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Our America, Our Texas, Our El Paso: an America250 lecture series presented by the Magoffin Home State Historic SiteRemapping El Chamizal
May 21, Doors open at 6:00 PM, Lecture at 6:30 PM
Magoffin Home Visitor Center
For a full century, the meandering Río Grande kept the boundary between El Paso, Texas and Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua in constant flux; sparking one of the most contentious land disputes in U.S.-Mexico history. After a series of unprecedented floods in the 1860s, including one deluge in 1864, the Río Grande pushed Mexican territory known as "El Chamizal" north of the river, igniting a conflict lasting 100 years. In 1964, the Chamizal Treaty finally ended the dispute by giving 630 acres in South El Paso to Mexico as “El Chamizal.” As a result, more than 5,600 southside residents were displaced from their homes within these acres. This landmark settlement remains the first and only time the United States has ceded inhabited land to Mexico.
Join Dr. Alana de Hinojosa, Assistant Professor of History at Texas State University, for a powerful look at this international struggle and the borderland families who lived it. Together, participants will explore: What is El Chamizal? Where is it exactly? And should the Chamizal Dispute be a more prominent part of El Paso’s history?
This free lecture will take place on May 21, 2026 at the Magoffin Home Visitor Center at 1117 Magoffin Avenue. Light refreshments and beverages will be available as a fundraiser for the Casa Magoffin Compañeros beginning at 6 PM. The talk will start at 6:30 and will be in English, but the speaker and staff will be available to answer questions in Spanish.
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Event Venue
1117 Magoffin Ave, El Paso, TX 79901-1562, United States
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