Santa Rosa Celebrates 80 Years as a Town and City
Norman Rozeff
December 2009

Part I: Fitful Beginnings

Highway 107 and FM 506 run through Santa Rosa, but unless you are headed for this community or ones beyond you will find the traffic considerably less than on the major thoroughfare to its south. The town has always been somewhat self-contained and quiet throughout its history.

Among the area's earliest Anglo pioneers was William "Bill" Foster. It was in the year 1913 that he established his permanent home in the brush-covered area even then known as Santa Rosa. The section had received this name from Bailey H. Dunlap, the La Feria banker. He in turn likely borrowed it from the 1870s ranch that once existed to the town's ENE. This is not to be confused with the much larger Santa Rosa Ranch owned in the 1860s by Brownsville founder Charles Stillman. This ranch was located between what is now Norias and Armstrong in Kenedy County. It was not part of the Santa Rosa Grant to its northwest.

Soon after Tom B. Sibson of Sioux Falls, South Dakota came with his family. Lou Priest was to arrive this same year, and a Mrs. McAllister opened a general store in front of her home. One might even begin to believe the place was becoming civilized.

Alas, the border disturbances peaking in1915-16 caused the population of the section to drop from over 80 to16. The store was to close. This meant that the residents had to traverse the six miles south to La Feria in order to purchase supplies. Because of the poor road, almost impassable after rains, the roundtrip, together with shopping, often took an entire day to accomplish.

In 1922, after the short economic depression of 1920-21 was over, the area was happy to see the opening of T. Ben Washington's grocery store. Land clearing was progressing and with it came more planting of vegetables and citrus. These accelerated the population growth. The small frame building that had been constructed as a schoolhouse was being outgrown by the 20-plus students it housed. Fortunately the area now sustained enough people to vote favorably for a $40,000 bond issue. This resulted in the construction of a fine school capable of seating 300 students. In addition it also had an auditorium seating 250. Both were completed by the fall of 1922. By the end of 1923 sixty-nine students were utilizing the facility and being educated by five teachers.

By 1927 the area's amazing growth necessitated a larger school still. A second bond issue, this time for $75,000, was put before voters. It would allow for the construction of a second school on the campus. This issue passed, and the school was completed in 1928. In a short time its student enrollment was over 375.

What was a major factor in transforming the town was the arrival of the Southern Pacific Railroad through its subsidiary Texas and New Orleans Railroad with its San Antonio and Aransas Pass Railway to Edinburg. This was due to the completion, of its 135 mile line from Falfurrias to Edinburg. The line eventually would extend to Brownsville via Harlingen. Santa Rosa was reached in early February 1927. On 2/15/27 the tracks reach Harlingen and on 3/10/27 the line is operational to Harlingen. The railroad's coming not only promoted and accelerated the growth of Santa Rosa but Edcouch and Elsa to its west. The railroad would soon build a depot in the town. It was the La Feria Water District that supplied the irrigation water for area farmers.

The Townsite Committee of the Chamber of Commerce drew up plans for a town after which a vote was taken and incorporation papers drawn up. Wisely the town fathers, learning from the fire experiences of other Texas towns, restricted wooden structures in the business section. The fire resistant buildings that the old and new merchants constructed by the end of 1927 were handsome. Entities operating included a 16-room hotel, several brick building establishments, two lumber yards, cotton gins and packing sheds. The near future would see a $100,000 ice plant necessary to cool vegetables for rail shipment north, a telephone exchange (The Texas Associated Telephone Company), with over 60 subscribers, and improved Central Power and Light Company access. This year also saw the establishment of a post office. The Baptists were the first to build a spacious brick chapel while the Methodists and Presbyterians at the time used the school auditorium for Sunday Services. The architecturally clean-lined St. Mary's Catholic Church (See photo above) was to be constructed in 1937, thanks mostly to Monsignor Gromette of La Feria's St. Francis Xavier Church.

The early town was served by a commission form of government after being chartered by the state in 1929. Tom R. Gibson was the town's first mayor. The Lions Club was the prime service club at this time. Girl Reserves and Boy Scouts were active with the youth. In November 1928 the Girl Reserves is working on a fund raising drive to buy a basketball for its team to represent the "city on the hill." J. B. Youngblood advertises reasonably priced rain coats and rain boots. The Santa Rosa Garage and Service Station features Gulf oil and gasoline and Goodrich tires. It repairs vehicles and specializes in repair of Fords. (See photo.) A weekly newspaper was being published.

The problem of moving produce to market was solved with the coming of the Southern Pacific. Still movement by roads remained problematical, especially after significant showers. Cameron County Judge Dancy helped the community when, in 1928, a concrete highway was built to connect the town to the Valley's main thoroughfare running through La Feria. A second concrete road connected east to Harlingen. A hard-surfaced road would in the next year be completed to Edinburg. It paralleled the railroad tracks.

