County,[1] it also extends into Aransas, Kleberg, and San Patricio counties.[2] The population was 277,454 at the 2000 census; in 2006 the U.S. Census Bureau estimated the city's population at 285,175,[3] making it the eighth-largest city in the state. It is the principal city of the three-county Corpus Christi Metropolitan Statistical Area as well as the larger Corpus Christi-Kingsville Combined Statistical Area. The translation from Latin of the city's name is Body of Christ, given to the settlement by the Spanish, in honor of the Blessed Sacrament (Eucharist). The city has been nicknamed The Sparkling City by the Sea, particularly in literature promoting tourism.

Before Corpus Christi was known as Kinney's Rancho or Kinney's Ranch it was on a site known as the Old Indian Trading Grounds where traders smuggled contraband goods to sell and trade in Mexico as early as 1829.[4]

Texas Revolution and Mexican-American War

Corpus Christi was founded in 1839 by Colonel Henry Lawrence Kinney as Kinney's Trading Post, or Kinney's Ranch, a small trading post to sell supplies to a Mexican revolutionary army camped about 25 miles west, just three years after Texas declared independence from Mexico but the post was located in the disputed territory south of the Nueces River.[5] In July 1845, U.S. troops under General Zachary Taylor set up camp there in preparation for war with Mexico, where they remained until March 1846, when they marched south to the Rio Grande to enforce it as the southern border of the United States.[6]

Civil War

On February 23, 1861, in a statewide vote on secession, the vote in Corpus Christi was 87 for secession and 40 against, which brought the total vote in Nueces County to 164 for and 42 against. There were many Union sympathizers in the city. Some originally came from the North and some were veterans of the Mexican War.

In the second week of August 1862, five Union warships under the command of Lt. J.W. Kittredge sailed into Corpus Christi Bay and bombarded the city. Stores and houses below the bluff made easy targets for Kittredge's guns. The bombardment did considerable damage to the town. Many of the residents had evacuated before the battle. After it was over, people began to return to town. The Confederates, provoked by the attack, then began to take revenge by plundering the homes and property of known Union supporters.[7]

Port of Corpus Christi

The port of Corpus Christi opened in 1925 after culminating efforts that began as early as 1848 to obtain a deep-water port.[5] The Port of Corpus Christi currently is the sixth largest U.S. port and deepest inshore port on the Gulf of Mexico, it handles mostly oil and agricultural products. In 2005 it was ranked as the 47th largest in the world by cargo tonnage.

Natural disasters

Hurricanes

Corpus Christi has been affected by many hurricanes and tropical storms.

Timeline

1519

1800s

1828 Known as the Old Indian Trading Grounds.

1821

1829

1836

1839 Known as Kinney's Ranch or Kinney's Trading Post

1840

1845

1847 Known as Corpus Christi

1852

1860

1861

1865

1876

1900s

After Hurricane Allen, 1980

'"1914"' Rotary Club of Corpus Christi was chartered August 1, 1914, the 125th club of Rotary International. Rotary was instrumental in the early development of Corpus Christi, the Chamber of Commerce, and the Port. 1926

1941

1959

1980

1985

1995

2000s

2003

See also

Other cities in Texas

References

  1. ↑ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
  2. ↑
  3. ↑ Archived October 12, 2008, at the Wayback Machine.
  4. 1 2 3 4 Givens, Murphey. "City Built on Old Trading Grounds" Caller-Times. November 25, 2009. Web. January 16, 2015.
  5. 1 2 Archived March 18, 2009, at the Wayback Machine.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 "City of Corpus Christi". Cctexas.com. Retrieved May 19, 2015.
  7. ↑ "Town bitterly divided during the Civil War". Caller.com. Retrieved May 19, 2015.
  8. ↑ U.S. Foreign-Trade Zones Board Order Summary, U.S. Department of Commerce, International Trade Administration, retrieved September 16, 2016

Further reading

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