South Padre Island is a

barrier island Barrier islands are a Coast#Landforms, coastal landform, a type of dune, dune system and sand island, where an area of sand has been formed by wave and tidal action parallel to the mainland coast. They usually occur in chains, consisting of an ...

in the U.S. state of

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

. The remote

landform A landform is a land feature on the solid surface of the Earth or other planetary body. They may be natural or may be anthropogenic (caused or influenced by human activity). Landforms together make up a given terrain, and their arrangement ...

is located in Cameron County, Willacy County, and accessible by the

Queen Isabella Causeway The Queen Isabella Memorial Bridge, formerly the Queen Isabella Causeway, is a concrete pier-and-beam bridge with a steel cantilever main beam span connecting Port Isabel, Texas, Port Isabel to South Padre Island in southern Cameron County, Texas ...

. South Padre Island was formed when the creation of the

Port Mansfield Channel Port Mansfield Channel or Mansfield Cut is an artificial waterway encompassing the Laguna Madre positioned at the 97th meridian west on the earth's longest barrier island known as Padre Island. During Post–World War II, the tidal inlet was ...

split

Padre Island Padre Island is the largest of the Texas barrier islands and the world's longest barrier island. The island is located along Texas's southern coast of the Gulf of Mexico and is noted for its white sandy beaches. Meaning ''father'' in Spanish, ...

in two. The resort city of

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 Ma ...

, a popular vacation destination, is located on the island. 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 The Mexican–American War (Spanish language, Spanish: ''guerra de Estados Unidos-México, guerra mexicano-estadounidense''), also known in the United States as the Mexican War, and in Mexico as the United States intervention in Mexico, ...

and were unable to return because of the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

. Most of the island was closed by the

National Park Service The National Park Service (NPS) is an List of federal agencies in the United States, agency of the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government, within the US Department of the Interior. The service manages all List ...

until 1962, after which settlement was not allowed, and incomers began to establish an economy on the island and neighboring

Port Isabel Port Isabel may refer to: Places *Port Isabel, Texas, USA; a city in Cameron County * Port Isabel, Sonora, Mexico; a former port (1864-1879) at the mouth of the Colorado River * Port Isabel Independent School District, Cameron County, Texas, USA * ...

. 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 Spring break is a vacation period at universities and schools that includes the Easter holiday, and takes place in early Northern Hemisphere spring. Introduced in the U.S. during the 1930s, spring break has been observed in Europe since t ...

. 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.

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Destination South Padre Island
Landforms of Cameron County, Texas Landforms of Willacy County, Texas South Padre {{WillacyCountyTX-geo-stub

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