| Welcome to historic Port Isabel, the "Point" of
the Laguna Madre with a 30-foot bluff where the Point Isabel Lighthouse
now stands. The point's strategic location was instrumental to the
settlement of Point Isabel and early maritime industry.
The Coahilitecan Indians originally inhabited this land. During the 1500s, Spain sent explorers to the area, but the land remained inhospitable to European settlements until the mid-1700s when Spain awarded land grants to new colonists. Doņa Rosa Maria Hinojosa inherited several land grants including the Santa Isabella Land Grant on the Texas coast. Her son, Padre Nicholas Balli, later obtained the grant to what is now Padre Island. The Texas coast gained importance to Mexico, the U.S., and smugglers from both countries during the 1800s. Legend has it that pirate Jean Lafitte took refuge in this area and dug a well in Laguna Vista. Local ranchers formed business alliances with pirates who sailed their contraband between the Rio Grande and Corpus Christi. During the 1830s, Don Rafael Garcia established El Fronton de Santa Isabel (Point Isabel) to become the base for the growing Port of Matarnoros and the privateer fleet. In 1846, F ort Polk, named in honor of President Polk, was established on this site as a supply unit for the U.S./Mexican War. Many notable men, including Zachary Taylor, Ulysses S. Grant, and Robert E. Lee, were stationed at this fort. In 1852, the Point Isabel Lighthouse was built to serve the maritime industry. It survived the Civil War and numerous hurricanes, finally becoming T exas ' smallest state park in 1952. In the early 1900s, Point Isabel became a recreational spot and at one time had the largest shrimping fleet in the nation. Wanting to attract more visitors, the newly renamed Port Isabel decided to develop a beach by removing the bluff. The hill on which the lighthouse stands is the original elevation of the area. The removed soil was used to fill in a salt flat where the Port Isabel Yacht Club is now located. Several businesses and a hotel replaced the historic homes that once surrounded the Lighthouse Square. The booming tourist trade, however, bypassed Port Isabel for South Padre Island. Today , the Port Isabel Lighthouse Square has blossomed once again with shops, restaurants, and museums.
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