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MORE HISTORY OF OUR AREA

All of the history stories of Corpus Christi and surrounding areas tells about the early days before the Europeans arrived.  The Karankawa Indians lived on our coastal plains.  The stories describe them as tall and they didn't care much for the outsiders.  Many stories have emerged about the early travelers from the ships being stranded and not seen again.

When the Spanish explorer, Alonzo Alvarez de Pineda, found his way through a deep enough channel - he was actually looking for a way to the Pacific.  Instead he found the bay and since it was Feast of Corpus Christi Day - an important holy day in Roman Catholic Church, he claimed the area for Spain and named it Corpus Christi Bay.

In 1836 when Texas declared its independence from Mexico, the Texas Republic sets its south and west border as the Rio Grande River.  However, the Mexican government declared the Nueces River as their northern and eastern border.   The term Nueces Strip was born.  There a number of towns started and died.   When Texas became a state in 1845, the Nueces Strip became an issue between Mexico and the United States.  Zachery Taylor and US troops camped in Corpus Christi and the Stars and Strips flag flew over Corpus Christi. 

During the Civil War, the confederates used the Corpus Christi Bay to import and export cotton, guns and other needed items.  The city was "occupied" by the Union troops in 1863.  Because of the shooting and occupation, many of the towns people fled.