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Mission
Mission
City
	Mission, Texas
	Motto: Home Of The Grapefruit
	Location of Mission, Texas
	Coordinates: 26°12′41″N 98°19′17″W / 26.21139°N 98.32139°W
Country	United States
State	Texas
County	Hidalgo
Founded	1907
Incorporated	1910
Government
• Type	Council-manager
• City council	Mayor Norie Gonzalez Garza; Jessica Ortega Ochoa; Ruben Plata; Jose Alberto Vela; Abiel Flores
• City manager	Mike Perez
Area
• City	36.39 sq mi (94.26 km2)
• Land	36.34 sq mi (94.11 km2)
• Water	0.07 sq mi (0.18 km2)
Elevation	141 ft (43 m)
Population (2020)
• City	85,778
• Estimate (2022)	86,635
• Rank	US: 403rd; TX: 46th
• Density	2,384/sq mi (920.6/km2)
• Urban	779,553 (US: 56th)
• Urban density	2,389.7/sq mi (922.7/km2)
• Metro	888,367 (US: 65th)
Time zone	UTC–6 (Central (CST))
• Summer (DST)	UTC–5 (CDT)
ZIP codes	78503, 78572, 78573, 78174
Area code	956
Sales tax	8.25%
GNIS feature ID	1341738
Website	missiontexas.us

Mission is a city in Hidalgo County, in the US state of Texas, United States. The population was 85,778 at the 2020 census^[4] and an estimated 86,635 in 2022.^[5] Mission is part of the McAllen–Edinburg–Mission and Reynosa–McAllen metropolitan areas.

Geography

Mission is in southern Hidalgo County. It is bordered to the east by McAllen, the largest city in the county, to the north by Palmhurst, to the west by Palmview, and to the south by the Mexico–United States border along the Rio Grande.

The Interstate 2/U.S. Route 83 freeway passes through Mission, south of the center of town. The highway leads east 5 miles (8 km) to downtown McAllen and 41 miles (66 km) to Harlingen. Interstate 2 ends 7 miles (11 km) west of Mission; US 83 leads west 34 miles (55 km) to Rio Grande City.

According to the United States Census Bureau, Mission has a total area of 34.1 square miles (88.2 km²), of which 0.1 square miles (0.2 km²), or 0.20%, is covered by water.

Demographics

Historical population
Census	Pop.	Note	%±
1920	3,847		—
1930	5,120		33.1%
1940	5,982		16.8%
1950	2,940		−50.9%
1960	14,081		378.9%
1970	13,043		−7.4%
1980	22,589		73.2%
1990	31,100		37.7%
2000	45,408		46.0%
2010	77,058		69.7%
2020	85,778		11.3%
2022 (est.)	86,635	^[5]	1.0%
U.S. Decennial Census^[7] 2020 Census^[4]

2020 census

**Mission city, Texas – Racial and ethnic composition**
*Note: the US Census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos may be of any race.*
Race / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic)	Pop 2000^[8]	Pop 2010^[9]	Pop 2020^[10]	% 2000	% 2010	% 2020
White alone (NH)	8,033	9,465	7,625	17.69%	12.28%	8.89%
Black or African American alone (NH)	115	321	349	0.25%	0.42%	0.41%
Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)	37	71	51	0.08%	0.09%	0.06%
Asian alone (NH)	266	1,135	1,232	0.59%	1.47%	1.44%
Pacific Islander alone (NH)	2	11	15	0.00%	0.01%	0.02%
Some Other Race alone (NH)	13	57	190	0.03%	0.07%	0.22%
Mixed race or Multiracial (NH)	148	186	360	0.33%	0.24%	0.42%
Hispanic or Latino (any race)	36,794	65,812	75,956	81.03%	85.41%	88.55%
Total	45,408	77,058	85,778	100.00%	100.00%	100.00%

As of the census of 2020, there were 85,778 people, 25,172 households, and 20,139 families were residing in the city.

2010 census

As of the census of 2010, there were 77,058 people, _ households, and _ families resided in the city.

2000 census

As of the census of 2000, there were 45,408 people, 13,766 households, and 11,384 families resided in the city. The population density was 1,881.9 inhabitants per square mile (726.6/km²). The 17,723 housing units had an average density of 734.5 per square mile (283.6/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 77.63% White, 0.37% African American, 0.38% Native American, 1.63% Asian, 18.65% from other races, and 2.34% from two or more races. Hispanics or Latinos of any race were 81.03% of the population.

Of the 13,766 households, 43.4% had children under 18 living with them, 64.8% were married couples living together, 14.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 17.3% were not families; 15.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.1% had someone living alone who was 65 or older. The average household size was 3.29, and the average family size was 3.68.

