Big Bend

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Lore & Background

The area has a rich cultural history, from archeological sites dating back nearly 10,000 years to more recent pioneers, ranchers, and miners. During the early historic period (before 1535), several Indian groups were recorded as inhabiting the Big Bend, including the Chisos Indians, a loosely organized group of nomadic hunters and gatherers. The Jumano were a nomadic group that traveled and traded throughout West Texas and southeastern New Mexico. Around the beginning of the 18th century, the Mescalero Apaches began invading the Big Bend region and displacing the Chisos Indians. One of the last Native American groups to use the Big Bend was the Comanches, who passed through the park along the Comanche Trail on their way to and from periodic raids into the Mexican interior. The European presence in the region begins c. 1535 AD with the first Spanish explorations. In an attempt to protect the northern frontier of New Spain, a line of presidios was established along the Rio Grande in the late 18th century. Following the end of the Mexican–American War in 1848, the U.S. Army made military surveys of the uncharted land of the Big Bend. Ranchers began to settle in the Big Bend about 1880, and by 1900, sheep, goat, and cattle ranches occupied most of the area. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, valuable mineral deposits were discovered, and communities like Boquillas and Terlingua resulted from mining operations. In 1933, the Texas Legislature passed legislation to establish Texas Canyons State Park, later redesignated Big Bend State Park. In 1935, the United States Congress passed legislation enabling the acquisition of land for a national park. The State of Texas deeded the land to the federal government, and on June 12, 1944, Big Bend National Park became a reality. The park opened to visitors on July 1, 1944.

Reader's Guide

Big Bend National Park protects more than 1,200 species of plants, more than 450 species of birds, 56 species of reptiles, and 75 species of mammals. The Chisos Mountains are located in the park, and are the only mountain range in the United States to be fully contained within the boundary of a national park. Geological features in the park include sea fossils and dinosaur bones, as well as volcanic dikes. Because the Rio Grande serves as an international boundary, the park faces unusual constraints while administering and enforcing park rules, regulations, and policies. In accordance with the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, the park's territory extends only to the center of the deepest river channel as the river flowed in 1848. The rest of the channel and the land south of it lie within Mexican territory. The park is bordered by the protected areas of Cañón de Santa Elena and Maderas del Carmen in Mexico. The 118 mi (190 km) of rivers that form the southern boundary of the park include the spectacular canyons of Santa Elena, Mariscal, and Boquillas. The park's Chisos Mountains are sky islands surrounded by desert. Big Bend remains one of the largest, most remote, and least-visited national parks in the contiguous United States. Over the 10 years from 2009 to 2019, an average of 377,154 visitors entered the park each year.

Did You Know?

• The Chisos Mountains are the only mountain range in the United States to be fully contained within the boundary of a national park.
• The park's territory extends only to the center of the deepest river channel of the Rio Grande as it flowed in 1848, per the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo.
• Some species in the park, such as the Chisos oak (Quercus graciliformis), are found nowhere else in the United States.
• The park opened to visitors on July 1, 1944.
• In July 2026, the second Trump administration waived restrictions on construction of a border wall and roads slated to run through parts of Big Bend National Park.

Common Misconceptions (Editorial)

Some people think Big Bend National Park was always a national park, but it was first established as Texas Canyons State Park in 1933 and later redesignated Big Bend State Park before becoming a national park in 1944. Others assume the park’s boundaries include the entire Rio Grande, but the U.S. territory extends only to the center of the deepest river channel as it flowed in 1848, per the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo.

Why It Matters (Editorial)

Big Bend National Park endures as a vital refuge for the Chihuahuan Desert ecosystem and a place where the United States and Mexico meet along the Rio Grande. Its cultural history—spanning Indigenous peoples, Spanish explorers, ranchers, and miners—reminds us of the deep human stories embedded in the landscape, even as modern debates over border policy touch its remote corners.