Teach English in Tampico
History
Tampico is the main city in the Mexican state of Tamaulipas. It is the nation’s chief economic powerhouse on the Gulf of Mexico. Economic development during the 1920s made the city a commercial leader in the aviation and soda industries. Oil is the chief export, but the city also is a major exporter of silver, copper, and lumber, together with wool, hemp, and other agricultural products. Containerized cargo, however, is mainly handled by the neighboring ocean port of Altamira.
The present city was founded by European Mexicans on April 13, 1823, though there had been a series of human settlements in the area for centuries. The region had several early Huastec settlements, among them the important site at Las Flores, which flourished between 1000 and 1250 CE.
Among the earliest European colonists, the Spanish Franciscan priest Andrés de Olmos established a mission in the area in 1532. At his bequest, the Spanish officials founded a settlement called San Luis de Tampico in 1554. Its population was relocated in 1684 to the south of the Pánuco River due to frequent pirate attacks, among them a particularly destructive incursion by Laurens de Graaf.
In August 1829 during the Mexican Revolution, Spanish troops from Cuba invaded Tampico. In September a force under General Santa Ana forced the Spanish troops to surrender and Mexican control of Tampico was re-established.
The name “Tampico” is of Huastec origin: tam-piko, meaning “place of otters” (literally “water dogs”). The city is surrounded by rivers and lagoons that were the habitat of a historically large population of otters.
Living in Tampico
The city of Tampico is linked with two other towns that together form the metropolitan area: Altamira to the north and Ciudad Madero to the south. Located on the left hand side of the Panuco River that arrives here almost dried up from its furiously flowing journey down the Eastern Sierra Madre, Tampico is currently the second most important port in Mexico and it could not have a better geographical location from the point of view of international trade.
The origins of the city of Tampico date back to the first years of the colonies when Brother Andrés de Olmos founded the town of San Luis de Tampico north of its current location on April 26, 1554.
The richness of its salt mines and the need to find a location more in accordance with its vocation brought about the founding of modern Tampico on April 12, 1823. Its name at that time was Santa Anna de Tampico.
During its peak years, silver from San Luis Potosí left its docks and imported goods, clothes and prefabricated wooden houses that would set the style of the city’s architecture landed there. Towards the end of the 19th century, facilities were built to receive coal from Europe, and when the coal industry went into crisis, the port became the biggest throat to exhale oil. The arrival of thousands of immigrants from all over the world helped the city flourish.
Climate
Tampico has a humid subtropical climate. Its weather, though reasonably pleasant in spring and autumn, is hot in the summer; the average high reaches 32 °C (90 °F) in August, with an average low of 23 °C (74 °F). Winters are cool but not cold. The average January high is 22 °C (72 °F) and the average low in January is 13 °C (55 °F). Rainfall is frequent from May through September.
Tampico is an extremely humid city, with summer heat indexes reaching 40 °C (104 °F). During autumn and winter, it is affected by cold fronts that pass through the gulf and bring high winds that can reach 50 km/h (37 mph) with gusts of 70 to 80 km/h (43 to 50 mph). Tampico is located in a hurricane area, but it has not been affected directly by one in more than 50 years.
Transportation
The metropolitan area of Tampico, Ciudad Madero, and Altamira is served by General Francisco Javier Mina International Airport (IATA airport code: TAM), which is located in the northern part of the city of Tampico. It serves various routes to Mexican cities, mainly Mexico City and Monterrey. It also has international services, with daily flights to Houston, Texas.
