How Old Is Corpus Christi?
- How Old Is Corpus Christi?
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Title |
How Old Is Corpus Christi? |
Subject |
Corpus Christi |
Transcript |
How Old Is Corpus Christi? I stopped at a red light on the way to work, at Water Street and Cooper's Alley. This is where Henry Kinney was supposed to have landed. It is where Blucher Creek emptied into the bay. Smugglers knew this place well, before Kinney built a trading post on the bluff. Kinney arrived in September, 1839. It was called Kinney's Rancho until Kinney began calling it Corpus Christi, after the bay. Sitting at the red light, I wondered why that day in 1839, when Kinney arrived, is not considered the city's birthday. The question has come up this year because planning has begun for a celebration next year to mark the city's 150th anniversary. I do believe that Corpus Christi was founded in 1839. That's when Kinney built his first trading post. But there wasn't a city government until 1852. That's when the first mayor and council members were elected. But you could pick other dates as well. It was in August,1845, when Zachary Taylor's army trained here. There really wasn't a town until then. And it was in 1846, after the army left and after Texas joined the United States, that the Legislature created Nueces County. Corpus Christi was made the county seat of this new county which stretched to Laredo in the west and the Rio Grande in the south. In May of 1846, a post office was established here. The beginning of Corpus Christi as a city was in 1839, or 1845, or 1846, or 1852. Take your pick. Next year, the city will be 150 years old, or it will be 163 years old. One thing is clear, though. It's a city old enough to have a story to tell. Murphy Givens: KEDT Radio Scripts |
Author |
Murphy Givens |
Publisher |
KEDT Radio |
Date |
10/12/2001 |
Type |
Sound Recording |
Format |
MP3; Length 2 min. 4 sec. |
Language |
English |
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