Editing Premont, Texas (section)

==History==
The site was part of the Los Olmos y Loma Blanca land grant issues to Ignacio de la Peña on December 9, 1831.<ref name="Texas Handbook">{{cite web | url = https://tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/hgp13 | title = Premont, Texas | publisher = [[The Handbook of Texas]] online | date =  | accessdate = 2009-10-16}}</ref> Peña and his heirs occupied the land for the next thirty years. On November 1, 1907, banker and real estate developer R.P. Halderman purchased a {{convert|43275|acre|km2|adj=on}} plot of land from the heirs of Henry Seeligson for $540,939.50.<ref name="El Mesteño">{{cite web | url = http://el-mesteno.com/stories/0101premont.html | title = Premont, Texas – The Mexican Heritage | publisher = El Mesteno Magazine | date = January 2001 | accessdate = 2009-10-16 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080513083941/http://el-mesteno.com/stories/0101premont.html | archive-date = 2008-05-13 | url-status = dead }}</ref> He then subdivided the land into {{convert|5|and|10|acre|m2|adj=on}} tracts to entice residents from the northern U.S. to invest in [[South Texas]], citing the region's warm climate and ideal planting conditions.

In 1908 or 1909, a town site was surveyed by C.F.H. Von Bulcher. Halderman named the new community "Premont", after Seeligson Ranch foreman Charles Premont. A section of the community, located east of the railroad, was set aside for [[Mexicans|Mexican]] and [[Mexican Americans|Mexican-American]] families.<ref name="Premont PDF">{{cite web | url = http://www.esperanzacenter.org/lavozpdfs2008/2008_05may.pdf | title = Premont, Texas | work = Official and Unofficial Geographies: Ethnographies of Place (La Voz de Esperanza) | publisher = Abel Garcia, Esperanza Peace & Justice Center | date = May 2008 | accessdate = 2009-10-16 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110723204641/http://www.esperanzacenter.org/lavozpdfs2008/2008_05may.pdf | archive-date = 2011-07-23 | url-status = dead }}</ref> A plaza called Hidalgo Park was designed and built to serve those families. R.P. Halderman sold hundreds of lots to Charles Premont, who in turn served as the real estate agent for the Mexican families, as he was fluent in Spanish. He also donated the funds to build Santa Theresa Catholic Church, a [[Roman Catholicism|Roman Catholic]] institution that now ministers to three missions. Several businesses, including a post office and a general store owned by Andrés Canales, opened in the community during its early years. Premont became part of the newly organized [[Jim Wells County, Texas|Jim Wells County]] on March 11, 1911.<ref name="El Mesteño"/> In an election held on May 6, 1911, Charles Premont was elected as the county's first commissioner. By 1912, Premont had ten businesses and an estimated population of 800. That figure had risen to approximately 1,000 by 1914, the same year that the [[San Antonio and Aransas Pass Railway]] built a stop at Premont.<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.texasescapes.com/SouthTexasTowns/Premont-Texas.htm | title = Premont, Texas | publisher = Texas Escapes Online Magazine | date =  | accessdate = 2009-10-16}}</ref> The [[Premont Independent School District]] was created in 1921.<ref name="Premont PDF"/> At the time of its creation, Premont ISD was the largest school district in [[Jim Wells County]]. Premont's population had declined to roughly 600 by 1925.

The discovery of oil in the area during the early 1930s caused the community to grow substantially. On May 12, 1933, Premont's first producing oil well was drilled.<ref name="Texas Handbook"/> The community incorporated in 1939 and had a population of 1,080 in 1940. With its revitalized and oil-based economy, Premont continued to grow and prosper during the early post-war years. The town was home to 2,619 residents in 1950 and had a total of 55 businesses in 1952. In 1955, [[American Legion]] Post No. 297 was dedicated in Premont.<ref name="Texas Handbook"/> The population peaked at 3,282 in the 1970 census and has slowly declined since.