When Brownsville was on the Road to Modernity

The first locally owned automobile was the property of George Kenedy - grandson of Miflin Kenedy, the riverboat captain and rancher. The first vehicle on record was provately owned by owned by St Louis, Brownsville & Mexico Rarilroad. It was sent from Houston as a transport bus in 1904 to get passengers from Arroyo until repairs could be made to rails after heavy rains "clawed out" the railroad trestle.

Roads were scarce back then and heavy mud from rain would cause vehicles to get stuck. The first paving was done in 1912 using Creosoted mesquite wood blocks and they were placed around the courthouse and down E Elizabeth and E Levee Streets. The bricks would buckle after heavy rains and eventually had to be completely removed. It wasn't until the late 1920s that we saw any paved roads in Brownsville. Grading began in 1924 and by 1932 four and one-tenths miles of paved road existed between here and San Benito. Additional grading was done between 1924 and 1947