This site lay on land surveyed in 1777 for Spain's grants to Don Juan Hinojosa and José Marí Ballí, ancestors of the priest for whom Padre Island was named. The rancho raised cattle, sheep, and goats, and by the 1790s it had a fairground, giving rise to the name La Feria, where fiestas, horse racing, and other sports were held. After the Mexican War of 1846-48, the Ballí heirs had their title confirmed by Texas. In 1850, Nathaniel White, a cattleman and reputed smuggler who died in 1901, opened Anglo ranching here. In 1906, the townsite of La Feria was platted under its original name, and it is now a trade center for a thriving agricultural area.