Laredo is a city in Webb County, Texas, United States, and the county seat. It is located on the north bank of the Rio Grande in South Texas, across from Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas, Mexico. Laredo is the only city in the world to fly seven flags. Laredo, founded in 1755, developed from a small village to the capital of the Rio Grande Republic and the greatest inland port on the Mexican border. Laredo’s economy is centered on Mexican international trade. Laredo is home to a number of prominent transportation businesses. The city is located on the southern end of I-35, making it convenient to the northern Mexican manufacturers. There are four international bridges and one railroad bridge on the island.
According to the 2010 census, the city has a population of 236,091, making it Texas’ tenth-most populous city and the third-most populated U.S. city on the Mexican border, behind San Diego and El Paso. Its metropolitan area, which encompasses all of Webb County and has a population of 250,304 people, is the 178th largest in the United States. Laredo is part of the Laredo–Nuevo Laredo Metropolitan Area, which has a population of 636,516 people.
Laredo is known for having the highest Hispanic share of any city in the United States outside of Puerto Rico, with over 95 percent. As a result, it is one of the cities in the United States with the least ethnic diversity. When it comes to economic, household, and social diversity, Laredo ranks 19th out of 313 major cities in the United States.
Laredo is home to Texas A&M International University and Laredo College. The Laredo International Airport is located within the city limits of Laredo, while the Quetzalcoatl International Airport is located nearby in Nuevo Laredo, Mexico.
The vast majority of Laredo’s population (95.6 percent) is of Hispanic descent, predominantly Mexican, according to respondents’ self-identification on the 2010 Census (86.9 percent ). The majority of Hispanics who did not identify as Mexican described themselves as “other Hispanic or Latino” (8.3 percent of the total population). Only 11.3 percent of the population identifies as Hispanic but not white, while 84.3 percent of the population identifies as white Hispanic. Non-Hispanic White, 0.2 percent non-Hispanic Black or African American, 0.6 percent non-Hispanic Asian, 0.1 percent from some other race (non-Hispanic), and 0.1 percent of two or more races made up 4.4 percent of the population (non-Hispanic).
There were 99,675 males and 108,112 females according to the 2005 estimate. The average household had 3.69 people living in it. There were 2,250.5 persons per square mile (868.9/km2) in this area.
56,247, or 92.5 percent, of the 60,816 households were occupied: 33,832 were owner-occupied units and 22,415 were renter-occupied units. About 62.0 percent of the households were married couples, 18.7% had a female householder without a husband, and 14.7 percent were not families. Individuals made up about 12.7 percent of all households, with 5.2 percent having someone living alone who was 65 or older. The average family size was 4.18, and the average household size was 3.69.
