LA PUERTA, TEXAS. La Puerta, on U.S. Highway 83 and the Border Pacific Railroad six miles east of Rio Grande City in Starr County, was formerly the headquarters for the La Puerta ranch. In 1991 it was a community of an estimated 1,500 residents, more than a dozen businesses, and St. Paul's Catholic Church, cemetery, and youth building. The name means "the door" in Spanish. Small communities form a solid front along U.S. 83 from La Puerta to Rio Grande City, although some irrigated farmland may still be seen from the road. In 2000 the population was 1,636.

Dick D. Heller, Jr.