In 1928 the town's main businesses and entrepreneurs were: the Sibson Hotel, J. E. Wood and Brother, Thomas W. Blake Lumber Company, T. B. Washburn, Santa Rosa Garage, Santa Rosa Land Company, Williams Drug Company, H. A. Ferrin, Nifty Jifty Store, Leiste Confectionery, West Side Garage, John S. Stoop, and Barber Tile and Feed Company.

In the 1920s Land Parties were brought in by train, ferried around the area in rented passenger cars, and enticed by fast-talking sales agents to purchase land with great agricultural production potentials. As example of results is in 1925 when a party of four Virginians bought 71 ¼ acres near Santa Rosa. Three of the partners than contracted with the fourth, T. J. Dudley, to cultivate the farm and also care for the planned citrus orchard. For his services he would receive the sum of $1800 per year and use of either a house to be built or a rental unit close to the farm. All the partners would share equally in footing the expenses for machinery, seed , labor, etc., for each was to receive" ¼ of all proceeds of farm and orchards."

William Harrison Booth (1885-1928) was another who fell sway to the Valley's assets. He came to Santa Rosa in September 1926. Soon he was partnering with successful land promoter Al Parker of La Feria. They operated the area's largest hog farm with over 300 swine. Booth was one of the initial organizers of the Rio Grande Valley Vegetable Growers Association. He ably served his Methodist Church as its Sunday School director.

Another family that pioneered farming in the area was the Kloepping. Daniel and Grace came to Santa Rosa in 1928 from Freeport , Illinois. Son Robert Daniel attended Santa Rosa schools as did his older sister Dorothy. After seeing U.S. Army duty in WWII he returned to the area and commenced farming until 1975. He also worked for the USDA APHIS for 30 years. Dorothy after graduation in 1939 would return to Illinois where she met and married Earl Johnson. In 1945 they came to the Valley to take up farming and would enjoy 63 years of marriage.

By 1936 in the midst of the Great Depression the town had 22 businesses and a population of 400 within its .59 square mile area. The surrounding farmland sustained an equal or larger number. The war saw the relocation of some residents to more urbanized areas. By 1945 the population had dropped to 224. The Schulgen ironworks, waterworks, hardware store, and feed and seed store serviced nearby growers this year. The small Rio Theater that had exhibited movies was closed before the end of the decade. (Photo: the structure that formerly housed the Rio Theater.)

Once all the surrounding area was developed or found to be only marginally suitable the population growth stabilized. It would rise seasonally as migrant workers came to pick citrus fruit, cotton, winter vegetables and the like. They also manned the cotton gins. The evolution of mechanization for many of these tasks, but especially labor-intensive cotton picking, would drastically diminish needs for seasonal labor. As the decade of the1960s drew to a close one of the issues which impacted the economic viability of smaller gins was the instituting of EPA regulations regarding cotton gin emissions into the air. Many gins discovered that it would be uneconomical to make the necessary capital expenditures necessary to bring the gins into compliance. Closure was the next logical step. This spelled the end of Santa Rosa's gins. (The photo shws a gutted Santa Rosa cotton gin.) The sizable packing shed hung on for more several decades, but it too closed and was demolished when the railroad pretty much ended service on the line. Production competition from Mexico also played a major role.

In 1972 the erection, by the Rio Grande Valley Sugar Growers, Inc., of the Valley's only sugarcane processing factory was completed. Located to the west of Santa Rosa by a few miles, it afforded employment opportunities for the town's citizens. The city would experience a stream of trucks through it each winter season as over one million tons of cane were hauled to the mill for grinding and over 100,000 tons of raw sugar made its way to Port Harlingen. Sports reporters would come to call the annual football game between the Santa Rosa Warriors and the La Villa Cardinals, the Sugar Bowl. La Villa is several miles west of the sugar mill.

During World War II a disproportionately large number of Santa Rosa's young men served in the military. In April 1944 when Mr. J. A. Schulgen gathered information for a Roll of Honor plaque he had over 160 names. The La Feria News would publish a special page with Santa Rosa news. It was titled "Smoke Signals" In it Mrs. S. A. Rack would report on churches, society, and personals. The school had a similarly named publication with Eleanor Galt as editor and Tom Phillips as honorary editor.