In the city, the age distribution was 32.1% under 18, 9.8% from 18 to 24, 26.8% from 25 to 44, 17.1% from 45 to 64, and 14.2% who were 65 or older. The median age was 30 years. For every 100 females, there were 91.1 males. For every 100 females 18 and over, there were 85.3 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $30,647, and the median income for a family was $33,465. Males had a median income of $25,710 versus $20,718 for females. The per capita income for the city was $12,796. About 22.6% of families and 26.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 37.4% of those under age 18 and 15.6% of those age 65 or over.

The United States Postal Service operates in the city of Mission.^[11] Local zip codes include 78571, 78572, 78573, and 78574.

Economy

Mission shares the same economic growth that nearby McAllen is experiencing. The Mission Economic Development Corporation promotes development in the area.^[12]

The city has been advertised as the "Home of the Ruby Red Grapefruit" since 1921, due to the fruit being commonly grown in the area.^[13] The city is also home to the Texas Citrus Exchange. The city holds the annual Texas Citrus Fiesta Parade along Conway Avenue, which features fruit-decorated floats, bands, law enforcement agencies, fire departments, and many local and city government officials.

Moore Air Force Base (deactivated) is located 15 miles (24 km) north of the city. It is the location of the First Lift Station of the Mission Canal Company that once irrigated 15,000 acres (61 km²) of farmland in the Rio Grande Valley.

Education

Primary and secondary schools

Most of Mission is a part of the Mission Consolidated Independent School District. Other portions extend into the La Joya Independent School District and the Sharyland Independent School District.^[14]

Mission CISD operates Mission High School and Veterans Memorial High School.^[15] Sharyland ISD Mission is divided between Sharyland High School and Sharyland Pioneer High School.^[16] LJISD Mission is zoned to Palmview High School.^[17]

In addition, South Texas Independent School District operates magnet schools that serve the community.

Mission is also the site of San Juan Diego Academy, a Catholic high school operated by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Brownsville.

Public libraries

The Speer Memorial Library serves Mission.^[18] The facility has 48,760 square feet (4,530 m²) of space.^[19]

The library originated in March 1914, when the Civic League of Mission was formed to maintain a park and form a library. The first library board included officers from the civic league. In 1929, the city of Mission passed an ordinance making the library a part of the city government. In 1930, the library was in a room in the First National Bank. Later, it moved to the Mission City Hall. From the early 1930s until 1947, the city library shared facilities with the school library. By 1960, it outgrew the building it had occupied. In 1976, Juanita Speer Farley donated the deed to her property to the city. A new library, designed by Warren Suter, an architect from Mission, was constructed in 1976 and 1977. The official completion date of the 14,000 square feet (1,300 m²) library was June 1, 1977. An addition in 1988 increased the library's area to 18,660 square feet (1,734 m²). An additional expansion of 30,100 square feet (2,800 m²), designed by architect TAG International, LLP, and constructed by Velasco Construction, was scheduled to be completed in March 2005, and the renovation of the older portions of the library was scheduled to begin afterwards.^[19]

Media

Radio

KCAS 91.5 FM
KFRQ 94.5FM
KKPS 99.5FM
KNVO 101.1FM
KVLY 107.9FM
KVMV 96.9FM
KTEX 100.3FM
KFCC 97.9FM

Notable people

Fortunato Benavides, judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, born in Mission
Lloyd Bentsen, former U.S. senator and vice-presidential nominee, born in Mission in 1921
William Jennings Bryan, presidential candidate and former Secretary of State, lived for a time in Mission
William S. Burroughs, writer of Naked Lunch, lived in Mission for a short while and wrote about it in Junkie
Jorge Cantu, MLB player from Sharyland High School, who played for Tampa Bay Rays, Cincinnati Reds, Florida Marlins, Texas Rangers, San Diego Padres, and now playing for Colorado Rockies
Koy Detmer, brother of Heisman Trophy winner Ty Detmer, played for and carried the Mission Eagles football team to the semi-finals in Texas 5A football under the leadership of his father, Sonny Detmer^[20]
Jaime Garcia, professional MLB player from Sharyland High School playing with 2011 World Series champions St. Louis Cardinals
Kika de la Garza, former state representative and former U.S. representative, chairman of the Agriculture Committee
Lena Guerrero, the first woman and first ethnic minority person to serve on the regulatory Texas Railroad Commission
Pierre Yves Kéralum (1817–1872), priest and architect
Joe M. Kilgore, former U.S. representative, reared partly in Mission
Tom Landry, Hall of Fame coach of the Dallas Cowboys, born and raised, played for Mission High School
Ana Liz Pulido, James Beard Award winner for Best Chef:Texas in 2024^[21]
Tito Santana (aka Merced Solis), former World Wrestling Federation (now WWE) star
Trinidad Silva, actor
Jamaar Taylor, attended Mission High School and played football, and later was drafted by the New York Giants. After his retirement, he helped coach at Mission Veterans Memorial High School for a brief period.