La Toma: The Official Act of Possession

In 1598, Juan de Oñate, a Spanish nobleman and conquistador born in Zacatecas, Mexico, led a group of 539 colonists and 7,000 head of livestock (including horses, oxen, and cattle) from southern Chihuahua to settle the province of New Mexico. The caravan traveled a northeasterly route for weeks across the desert until it reached the banks of the Rio Grande in the San Elizario area. A mass was held, a blessing of the standard and a celebration. Oñate performed the ceremony of La Toma ("Taking Possession"), in which he claimed the new province for King Philip II of Spain. This is considered to be the "Birth of the American Southwest".

Hacienda de los Tiburcios

The settlement that became San Elizario was first established sometime before 1760 as the civilian settlement of Hacienda de los Tiburcios. The hacienda was located along the route of Camino Real de Tierra Adentro southeast of Socorro on the west bank of the Rio Grande. The hacienda was eventually abandoned by the 1770s.^{[6]: 46–47}

Presidio San Elzeario

In 1789, the site of the old hacienda Tiburcios became the new site where the Spaniards relocated a fort called Presidio de San Elzeario. It had originally been established in 1774, located farther south in the El Paso Valley near the site of modern El Porvenir. It had been moved north to be better able to protect the Camino Real and the towns of to its north, Socorro and Ysleta.^[6]: 46

The town that grew up around the presidio took its name San Elzeario, or San Elceario (Spanish for Saint Elzear); Saint Elzéar of Sabran is the Roman Catholic patron saint of soldiers. After the Americans acquired the town at the end of the Mexican American War, its name was Americanized as San Elizario.^{[7][8][6]: 46–47}

San Elizario

San Elizario was El Paso County's original county seat.

2020 census

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 10,116 people, 2,435 households, and 2,168 families residing in the city.

2000 census

As of the census^[3] of 2000, 11,046 people, 2,624 households, and 2,440 families resided in the CDP. The population density was 1,112.8 inhabitants per square mile (429.7/km²). There were 2,809 housing units at an average density of 283.0 per square mile (109.3/km²). The racial makeup of the CDP was 94.34% White, 0.15% African American, 5.55% Native American, 0.01% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 4.18% from other races, and 0.76% from two or more races. Hispanics or Latinos of any race were 97.88% of the population. Of those 98.88% who identify themselves as Hispanic, 95.02% identify themselves as Mexican, making San Elizario the most Mexican (though not Hispanic, see Mila Doce, Texas) town in the United States.

Of the 2,624 households, 67.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 73.8% were married couples living together, 15.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 7.0% were not families. About 6.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 2.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 4.21 and the average family size was 4.40.

In the CDP, the population was distributed as 42.3% under the age of 18, 11.0% from 18 to 24, 28.6% from 25 to 44, 13.4% from 45 to 64, and 4.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 22 years. For every 100 females, there were 99.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.4 males.

The median income for a household in the CDP was $20,145, and for a family was $20,772. Males had a median income of $16,689 versus $12,648 for females. The per capita income for the CDP was $5,915. About 40.2% of families and 44.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 51.8% of those under age 18 and 20.3% of those age 65 or over.