Date of Award
2026-08-01
Degree Name
Master of Arts
Department
History
Advisor(s)
Ernesto Chávez
Abstract
This case study examines the postwar urban growth of El Paso, Texas, through the legal resistance of the Lower Valley community of Ascarate. In the aftermath of the Second World War, the City of El Paso sought to expand its boundaries by annexing unincorporated land in its periphery. Consequently, a small group of Mexican American and Anglo residents in Ascarate resisted annexation by incorporating their community as a legal strategy to protect social dimensions of their everyday lives, deter urban encroachment, and negotiate for more equitable distribution of local resources. Using government documents, Texas laws, periodicals, and The City of El Paso v. State ex rel. Town of Ascarate (1947) court case, this thesis reconstructs the sociolegal factors which led to the rise and fall of the short-lived Town of Ascarate (1947-1949).
Language
en
Provenance
Received from ProQuest
Copyright Date
2026-08
File Size
45 p.
File Format
application/pdf
Rights Holder
Gregorio Cardona
Recommended Citation
Cardona, Gregorio, "El Paso on the Move: Postwar Suburban Resistance, Texas Law, and the Politics of Urban Growth" (2026). Open Access Theses & Dissertations. 4645.
https://scholarworks.utep.edu/open_etd/4645