USA > Texas > New encyclopedia of Texas, volume 1 > Part 22
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The association operates through administration, traffic, service, agricultural, exhibit and legislative bureaus. A staff employee is placed at the head of each bureau, all of whom are appointed by the man- ager, who is himself elected annually by the execu- tive board.
Porter A. Whaley, the writer of this article, is the manager. Clifford B. Jones, well known banker and agriculturalist, is the president. Geo. W. Briggs represents Lubbock on the board of directors. There are all told 34 directors. J. A. Kemp, of Wichita Falls, is vice-president.
The administration bureau is under the imme- diate control of the manager, and as such directs the entire works of the organization. Traffic bureau is managed by H. H. Elzey and assistants. This bureau also has a special rate stenographer. It handles the various and intricate traffic problems presented to it by 260 member towns, and also by more than 5,000 individual members. A freight bill-checking service is also maintained. The agri- cultural bureau conducts live stock and dairying cow campaigns, gets laborers for harvest, etc. It covers all agricultural matters. A vast accumula- tion of work is handled. One of the interesting works is in marketing. The service or publicity bureau is that part of the fabric which must tell all about West Texas, must sell it, etc. Thousands of news stories are sent out daily.
But above all the West Texas Chamber of Com- merce stands as an outward and visible sign of the inward determination of West Texans to protect their interest in all legitimate manners and to pre- sent to the great world beyond in an intelligent and capable manner the story of "America's last El- dorado"-a place where men and women of in- tellect and brawn may with their minds and hands and hearts build for their glory and the glory of their God and country.
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SAN ANTONIO By SAN ANTONIO CHAMBER OF COMMERCE
S AN ANTONIO, located on the dividing line be- tween what is called the Edwards Plateau (the
hill country) and the great Coastal Plains, oc- cupies a peculiarly strategic position. For this cause the location was chosen originally, and the development of the country has increased the value of the location until today San Antonio is the great- est metropolis of the Southwest.
The population, according to the latest estimate of the Research Bureau of the University of Texas, is 200,000. More conservative estimates and the city directory place it at 175,000. The area of the city is 36 square miles or 2,304 acres.
San Antonio is the distributing and banking center for a great tributary territory, which, although as yet only partly developed, yields enormous agri- cultural and live stock products.
The growth of San Antonio having sprung mainly from the service it has rendered as distributing point, it becomes necessary to consider the trade territory served by San Antonio. This trade ter- ritory covers fifty-five counties and contains 68,015 square miles, or 43,529,600 acres. This is an area larger by 3,850 square miles than the combined areas of Ohio, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Con- necticut, Rhode Island and Delaware.
The population of this territory, based on the United States census estimates, is nearly 1,000,000. The wholesale business of San Antonio is estimated by a committee of business men engaged in this line of business at $150,000,000 a year.
San Antonio is naturally the retail market for this tributary territory and also for Mexico, al- though this latter business has been diminished by reason of the revolutions. The retail trade is esti- mated at from $100,000,000 to $125,000,000 a year.
San Antonio has some of the largest department stores in the Southwest and has developed a retail market that serves this whole southwest country.
One of the Principal Business Streets of San Antonio
The total value of the agricultural products and live stock produced in this area in a normal year, according to official figures of the state comptroller of Texas, is over $200,000,000. The cotton raised in this section is estimated by state experts at 800,000 bales, with a value of $80,000,000.
San Antonio is a great live stock, cotton, wool and mohair market.
The military post at San Antonio, known as Fort Sam Houston, placed here because of the strategic advantages, represents an investment on the part of the United States government of between five and six million dollars. It is the general head- quarters for the Department of the South, head- quarters for the quartermasters and commissary
Alamo Plaza, the Historic Park of San Antonio. In the Back- ground are seen the Alamo, on the Right, and the San Antonio Post Office in the Center
supplies, the hospital base and the principal aviation base of the United States, which includes Kelly Fields 1 and 2 and Brooks Fields. With Camp Travis, the huge national army cantonment, this military establishment housed nearly a hundred thousand men during the war. Ordinarily 5,000 or more troops are garrisoned here. It is estimated that the financial asset to San Antonio of the army post is of the value of about $10,000,000 a year.
