Felipe Valerio Store and Garage
San Diego, Duval County, Texas
Marker Inscription
(1.5 mi. southeast) Built in 1905 by Felipe Valerio (1878-1953) and his wife Jesusa (1886-1973), the Valerio store was an integral part of the small community of La Rosita. Located approximately halfway between San Diego and Freer, the store provided groceries and other goods for residents of this rural area. An increase in business from the area oil boom in the 1930s led to the addition of a gas station and garage. The store also served as a bus station, and Felipe Valerio was local postmaster from 1917 to 1929. Construction of State Highway 44 led to the closing of the store in 1956. (1994)
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Felipe Valerio (1878–1953) and his wife Jesusa built this store in 1905 as the heart of the small community of La Rosita, roughly halfway between San Diego and Freer. It supplied groceries and goods to a rural stretch of South Texas, and the 1930s oil boom brought enough business to add a gas station and garage; it also served as a bus station, and Valerio was local postmaster from 1917 to 1929. The building closed in 1956 after State Highway 44 was built.
Why it matters
The Valerio store shows how a Tejano family's crossroads business—store, post office, filling station, and bus stop—knit together the daily life of rural South Texas until a new highway rerouted the world around it.
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Related people
- · Felipe Valerio
- · Jesusa Valerio
Themes & tags
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