Prompt Cast
The Confusion and Border Dispute of Rio Rico: A Town Believed to be Mexican but was Actually Part of the United States
TLDR The town of Rio Rico, located on the Orcon tract of land, was thought to be part of Mexico but was actually part of the United States due to an unauthorized diversion of the Rio Grande river in 1906. A federal appeals court ruling in 1972 confirmed the U.S. citizenship of anyone born in Rio Rico prior to that year, leading to many residents claiming American citizenship and causing significant changes in the town's population.
Timestamped Summary
00:00
Learn about the confusion surrounding the US-Mexican border and the town of Rio Rico, which was thought to be Mexican but was actually part of the United States.
01:55
The Rio Grande serves as much of the border between the United States and Mexico, but using rivers as borders can be problematic due to issues such as the changing shape of the river over time.
03:34
The Orcon tract, a small piece of land surrounded by Mexico but connected to the United States, was cut off from the US when the American Rio Grande land and irrigation company decided to shorten the length of the river, resulting in confusion and no new border markers being set up.
05:14
In 1967, a geography professor discovered that the town of Rio Rico, located on the Orcon tract of land, was still technically part of the United States due to an unauthorized diversion of the Rio Grande river in 1906.
07:03
In 1972, the United States Immigration and Naturalization Service attempted to deport a man named Homero Contu Trevino from the town of Rio Rico, but Trevino argued that he was a U.S. citizen because he was born in the United States.
08:38
A federal appeals court ruled in favor of Mr. Trevino, stating that anyone born in Rio Rico prior to 1972 was a U.S. citizen, leading to about 250 people claiming U.S. citizenship and devastating the town as most residents left with their newfound American citizenship.
10:17
Rio Rico is now just another small border community, but it holds the distinction of being the only community that was part of the United States and later became a part of Mexico.
