For twelve years this river, not the Rio Grande, was where Texas ended as far as Mexico was concerned. The Republic claimed the Rio Grande in 1836; Mexico recognized the Nueces; and the 150 miles of brush country between them was left as a disputed and largely lawless belt. Sending U.S. troops into that gap in 1846 is what started the Mexican-American War. The Nueces rises on the Edwards Plateau and is one of the clear spring-fed rivers up on the plateau, running muddy and slow by the time it reaches the coast.
Getting there
29.2058, -99.9024
Locations are approximate and may be inaccurate, on private land, or otherwise inaccessible. Check before you travel.
Hear it from the road
Whistlestop tells you this story automatically when you drive past. No searching, no tapping, nothing to ask.
