El Paso (ĕl pă`sō), city (1990 pop. 515,342), seat of El Paso co., extreme W Tex., on the Rio Grande opposite Juárez Juárez, city (1990 pop. 789,522) Chihuahua state, N Mexico, on the Rio Grande opposite El Paso , Tex. Connected with the United States by three international bridges, it is a shipping point and highway and rail terminus.
..... Click the link for more information. , Mex.; inc. 1873. In a region of cattle ranches and cotton and vegetable farms (irrigated from the Elephant Butte Reservoir), the city is a port of entry and a commercial, industrial, financial, and mining center. Among the city's diverse products are refined petroleum, processed metals, foodstuffs, machinery, and boots. Fort Bliss, a U.S. military installation and air defense center, is a major employer. The city is the seat of the Univ. of Texas at El Paso, and has an art museum and a zoo. Franklin Mountains State Park, with its tramway, is within El Paso. The area's dry warmth also attracts tourists and seasonal winter residents.

One of the largest of the border cities (and said to be the world's busiest border crossing), El Paso is a blend of the United States and Mexico, its history closely linked to that of Juárez. The region was once known as El Paso del Norte, for the route through the mountains from Mexico to the north. In the 16th and 17th cent. missionaries, soldiers, and traders came here. Although missions were founded at Ysleta and elsewhere north of the river, the major settlement was on the south (Juárez) bank. Not until 1827 was the first house built on the site of El Paso. After the U.S.-Mexican border was set, settlement increased, and the coming of the railroad in 1881 prefaced the arrival of cowboys, exiles, border traders, and adventurers. As a result of the settlement in 1963 of the Chamizal border dispute, a small area of El Paso was transferred to Mexico.

El Paso

City (pop., 2000: 563,662), western Texas, U.S. Located on the Rio Grande opposite Ciudad Juárez, Mex., it is the largest of the U.S.-Mexican border cities. The area was the site of several missions from the 17th century; the first village was built on the site of El Paso in 1827. It became U.S. territory in 1848, when an army post was erected; the town was laid out in 1859. It grew slowly until 1881, when four railways arrived; in a decade El Paso's population increased more than tenfold. Spanish language and culture distinguish the modern city. The commercial and financial centre for an extensive trade territory, it is the site of the University of Texas at El Paso (1913) and Fort Bliss (home of the U.S. Army Air Defense Center); the White Sands Missile Range is nearby.