Laredo, Texas

Laredo
City
Downtown Laredo
Downtown Laredo
Flag of Laredo
Flag
Coat of arms of Laredo
Coat of arms
Nickname(s): 
"The Gateway City" and "The City Under Seven Flags"
Laredo is located in Texas
Laredo
Laredo
Location within Texas
Laredo is located in the United States
Laredo
Laredo
Location within the United States
Coordinates: 27°31′25″N 99°29′25″W / 27.52361°N 99.49028°W / 27.52361; -99.49028
CountryUnited States
StateTexas
CountyWebb
Metropolitan areaLaredo–Nuevo Laredo Metropolitan Area
FoundedAugust 25, 1755
Settled asVilla de San Agustín de Laredo
Founded byTomás Sánchez
Named forLaredo, Spain
Government
 • TypeCouncil–manager
 • MayorDr. Victor D. Treviño[1]
 • City Council
Members
  • Rudy Gonzalez Jr.
  • Vidal Rodriguez
  • Mercurio Martinez, III
  • Alberto Torres Jr. (D)[2]
  • Ruben Gutierrez, Jr.
  • Dr. Marte A. Martinez
  • Vanessa Perez
  • Alyssa Cigarroa[3]
 • City managerRobert A. Eads
 • Police chiefClaudio Trevino
Area
[4]
 • City107.96 sq mi (279.61 km2)
 • Land106.49 sq mi (275.81 km2)
 • Water1.47 sq mi (3.80 km2)
 • Metro
161.76 sq mi (418.96 km2)
Elevation
438 ft (137.2 m)
Population
 (2020)
 • City255,205
 • Estimate 
(2021)
256,153
 • Density2,396.5/sq mi (925.3/km2)
 • Urban
251,462 (US: 163rd)[5]
 • Urban density3,916.6/sq mi (1,512.2/km2)
 • Metro
267,114 (US: 186th)
Demonyms
  • Laredoan
  • Laredense
GDP
[6]
 • Metro$17.010 billion (2022)
Time zoneUTC−6 (CST)
 • Summer (DST)UTC−5 (CST)
ZIP Codes
78040–78046, 78049
Area code956
FIPS code48-41464[7]
GNIS feature ID1339633[8]
Websitelaredotexas.gov

Laredo (/ləˈreɪdoʊ/ lə-RAY-doh; Spanish: [laˈɾeðo]) is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and seat of Webb County, on the north bank of the Rio Grande in South Texas, across from Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas, Mexico. Founded in 1755, Laredo grew from a village to the capital of the short-lived Republic of the Rio Grande to the largest inland port on the Mexican border. Laredo's economy is primarily based on international trade with Mexico, and as a major hub for three areas of transportation: land, rail, and air cargo. The city is on the southern end of I-35, which connects manufacturers in northern Mexico through Interstate 35 as a major route for trade throughout the U.S. It has four international bridges and one railway bridge.

According to the 2020 census, the city's population was 255,205, making it the 11th-most populous city in Texas and third-most populated U.S. city on the Mexican border, after San Diego, California, and El Paso, Texas.[9] Its metropolitan area is the 178th-largest in the U.S. and includes all of Webb County, with a population of 267,114. Laredo is also part of the cross-border Laredo-Nuevo Laredo metropolitan area with an estimated population of 636,516.[10]

Laredo's Hispanic proportion of 95.15% is one of the highest proportion of Hispanic Americans of any city in the United States outside of Puerto Rico.[11]

Texas A&M International University and Laredo College are in Laredo. Laredo International Airport is within the Laredo city limits, while the Quetzalcoatl International Airport is nearby in Nuevo Laredo on the Mexican side.

The biggest festival, Washington's Birthday Celebration, is held during the later part of January and the majority of February, attracting hundreds of thousands of tourists.[citation needed]

  1. ^ "Dr. Victor D. Treviño Mayor Term December 2022 to November 2026". City of Laredo. January 3, 2022.
  2. ^ "Democratic Party who filed for the March 2020 primary elections". www.kgns.tv. Retrieved March 26, 2020.
  3. ^ "Government". City of Laredo. Retrieved April 29, 2022.
  4. ^ "2019 U.S. Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved August 7, 2020.
  5. ^ "List of 2020 Census Urban Areas". census.gov. United States Census Bureau. Retrieved January 7, 2023.
  6. ^ "Total Gross Domestic Product for Laredo, TX (MSA)". Federal Reserve Economic Data. Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis.
  7. ^ "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved January 31, 2008.
  8. ^ "US Board on Geographic Names". United States Geological Survey. October 25, 2007. Retrieved January 31, 2008.
  9. ^ "QuickFacts: Laredo city, Texas". Census.gov. United States Census Bureau. Retrieved January 7, 2023.
  10. ^ "World Gazetteer: America – largest cities (per geographical entity)". Archived from the original on October 1, 2007.
  11. ^ "P2: HISPANIC OR LATINO, AND NOT HISPANIC OR LATINO BY RACE". 2020 Census. United States Census Bureau. Retrieved October 10, 2021.