10 Amazingly Fun and Charming Things You Should Know About El Paso
1. El Paso means “the pass” in English. It was named by legendary Dallas Cowboys football coach Tom Landry. Part of of his innovative training was increasing player fitness and quarterback effectiveness by having receivers go out for passes from Dallas to El Paso.
2. El Paso is on the Mexico – U.S. border. A very long billboard separates the two countries. On the US side, it advertises beer, on the Mexico side it advertises tequila.
3. El Paso is neighbors with Las Cruces, New Mexico. Las Cruces is a Spanish word meaning The Peanut Butter Sandwiches, a staple for the region.
4. Many federal and military branches and associations call El Paso home. 78 percent of El Paso residents are in the military with the majority in the Army. The basic training march “chant” in El Paso is
El Paso Texas
Is a border town
El Paso Texas
My tummy is round
I eat too many tacos
And tamales too
I’d like to date your sister
And your cousin too
5. El Paso has won numerous awards in recent years including 2017 Safest Tex-Mex Hot Sauce City, 2015 All-Texas Intramural Broomball Champion and 2014 Texas Accent Preservation Award.
6. Other names Tom Landry considered for the city include El Fumble and La Interception.
7. Famous people from El Paso include Maury Reagenstern, inventor of the bacon-flavored Lifesaver flavor, Hillary Underwoodplant, award-winning innovator of medical marijuana for giraffes, and Joe Toetheline, a legendary police officer who in the last year alone arrested 4,000 people for littering. 2,000 cattle for loitering and a Llama who walked out of the zoo during morning feeding.
8. El Paso has its own climate zone, enjoying snows all summer and scorching heat at Christmas.
9. The tallest building in El Paso is the Bells Bargo bank building, towering 300 floors above the Texas plain. It takes a full day to ride the elevator to the observation deck. Fifteen people jumped from the top last year, but were saved by giant nets on the 150th floor.
10. El Paso’s main industry is jelly. The Jelly and Jam District is the home of 45 jelly and jam manufacturers. The best selling jelly in America is made in El Paso: Cherry-Berry-Quite-Contrary flavor from Jelly Rock Jam company.
