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History · Encinal

Encinal’s post office opened in 1883, and 27% of its homes were built before 1940

1883first post office
0on the National Register
27%homes built before 1940
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Photo: Billy Hathorn · CC BY-SA 3.0
Quick answers

How Encinal began

When was Encinal founded?

1883

The Encinal post office opened in 1883, the earliest record of the town by name.

2020 census: 540143 years
Founding year: the first Encinal post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓

What stands out about Encinal’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

A history waiting to be writtenNo old photos of Encinal are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Encinal’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Encinal’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
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The story

How Encinal came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Encinal.

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Encinal may be named for the Spanish word for a holm or holly oak grove. The town was supposed to be the county seat for Encinal County, which was established on February 1, 1856, and was to consist of the eastern portion of Webb County. The county was never organized and was finally dissolved on March 12, 1899. The Encinal territory was absorbed into Webb County, and Encinal became part of La Salle County.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

By decade

Encinal, decade by decade

Today6 recent
Veteran's Monument in Encinal, TX IMG 24602010Veteran's Monument in Encinal, TX IMG 2460Encinal, TX,, water towerIMG 24632010Encinal, TX,, water towerIMG 2463Closed stores in Encinal, TX IMG 24652010Closed stores in Encinal, TX IMG 2465Cactus in Encinal, TX IMG 24662010Cactus in Encinal, TX IMG 2466Old Fence Post2008Old Fence PostEncinal2008Encinal
Famous people

Famous people close to Encinal

Nobody well known was born in Encinal itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.

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Tony DaltonAmerican and Mexican actor · b. 1975
T
Tom DeLayAmerican Republican politician · b. 1947
Federico PeñaU.S. Secretary of Transportation, 1993-1997 · b. 1947
Alfonso Gomez-RejonAmerican film and television director · b. 1972
John Lewis GaddisAmerican historian of the Cold War (b. 1941) · b. 1941
Roxanne PerezAmerican professional wrestler · b. 2001

Questions about Encinal’s history

What year was Encinal founded?

The Encinal post office opened in 1883, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
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Sources

Where this page comes from

Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021). How TownRatings grades history →

From Wikimedia Commons (6), Wikipedia, the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock) and the USGS Geographic Names Information System. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.