Servicemen would write home and from their correspondence we learn where some of the 160 odd men were serving. In April 1944 Pvt. Guadalupe Perez was in Italy as was Santos T. Saldivar. Both were under fire as the Americans advanced north against German forces occupying the country. Seaman first class J. W. Boykin was aboard the USS New Orleans. This heavy cruiser was seeing bombardment action in the Marshall and Caroline atolls in the North Pacific and would soon move south of the equator to the New Guinea campaign. Pvt. Frank Ramirez was in England, perhaps never knowing that D-Day was imminent. Charles Henry Baurmann pharmacist mate first class and Luther Bookout Jr. together with Ralph Ketcham are seeing duty on a South Pacific island that they can't name due to military censorship. Ensign Joe Sanfilippo is assistant officer in charge of the aviation mechanic school in Norman, Oklahoma. He is not far from Bill Conley with the Naval Air Gunner Base at Purcell, OK. Ralph Brooks is at a censored location.

Part II: Coming of Age

With a limited tax base Santa Rosa struggles through the years with its infrastructure. In 1977 Mayor James E. Cameron fights to improve the city domestic water supply, The deep well system is the only one in the Valley. With matching funds the town manages to upgrade both water and waste water systems. For many years the size of the city remained at .59 square mile but now encompasses .78 square mile.

The time-worn phrase "Hometown Boy Makes Good" could well apply to Sam Sparks. He was born there Christmas Eve, 1928. Raised in the vicinity and educated in Santa Rosa. Sparks would take up farming as a vocation. Partnering with Toddie Lee Wynn and Ben Bearden, they would purchase the large, neglected Valley Acres tract west of Santa Rosa and turn it into a productive plantation with its own reservoir and water district plus a small cotton gin.. Successful in his other farming endeavors, Sparks would utilize some of his profits to purchase the old Nuevo Progreso Bridge and later vastly improve the crossing with a larger and more efficient one. His private and public service accomplishment are too numerous to detail here.

Citizens of the community are shocked when school superintendent David Vasquez and his brother Lupe who is school board president are indicted by a federal grand jury. In February 2005 they will be convicted of extortion, conspiracy and violation of federal law and mail fraud. The former is sentenced to 48 months in prison and the latter 54, plus restitution penalties. All this revolved around the acceptance of a set of tires from a school vendor.

Santa Rosa and its environs are growing slowly as a bedroom community but more so as the physical center of 16 neighboring colonias. Its present population is over 3,000 and, with a median age of 25.3, is quite young. Its residents are overwhelmingly of Hispanic ethnicity. The median household income of $23,736 is well below the Texas average of $47,548.

The town is blessed with a newer high tech high school built in 1987, the modern Jo Nelson Middle School was erected in 2002, and the 1999 attractive functional Elma E. Barrera Elementary School, named for the educator who, starting at the age of 19, taught in the system for 33 years. The old high school is currently being torn down due to its mold problems. Unfortunately fluctuations in the 1,217 student enrollment have played havoc with state monies granted to the school system. The Texas Education Agency had to begin monitoring the system when its fund balance dropped from the 2005-2006 level to $2.8 million in 2006-2007. This however included $2.0 million for construction thereby leaving a minimum for operating expenses. The acceptable level is $2.4. When the 2008 school budget saw a shortfall of $800,000 six teachers had to be terminated. Damage from Hurricane Dolly in July 2008 added to school woes, however FEMA came forward to pay $279,000 to clean and repair the Barrera School.

In September 2007 plans were laid for construction of a $700,000 Boys and Girls Club building. Costs were supported in part by HUD and Cameron County. The facility would be operated by the Harlingen Boys and Girls Club. The attractive facility now sits adjacent to the well-utilized municipal swimming pool.

In small town Texas, high school sports are a key rallying point for the community. Santa Rosa is no exception. During the Great Depression the town's morale was lifted by an exceptionally talented girls basketball team. This was in the days when the girls team had six players and used half court rules. In the period 1936 through 1938 the Santa Rosa high school girls team won three conference championships. In 1938 the team lost only one game, and this was to a non-conference team. The team outscored their opponents by a 3 to 1 ratio. All-Star Ruth Wilson was the team's leading scorer, averaging over 16 points per game.

In 2008 and again in 2009 it was the boy's basketball team that ignited the town's excitement. By the former year the Warriors had won their fourth straight district title. In both years the team would advance to Class 2A state finals. Considering that the school's male student high school population was only around 160, this is quite an achievement. The school's cross country team has also won many individual honors.

It was Ruben Ochoa who headed the city as mayor on and off for 28 years starting in 1975. The city saw a surprising change in May 2009 when America Gonzales was chosen by a scant two votes over Ochoa to become the city's first woman mayor.

Santa Rosa has seen many changes in its 80 years of history. Now the city is developing a comprehensive master plan and producing a vision statement that will offer it a guide to a better future for its residents. Like its high school sports teams, the city has been resilient and overcome numerous obstacles in its eight decades history. Happy 80^th Birthday, Santa Rosa.

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