The weather in San Antonio during eight months of the year is altogether delightful, and although the four summer months are warm they have the heat temp- ered by the gulf breezes and the nights are cool.
The winter temperature average is 54 degrees. It is possible to live out of doors most of the time, as the winter days are generally sunny.
Spring temperature average is 69 degrees.
Summer temperature average is 82 degrees.
Fall temperature average is 70 degrees.
The climate in San Antonio is favorable to manufac- turing, particularly because the mildness of the climate makes a saving in the fuel bill necessary to the heating of plants. Then again the length of days in the winter is greater than in northern latitudes, and there is a saving in the lighting cost. The climate being favorable to hu- man life, gives greater efficiency and a generally happier and more contented set of workers.
Survey of the industries show that the larger factories employ approximately 7,000 persons, and the annual out- put is about $35,000,000. The payroll is in the neighborhood of $10,000,000.
Owing to its very delightful and healthful climate, which is especially pleasant in the winter season, many tourists from the colder northern sections have been in the habit of coming to this city. Beginning in 1909, when two splendid new modern hotels were completed, San Antonio has consciously fostered this tourist trade.
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THE FUTURE OF SAN ANTONIO By CHAS. S. DIEHL
S AN ANTONIO is one of the natural capitals of the world. If the United States was divided into sep- arate sovereignties as con- tinental Europe is, San An- tonio would be the metropoli- tan center of the southwest- ern empire as it has always been and is now. This is not said in derogation of the other beautiful and growing com- monwealths of the great state of Texas, which cannot strictly be rivals of San An- tonio, in the commercial sense, any more than San Antonio can hold any ungen- erous rivalry toward her sister cities. Each cares for the broad territory in which it is located, but the fact remains that San Antonio was located and discovered by early Spanish discoveries, with the same unerring certainty as Rome, Paris, Vienna and Moscow. Its history dates back to 1689 as a European settlement. Its missions date back to 1700, and as American history runs, it represents the seat of the oldest white civiliza- tion in the republic.
What San Antonio was, more than two centuries ago, it remains today, the strategic center of that one-quarter of the United States lying west of the Mississippi River to the Pacific Ocean, and from the Oklahoma line to the Rio Grande. Its strategical importance has been such that the battles for the control of the great Southwest empire were fought on the site of the city, and when the Spaniards were finally defeated, and San Antonio became an Amer- ican garrison instead of a Spanish garrison, the American Republic definitely fixed its southern boundary at the Rio Grande.
It has always been a military town, the same as the historic strategic cities of Europe. It has been such, for strictly military reasons, and in following up the natural historic hypothesis, it has grown with the population of the states surrounding it, into an ever increasing center of population, trade, and
wealth. All the natural elements which attracted the early settlers from Europe remain with it, tend- ing to make it one of the most wholesome, delightful and healthful spots for a great city. Its natural elevation gives it perfect drainage, its water supply from deep flowing wells is unsurpassed in purity and volume, its skies are almost perennially blue-all
The San Jose Mission Near San Antonio. A Relic of the Historic Days of the Spanish Padres
tending to make it one of the healthiest large cities in the world.
Apart from its ideal location, it is surrounded by an empire of tillable land, capable of producing large crops, with and without irrigation. The range in production can be seen in all the tree, shrub and flower forms in her public parks, and in the tilled fields.
The asphalt, oil, gas, mineral, lignite, building and road stone deposits have already been developed to an extent that insures the great prosperity of the capital city of the region, its numerous hot mineral baths are already largely patronized, its road sys- tem through the high wooded hills to the north and west are being extended, while in the city itself her public and private schools are possibly larger in number than any other city of like size in America, insuring the growth of refinement and proper appreciation of the artistic among its people.
A Panoramic View of Business District of San Antonio, the City with an Ideal Climate, Beautiful Parks, Attractive Resi- dences and Commodious Hotels. San Antonio is one of the Most Popular Winter Resorts for Tourists in the South. One of the Largest Army Posts in the United States is Located Here
117
AMARILLO, METROPOLIS OF THE PANHANDLE By BOARD OF CITY DEVELOPMENT
A MARILLO, the metropolis of the well known panhandle country of Texas, with trade area of 38 panhandle counties is a modern and up-to-date city in every respect, advancing rapidly with the growth and development of this prosperous section of the state. What is known as the Amarillo trade territory, is an area containing 60,000 square miles, with a population of 350,000.
