Natalia District No. 9, in the extreme southeast part of Medina County, was established in 1912 by consolidating several rural districts owned by the San Antonio Suburban Irrigation District. It encompassed 150,000 acres of fertile land along the International Great Northern Railroad and what is now called the Missouri Pacific and Meridian Highway, which passed diagonally through irrigated lands where many families were transforming the area into gardens and orchards. Northern settlers came to the Natalia area for better opportunities and a milder climate, and a modern two-story brick school with six classrooms was built for their families. The school was the first to own its own bus to transport children across the San Antonio Suburban Irrigation District, and it also owned a teacherage for the superintendent and faculty. In 1940, the system became known as Natalia Independent School District. The district has been recognized for academic accomplishments, including "Recognized" and "Exemplary" status at the elementary and junior high campuses, and it graduated the commissioner of the Texas Education Agency who served from 1984 to 1991.