In 1904 Crisoforo Vela and his wife, Florinda (de la Vega Balli), moved to Hidalgo from Santo Domingo Ranch in Starr County. Six years later Vela acquired the ferry and rowboat service that connected Hidalgo with Reynosa, Mexico. This was an important commercial route in the early development of the Rio Grande Valley. Vela and two of his ten children operated the river crossing until 1926, when the first bridge connecting Reynosa and Hidalgo was built. Vela lived in this house, which has remained in the family for more than 50 years, until his death in 1932. (1984)