Amarillo was for many years the principal city of the great western stock raising district. In the days of the open range vast herds of cattle fed on the broad prairies and Amarillo was the head- quarters of the stock men, who brought their cattle here for shipment to the Northern and Eastern markets. Although much of the land has been brought under cultivation, and grain raised in abund- ance, there are still large areas devoted to the cattle raising. Although Amarillo has undergone an evolu- tion which has made it a modern city, the modern improvements, fine business buildings and residences equipped with all of the up-to-date appliances of other modern cities, it still retains many of the traditions of the western range.
Amarillo, the Metropolis of the Panhandle. A View of Polk Street Looking South from Fourth
The principal crops are wheat, which in normal years amounts to 20,000,000 bushels, oats, barley and rye amount to 10,000,000 bushels, kaffir and maize 40,000,000 bushels. An idea of Amarillo as a market, may be gained from the shipments of products and stock from this city. The average shipment of grain over all railroads averages over 700 cars annually, while live stock shipments, in- cluding cattle, horses, hogs and sheep averages over 5,000 cars annually.
The South Plains section has become famous as a poultry producing section, while the North Plains is one of the greatest small grain producing and cattle growing areas in the country.
Bank clearings annually of Amarillo are in excess of $300,000,000, while bank deposits are near the $10,000,000 mark, while the total bank deposits of all panhandle counties are over $60,000,000. The 1920 census gives this city a population of 15,494, while the city directory estimate at this time gives it a population of over 18,000.
The climate of Amarillo has been grossly mis- represented and joked about, while as a matter of fact, the summer climate is delightful with an aver- age mean temperature for the summer months of 69 degrees. There are, of course, some cold days
in this section of the state with some snow, but the temperature never remains low for any extended period, and the average mean temperature for the winter months is 43 degrees. The climate is indeed healthful and invigorating both winter and summer.
The discovery of gas twenty-eight miles northwest of Amarillo is destined to play an important part
Looking North on Polk Street, Amarillo
in the future history of this city. This gas field is fifteen miles in width and twenty miles in length, and is probably the largest natural gas field in the world. The thirteen producing wells have a total daily capacity of 400,000,000 cubic feet, this gas serves the city for industrial, commercial and do- mestic purposes. It is more than likely that oil will also be discovered, inasmuch as many tests are now being made by substantial companies.
There are three grain elevators here with a com- bined storage capacity of 700,000 bushels, and one flour mill with a capacity of 800 bushels per day. Eight wholesale houses have headquarters in Amarillo, and about 300 traveling salesmen have headquarters here. The volume of wholesale busi- ness averages over $20,000,000 annually. There are three railroad round houses and shops located in the city and up to date business houses of every descrip- tion to take care of the growing trade of the pan- handle district.
With the vast area of wealthy productive territory surrounding Amarillo the city is sure to become a
The City Hall of Amarillo
wholesale as well as retail commercial center. Amarillo is assured a permanent place among the commercial and industrial, as well as agricultural centers of the Southwest.
118
EL PASO
By EL PASO CHAMBER OF COMMERCE
E L PASO'S territory represents 15 per cent of the area of the United States and El Paso is the distributing and banking center of the district having a greater area than that comprised in the New England States and New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania added for good measure.
It is the only large city along 2,000 miles of the Mexican border, and is the natural meeting point for persons interested in mining, trade, transporta- tion, live stock, agriculture and manufacturing.
El Paso is the seat of Federal and State Courts, National and International commissions, bureaus, and is a great center of tourist movement, offer- ing the unique attraction of instant communication with Mexico.
It has a population of over 80,000 while the popu- lation of the territory, exclusive of states of Northern Mexico, is 1,050,203.
The city of El Paso has a modified commission form of government; the executive and legislative power is vested in a mayor and four aldermen elected by the people. The school board consists of eight members elected by the people. Promptness and clarity of action and hearty co-operation char- acterize the work of the various municipal depart- ments.
The city of El Paso was chartered in 1873. Popu- lation in 1900 was only 15,000.
El Paso is essentially a city of homes of $18,000 size. There are probably not over 50 wooden houses. All buildings are of reinforced concrete, brick, steel and tile. New building investments exceed $3,- 000,000 per year.
