Editing Willacy County, Texas (section)

==History==
Willacy County was formed in 1911 from parts of [[Cameron County, Texas|Cameron]] and [[Hidalgo County, Texas|Hidalgo]] Counties, and originally included what is now [[Kenedy County, Texas|Kenedy County]]; it was named for state senator [[John G. Willacy]]. Kenedy was split from Willacy in 1921, when the long-settled ranchers of the northern (Kenedy) part of the county sought to separate from the newly arrived farmers of the southern part.

The [[Bermuda]] [[onion]] was introduced to Willacy County in 1912. It grew well and slowly displaced ranchland in the southern part of the county, becoming the most important crop. For many years, the town of [[Raymondville, Texas|Raymondville]] held an annual Onion Festival, using the tag line, "The Breath of a Nation". In 1940, the first oil wells were sunk in the county's Willamar Oil Field; today, oil production is a major part of the local economy, although increasingly eclipsed by natural gas. Also in the 1940s, [[sorghum]] was introduced to the county, gradually displacing cotton and other crops. Cattle ranching remains a substantial economic activity, as well.

In the early 2010s, wind turbines began to be built in the rural part of the county east of [[U.S. Highway 77]], a number expanded later in 2020. The turbines became an icon to the county's identity, with their being visible from northern Cameron County and eastern Hidalgo County. Power-line infrastructure was also improved in this period.

In recent years, the county has come under scrutiny for police deaths with two in custody deaths in two years.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://myrgv.com/publications/valley-morning-star/2023/12/04/texas-rangers-investigating-willacy-county-inmates-death/ | title=Texas Rangers investigating Willacy County inmate's death | date=December 4, 2023 }}</ref> In 2023, the county paid $1,000,000.00 to the family of John Ray Zamora after Zamora died in custody according to attorney Israel G. Perez III.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.tpr.org/criminal-justice/2023-12-27/family-of-rgv-man-killed-after-arrest-reach-1-million-settlement | title=Family of RGV man killed after arrest reach $1 million settlement | date=December 27, 2023 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=https://foxsanantonio.com/newsletter-daily/willacy-county-pays-1m-for-inmates-death-amid-police-brutality-claims-people-crime-border-killed-laws-political | title=Willacy County pays $1m for inmate's death amid police brutality claims | date=December 26, 2023 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=https://myrgv.com/local-news/2023/12/26/willacy-county-paying-family-1-million-in-beating-death-lawsuit/ | title=Willacy County paying family $1 million in beating death lawsuit | date=December 26, 2023 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.valleycentral.com/news/local-news/willacy-county-to-pay-family-of-man-who-died-in-jail-1m-attorney-says/ | title=Willacy County to pay family of man who died in jail $1M, attorney says | date=December 26, 2023 }}</ref>