Alligator Pool on San Jacinto Plaza

This postcard shows the alligator pool on San Jacinto Plaza, probably in the 1900s. From 1889 to 1965, a small congregation of alligators inhabited an oasis in the middle of this desert city. The Plaza was filled with thick grass, Chinese elms and a large pond with fish, turtles and alligators. Due to vandalism the animals had to be removed. In 1972, the city brought the alligators back with a plastic shield, but that lasted only a couple of years before they were taken back to the zoo

Area: Central / Downtown

Collection: Stansel Postcard Collection

Source: University of Texas at El Paso Library - Special Collections Department

Reference ID: PH049-1-1-032

Uploaded by: El Paso Museum of History