City along the seashore: Point Isabel townsite sold

Rene Torres is a retired University of Texas at Brownsville, and Texas Southmost College assistant professor. He has a long history in the Rio Grande Valley as an educator, sports historian and humanitarian, with a wealth of community service to his credit.

Brownsville Herald reported sale on Sunday April 4, 1926

One great historical moment was amplified by the fact that the fishing village of Point Isabel was on the verge of development.

The townsite which had been owned for a great number of years by the Champion-Wells families, with a stroke of pen, was changing hands.

Yes, it was no illusion, the Brownsville Herald had front-page headlines… making sure that the Rio Grande Valley and the country got the news in big bold letters.

The Daily reported the following: Development became certain on a Saturday night when the James-Dickenson Company made the announcement of the sale of Point Isabel.

The townsite comprised of 640 acres of ground. Who were the buyers? The names were not revealed at this time. “Just say that the property was open to the market at an early date. And everyone who wanted to buy a piece of the pie, could do so,” was stated.

The price of the townsite was said to have been 500,000… a buying power of 8.5 million today.

New development on the shore…

As new people discovered the RGV, many were establishing legacies that were lasting and leaving footprints for generations to follow.

One such development was paving the way for new housing on the shore. Ross Malone, a New Mexico native, invested on the shoreline by buying 1,300 acres, five miles above Point Isabel.

His vision was to create a town to be known as “Hollywood,” the playland of the Gulf Coast. Lots for summer homes were being sold throughout the Valley by the Security Investment Co. of San Benito.

Stakeholders were taking the path where others had not taken to a destination described as the “Promise Land.”