El Chamizal: Why Rivers Make Bad Borders
On the century-long U.S.-Mexico dispute border that shaped El Paso
Driving around El Paso, the giant red X seemed to follow us. The X or La Equis sits on the south bank of the Rio Grande in Ciudad Juárez. It’s an ever-present reminder of just how blurry the line between the U.S. and Mexico becomes. The two cities are so intertwined that they form the world’s largest international border metroplex.
The Road to El Paso
My husband and I went to El Paso on a whim. The city wasn’t on our bucket list, but we were drawn to the desert landscape and unique border culture. So it became the first stop on our trip through West Texas and Southern New Mexico.
After a few days of exploring, we went to the Chamizal National Memorial. It looked like a typical urban park — a nice place for an afternoon stroll. As we approached the cultural center, we noticed a small, obelisk monument that read:
Boundary of the United States
Treaty of 1849
Re-established by treaties of
1884–1889
I asked him if he’d ever heard of this. He hadn’t. He’s from Mexico. I’m from the U.S. Yet neither one of us knew about the decades long disagreement over who owned a strip of land between El Paso and Cd. Juárez.
A Brief History of El Chamizal
So, how did it happen? It started in 1864 when the Rio Grande, the river that defined the border, shifted southward. That shift seemingly moved Mexico’s Chamizal District north of the river and into the U.S.
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The U.S. started exerting control over the territory, but Mexico never surrendered it. Nor did residents of Cd. Juárez who owned the land. But over the years, more and more Americans moved to the newly expanded El Paso.
Negotiations went on for decades. Finally, in 1961, President Kennedy proposed settling the conflict once and for all. (He wanted to strengthen relations with Mexico and prevent a potential allyship with Cuba during the Cold War.)
The Chamizal Treaty was approved in 1964 and recognized 630 acres (~2.54 sq. kilometers) in South El Paso as El Chamizal. The zone was incorporated into Mexico in 1967.
History vs. history
As we walked through the museum, we stopped to watch archival footage. Videos of President Kennedy speaking, officials arriving in Mexico City, and El Paso residents protesting relocation filled the screens. We watched interviews of Mexican Americans speaking out about losing their homes and community. And we talked about what it must have been like for generations of people whose citizenship and identity came down to a river changing course.
The treaty is part of capital H History. It’s well documented and accessible. Yet it feels more like history, an event that was never recorded. It doesn’t fit a grand narrative that usually anchors historical memory. Wars, crises, abrupt turning points all feel exciting. But a border dispute that ended without a shot fired is pretty amazing too.
El Paso- Juárez
Had negotiations turned out differently, we might not have the same El Paso — the one where crossing in Ciudad Juárez is part of everyday life.
If you’re curious:
- The Forgotten US-Mexico Border Crisis [Short documentary]
- Chuco Relic — El Paso shop that sells products made by local artists