El Paso has hundreds of homes costing above $10,000, and over 50 homes worth $17,000 to $50,000 each.
El Paso's building permits for April, 1919, were 140 valued at $126,133, against 110 permits in April, 1918, valued at $59,041, indicating a return to pre- war activities.
El Paso has the lowest fire insurance key-rate of Texas, it being only 20 cents.
El Paso, an incorporated area of ten square miles, with. 100 miles of graded streets, over 40 miles of paved streets, cost of paving over $2,000,000. Over 50 miles of asphalt country roads.
Parks and play grounds cover over 150 acres, valu- ation $2,400,000.
El Paso has municipal water works which can supply 16,000,000 gallons daily. The city is now using only 6,000,000 gallons daily. Reserve capacity is always in excellent condition. The city plant is worth $2,000,000. The water is pure, as confirmed by recent analysis.
El Paso has 85 lodges, societies and clubs and a public library with over 15,000 volumes; 12 hospitals and sanitariums, property valuation of over $3,- 000,000.
El Paso has 40 churches, property valuation, $1,000,000, and has 13 public schools and 9 private ones. Enrollment over 10,000 pupils. Property valuation more than $1,000,000.
El Paso has a state school of mines, branch of the University of Texas; a million dollar hotel and many smaller but thoroughly modern hotels.
Climate and Rainfall. Altitude of 3,767 feet; climate is equable, mild, but crisp and invigorating
winters. 329 clear days each year and almost en- tirely free from humidity. Near El Paso is Cloud- croft, altitude 9,000 feet, which is one of the most delightful resorts in the world. El Paso has an annual rainfall of 9.84 inches.
Financial Center. Within this district which we term our trade territory there are 190 banks, in- cluding El Paso, 70 national banks and 120 state banks, with a combined capital and surplus of $21,- 000,000; and combined deposits of $85,000,000. 95 per cent of these banks carry accounts in El Paso.
The yearly volume of outgoing items of banking paper between El Paso and her trade territory totals $39,000,000 while the yearly volume of incoming items of banking paper reaches a total of $110,- 000,000. The city of Denver, three times the size of El Paso, shows only twice this volume. These figures do not include the immense volume of bank- ing business done by this city with Mexico under normal conditions. The northern portion of Mexico is one of the richest sections of this continent in natural resources.
The railroads realize the special value of the city's location by granting 10 days stop over privi- lege under normal conditions.
El Paso has seven trunk line railroads; five from the East, North and West; two from Mexico; 40 passenger trains arrive and depart from El Paso daily.
The value of shipments made by manufacturers, jobbers and firms having stocks in El Paso near a total of $25,000,000 annually.
The annual tonnage represented in these ship- ments totals over 800,000,000 pounds. This is on freight shipments only. The average freight move- ment in El Paso yards is over 2,000 cars per day.
Trunk lines and feeders penetrate El Paso's trade territory in every direction, centering at this great Pass of the North. For centuries the great trails have centered here, owing to the typography of the country and the great railroad systems of today find that El Paso is the lowest pass over the Rocky Mountains and Continental Divide between the equator and the arctic snows. El Paso is the great- est trading point south of Denver, between San An- tonio and Los Angeles, a distance of 1,500 miles.
In order to give a clear conception of the trans- portation facilities, the following items are pre- sented:
El Paso is 1,250 miles from San Francisco, or a running time of 38 hours and 15 minutes; El Paso to Kansas City, 27 hours and 30 minutes; El Paso to Denver, 24 hours and 30 minutes; El Paso to St. Louis, 40 hours; El Paso to Chicago, 42 hours and 15 minutes.
In view of the foregoing figures it is readily observed that any point within the trade territory can be served with a maximum running time within 18 hours.
Industrial Survey. El Paso has 105 local firms engaged in manufacturing to some extent for the general trade. These figures do not include railroad shops, building trades, exclusive repair shops or special service shops. In these manufacturing es- tablishments a recent survey of labor shows 4,700 wage earners now employed in the 105 manufactur- ing plants. The maximum capacity of these plants
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NEW ENCYCLOPEDIA OF TEXAS
is approximately 7,500. On a maximum capacity of 7,500 laborers the annual output is $50,000,000 and the payroll is $5,000,000. Capital investment of $15,000,000.
