It has been more than three years since we moved to El Paso, Texas from the East Coast. The Star on the East side of the Franklin mountain of El Paso gave us goosebumps when we first came; it has been giving us goosebumps till today. We took the picture above a few months ago from an airplane. If you ever fly to El Paso at night and if you are sitting in the good side of the airplane, you will get a chance to view this star shine. The star shines on the mountain of El Paso each and every night. What is the story behind this Star? Of course, the Star on the Mountain of El Paso stands for the Lone Star State, Texas. Therefore, the next question is, why do we call Texas the Lone Star State?
History of the Star on the Mountain of El Paso
In 1940, a fifty feet wide star was built by the El Paso Electric Company. Another bigger star was built after that, which was renovated a few times and the dimensions were changed in 1946. The dimensions of 1946 are preserved till date. The star is now 459 feet long and 278 feet wide.
The star shined only during special occasions in the Star’s earlier days, traditionally during the Christmas. Additionally, the town has lit the Star to remind of distresses in the world, for example, Iran hostage crisis in 1980-1981 and Gulf War in 1990-1991. The Star was lit in support of the US troops in the Gulf.
The star today shines every night, as a symbol of independence and freedom.
Why is Texas Called the Lone Star State
Six flags have flown over Texas including the current one. “Six flags over Texas” are of Spain (1519-1685; 1690-1821), France (1685-1690), Mexico (1821-1836), Republic of Texas (1836-1845), Confederate States of America (1861-1865), and United States of America (1845-1861; 1865-today).
From 1824 to 1835 Texas was within Coahuila y Tejas, which included Texas and Coahuila as a constituent state of Mexico. Texas became independent as Republic of Texas in 1835. The flag of Coahuila y Tejas had two stars because it included two states, Texas and Coahuila. Republic of Texas became independent and carried one of those two stars in its new flag. Texas joined the Union in 1845 and became the 28th state of the United States. A new flag was designed when Texas became a state of the United States of America. The new flag proudly wears the Lone Star it took from Coahuila y Tejas. This is the short story of why Texas is known as the Lone Star State.
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So El Paso is in Texas? Remember, I asked you where is El Paso in one of the posts. (I don’t remember on which post, therefore, I don’t know whether you have answered my question or not) I live in the other part of the globe and my sense of US geography is limited. Thanks for this informative and interesting article
Yes, El Paso is in Texas. Here is the post where you asked the question: https://settleinelpaso.com/thanksgiving-parade-in-el-paso/ .
I am happy to know that you liked the article. Thank you so much for visiting our blog time to time and commenting. Have a wonderful week.
This is a helpful article that made me know more about El Paso and Texas in general. I will be jotting this down in the list of things I know from history.
Glad to know that you liked the post. Thank you for visiting and commenting. Have a wonderful week.
Wow, 459 feet long and 278 feet wide shows that this star is very big. I think the star is a great symbol to El Paso and the people who live there! You must be proud living in such a wonderful place!
The star looks beautiful from the sky as well as from the Interstate. I appreciate the beautiful words. Thank you for visiting.
This is all news to me. I found the history fo the flags and all the “occupying” nations interesting. Thanks for this information. As a Canadian my US history is lacking.
We are excited to know that you found the history interesting! Thank you for visiting our blog and writing a comment.
I’ve been to El Paso before! And did not know this at all.
I’ve got to ask…how did you start living in El Paso from the East Coast??
Hahaha. That is a great question. At some point in our life, we started sending job-applications to many places. The job offers we received from an organization in El Paso were the best and of course, the jobs we were offered fit well with our expertise and interest. Thank you very much for visiting our blog and asking this question.
We are very glad to know that you found the information in this post interesting.
Very nice 🙂 seems like you guys enjoy it there?! I hope 🙂
Yes, Allison. We enjoy it here a lot. Thank you.
I was visiting my son who’s stationed at Ft. Bliss. We both wondered what the star was for. Thx.
Glad to know that you liked the history. History says, the star remained lit during the Gulf War in support of Ft. Bliss and all US troops stationed with Operation Desert Storm. This link of Greater El Paso Chamber Commerce, http://www.elpaso.org/about-el-paso/star-on-the-mountain , contains more detailed information.
Thank you for visiting our blog!
Thanks for sharing. I really enjoyed your post.
We are very glad to know that you enjoyed the post, Pamela. Thanks a lot for visiting. Have a wonderful weekend ahead. 🙂
Thanks for adding the history along with your family info. We’ve never been to El Paso, so you’re keeping us informed!
Rusha Sams recently posted…Travel theme: Dried — Pueblo of Acoma
Dear Rusha,
We are happy to see you revisit our blog. Also, we are glad to know that you like our posts related to El Paso. We hope you will visit El Paso someday. 🙂
Thanks and regards,
Settle in El Paso team 🙂
Good for you for sharing some of what people don’t know about Texas.
Thank you, Linda, for visiting our blog and leaving a note. Absolutely, history is always fascinating.