Laredo, TX news and local guide

In 1840 Laredo was the capital of the short-lived Republic of the Rio Grande, formed in opposition to Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna and brought back into Mexico by force. Texas Rangers occupied the town in 1846, during the Mexican-American War, and the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo then gave the land north of the Rio Grande to the United States. In a referendum, residents voted to ask the American military government to return Laredo to Mexico. When the request was refused, many families who had lived there for generations crossed the river and founded Nuevo Laredo, while many others, especially original land grantees, stayed and became Texans. The Army set up Fort McIntosh, first called Camp Crawford, in 1849, and Laredo was rechartered as a city in 1852. Laredo is one of the oldest crossing points on the border and the country's largest inland port of entry. It celebrated the 250th anniversary of its founding in 2005. Sources Wikipedia: Laredo, Texas