Natural Resources. No. 1. The largest body of clear white pine timber in the world is near El Paso in Chihuahua, covering an area of 3,500,000 acres and affording an outlet of 1,500,000 board feet per day for 100 years; two-thirds of this product is to be manufactured in El Paso.
No. 2. Largest body of yellow pine on this con- tinent in New Mexico and Arizona, now on forest reserve.
No. 3. Metal mining is the greatest industry of the Southwest, copper being the principal product. The mines within this territory produce $70,000,000 worth a year; or more than one-fourth of the world's supply. El Paso's smelter itself produces one-twentieth of the total American copper product.
No. 4. Next to copper rank silver and lead, which are produced in immense quantities in Northern Mexico and pass through the El Paso smelter. Gold is also produced west and southwest of El Paso and is of considerable value. East are the quicksilver mines with immense deposits of oil and sulphur in the same territory. Iron, zinc, manganese, platinum and tungsten.
No. 5. Salt, potash, plaster and fertilizer exist in abundance.
No. 6. Construction materials, sand, gravel, lime, cement, constituancies, tile and brick clay, fine marble and building stone.
No. 7. North of El Paso in New Mexico lie the coal fields. This state (New Mexico) has the larg- est body of coal of any state west of Illinois. Coal ranges from lignite to semi-anthracite, with high grade domestic and steam coal.
No. 8. Cotton in Texas, Arizona, New Mexico and Mexico producing one-fourth of the world's supply of this staple.
No. 9. Leather, hides, wool, mohair, fertilizer from 20,000,000 head of cattle, sheep, goats, horses, mules and hogs worth $240,000,000.
No. 10. Furs and pelts from countless wild ani- mals.
No. 11. Various fibers in unlimited quantities.
No. 12. Rubber and gum plants.
No. 13. Cereals for milling.
No. 14. Vegetables and fruits for canning.
No. 15. Broom corn, sugar cane and sugar beets. No. 16. Mineral springs of all kinds.
Mexican Trade Relations. Due to the demoral- ized conditions in Northern Mexico, proper trade relations are difficult, however, a substantial busi- ness being done in all lines as emphasized by report on exports and imports.
Amount exported, 1918, for fiscal year ending June 1st, 1918, $5,715,442.
Imports from Mexico through El Paso amounted to $2,034,366 for the same period, while the Arizona districts show $20,077,045. This difference is readily explained by the operations of the Villistas on the railroad lines south of El Paso. The Chamber of Commerce maintains a special department for Mexi-
can trade and handles all letters and bulletins for this territory in Spanish.
Agricultural Development and Irrigation. The total value of agricultural products in El Paso ter- ritory is over $16,000,000 with one-fourth of this produced in the Rio Grande valley project or $4,- 237,000.
The Elephant Butte Dam project cost over $10,- 000,000 and is the largest storage of irrigation waters in the world, storing fifty per cent more than Assonan Dam in Egypt. The reservoir will contain 862,200,000,000 gallons of water.
El Paso has had an interesting and romantic history. The name "El Paso" is a Spanish word meaning "The Pass." The city is the county seat of the county by the same name. The county was created from Bexar County in 1850 and was not organized until twenty-one years later. By an act of the legislature, Culberson County was created from a portion of El Paso and more recently Huds- peth County was created from a portion of the re- mainder, leaving the area of El Paso County but a small fraction of its former size.
The surface of the county is generally mountain- ous, broken up and traversed by many canyons and valleys. A good portion of the county is given to grazing. Many thousands of acres along the Rio Grande where irrigation is possible is devoted to intense cultivation and is extremely productive. The Elephant Butte Dam was built by the Government, irrigating an area of fifty thousand acres North of El Paso. In the irrigated districts, much of the land is devoted to raising fruit. Some of the finest grapes in the United States are raised here. Large orchards of peaches, pears, plums and apricots are cultivated. The dairy industry of El Paso has also made rapid strides.
The mountains in the near vicinity of El Paso are rich with mineral deposits. There are rich quarries of marble and granite. Copper and silver are mined in the Quitman Mountains. Lead and zinc are also mined in paying quantities. There is also some gold mined in this district and there are deposits of iron and coal in unlimited quantities.
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