Palo Alto Battlefield National Historical Park near

Brownsville, Texas Brownsville () is a city in Cameron County in the U.S. state of Texas. It is on the western Gulf Coast in South Texas, adjacent to the border with Matamoros, Mexico. The city covers , and has a population of 186,738 as of the 2020 census. It ...

is a

National Park Service The National Park Service (NPS) is an agency of the United States federal government within the U.S. Department of the Interior that manages all national parks, most national monuments, and other natural, historical, and recreational propertie ...

unit which preserves the grounds of the May 8, 1846,

Battle of Palo Alto The Battle of Palo Alto ( es, Batalla de Palo Alto) was the first major battle of the Mexican–American War and was fought on May 8, 1846, on disputed ground five miles (8 km) from the modern-day city of Brownsville, Texas. A force of som ...

. It was the first major conflict in a border dispute that soon precipitated the

Mexican–American War The Mexican–American War, also known in the United States as the Mexican War and in Mexico as the (''United States intervention in Mexico''), was an armed conflict between the United States and Mexico from 1846 to 1848. It followed the 1 ...

. The

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

victory here made the invasion of Mexico possible. The historic site portrays the battle and the war, and its causes and consequences, from the perspectives of both the United States and Mexico. The National Park Service has acquired a little more than a third of the authorized land for the park, including the southern core battlefield tract, which served as the location for Mexican forces during the Battle of Palo Alto. Private landowners still control some of the battlefield.

Honey Mesquite ''Prosopis glandulosa'', commonly known as honey mesquite, is a species of small to medium-sized, thorny shrub or tree in the legume family (Fabaceae). Distribution The plant is primarily native to the Southwestern United States and Northern M ...

(''Prosopis glandulosa''), although a native plant, is present in an unusually high concentration, altering the cultural landscape and threatening the natural and cultural resources at the park. The park's visitor center features exhibits about the battle and the Mexican–American War, as well as a 15-minute video titled "War on the Rio Grande". A half-mile trail leads to an overlook of the battlefield and includes interpretive panels.

Background

The

, fought on May 8, 1846, near modern

, was the first battle of the

. On April 30, 1846, Mexican federal troops under the command of General

Mariano Arista José Mariano Arista (26 July 1802 – 7 August 1855) was a Mexican soldier and politician. He was in command of the Mexican forces at the opening battles of the Mexican American War: the Battle of Palo Alto and the Battle of Resaca de la Pal ...

crossed the Rio Grande into the disputed territory east of the river with the intention of attacking American General Zachary Taylor's forward base,

Fort Texas Fort Brown (originally Fort Texas) was a military post of the United States Army in Cameron County, Texas, during the latter half of the 19th century and the early part of the 20th century. Established in 1846, it was the first US Army military ...

. Taylor, expecting Fort Texas to be invested, took his main force approximately 20 miles east to protect his main supply base, Fort Polk, leaving 500 men, under Major

Jacob Brown Jacob Jennings Brown (May 9, 1775 – February 24, 1828) was known for his victories as an American army officer in the War of 1812, where he reached the rank of general. His successes on the northern border during that war made him a national ...

, to garrison the forward base. Arista's investment of Fort Texas began on May 3 and continued for several days, during which time Major Brown was mortally wounded. On May 7 Taylor departed Fort Polk, on the coast near Port Isabel, and began to move west towards the relief of Fort Texas. Arista, given timely intelligence of Taylor's departure, moved his main force to block Taylor along the Port Isabel Road. The two armies met the next day, May 8, when Taylor's columns engaged the Mexican line around 2 P.M. The Americans repulsed an initial cavalry charge to their right, and were then able to advance 1,000 yards when a grass fire forced Arista's line back. After a second failed cavalry charge, Arista advanced on the American left but was driven back by the quick and accurate fire of the American light artillery. Eager to seize the initiative from Arista, a mixed force of infantry and dragoons pressed forward against the retreating Mexican right, eventually driving them from the field. After dusk ended the fighting, Arista began to pull his forces away from the battlefield to a more defensible position in a dry river bed to the south. Taylor pursued the following day, leading to the Battle of Resaca de la Palma, on May 9. While the battle was a clear American victory and casualties were very light, 5 dead and 43 wounded, two of the dead were the resolute commander of Fort Texas, Major Brown, and the innovative artillery officer Major Samuel Ringgold, whose fast and mobile "flying artillery" would continue to be a major advantage to Taylor throughout the campaign.

Administrative history

Palo Alto Battlefield was designated a

National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the United States government for its outstanding historical significance. Only some 2,500 (~3%) of over 90,000 places listed ...

on December 19, 1960. It became Palo Alto Battlefield National Historic Site on November 10, 1978, with a boundary change authorized on June 23, 1992. Establishing legislation in 1991 () was sponsored by Rep.

Solomon Ortiz Solomon Porfirio Ortiz (born June 3, 1937) is an American former politician who served as the U.S. representative for , based in Corpus Christi, serving from 1983 until 2011. He is a member of the Democratic Party. In 2010, Ortiz was narrowly de ...

. On March 30, 2009 the site was redesignated a

National Historical Park National Historic Site (NHS) is a designation for an officially recognized area of national historic significance in the United States. An NHS usually contains a single historical feature directly associated with its subject. The National Historic ...

, and the park was expanded to include the

Resaca de la Palma Battlefield The Resaca de la Palma Battlefield is the site in Brownsville, Texas, where American forces under General Zachary Taylor engaged Mexican forces under General Mariano Arista on May 9, 1846 in the Battle of Resaca de la Palma. A surviving undevelope ...

, which is a separate 34 acres inside the Brownsville city limits. The

Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023 The Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023 is a $1.7 trillion omnibus spending bill funding the U.S. federal government for the 2023 fiscal year. It includes funding for a range of domestic and foreign policy priorities, including support for ...

authorized the addition of

Fort Brown Fort Brown (originally Fort Texas) was a military post of the United States Army in Cameron County, Texas, during the latter half of the 19th century and the early part of the 20th century. Established in 1846, it was the first US Army military ...

(166 acres) to

Palo Alto Battlefield National Historical Park Palo Alto Battlefield National Historical Park near Brownsville, Texas is a National Park Service unit which preserves the grounds of the May 8, 1846, Battle of Palo Alto. It was the first major conflict in a border dispute that soon precipitate ...

if a study finds it feasible.

References

* ''The National Parks: Index 2001–2003''. Washington:

U.S. Department of the Interior The United States Department of the Interior (DOI) is one of the executive departments of the U.S. federal government headquartered at the Main Interior Building, located at 1849 C Street NW in Washington, D.C. It is responsible for the mana ...

External links

* Official NPS website
Palo Alto Battlefield National Historical Park

Palo Alto Battlefield
NHL information * National Park Lover Page
''Out ‘N About with Jimmy and George'' - "The Battle of Palo Alto"
from the

Texas Archive of the Moving Image The Texas Archive of the Moving Image (TAMI) is an independent 501(c)(3) organization founded in 2002 by film archivist and University of Texas at Austin professor Caroline Frick, PhD. TAMI's mission is to preserve, study, and exhibit Texas film h ...

{{authority control Protected areas of Cameron County, Texas Mexican–American War National Historical Parks of the United States National Historic Landmarks in Texas Museums in Cameron County, Texas Military and war museums in Texas Protected areas established in 1978 National Park Service areas in Texas 1978 establishments in Texas Conflict sites on the National Register of Historic Places in Texas National Register of Historic Places in Cameron County, Texas Parks on the National Register of Historic Places in Texas

Background

Administrative history

See also

References

External links