He March 29, 30 and 31, 1944, the call took place “Tampico Tarpon Rodeo”. An international fishing festival that has drawn many American tourists to the area, in search of break the world record for catching tarpon.

Largest specimen recorded up to that time weighed 112 kilograms and was caught in the port of Tampico.

A map and its history

In the file of David Rumsey Historical Map Collection, of the Stanford Library, is located a document titled “Fresh and Saltwater Big Game Fish”designed by Joe Godfrey Jr., in the city of Chicago, presumably in 1936.

Map material shows the geographic boundaries of the United States at the time, riverbeds, and the location of national parks. Besideslists 56 different species of fish that can be found in the United States, Canada, and Mexico.

In our country, one point among all stands out on the map, located in the northeastern region of the Republic, bordering the Gulf of Mexico to the east, on the municipality of Tampico, bears the following inscription: “Tampico Tarpon Rodeo”.

Tampico and its importance in the world of fishing

The map lists 22 famous fishing spots around the world. In position number 12 is the Gulf of Mexico Binational Highway. Who started in the region of Everglades, Florida, USA and peaked in Tampico, Tamaulipas, Mexico.

According to the material, in said path we could find tarpon, king mackerel, grouper and razor clam.

In fact, in 1936, the year the material was published, Tampico holds the record for largest tarpon caught. The specimen recorded an approximate weight of 112 kilos.

What did the New York Times say?

On Sunday, March 19, 1944, on page 8, The New York Times published an article titled “In the world of travel” where he made reference to the fishing contest that was going to be held in our city under the name of “Tampico Tarpon Rodeo”, on March 29, 30 and 31 of the aforementioned year.

The post advised potential attendees to wear sunglasses, use sunscreen and be careful around hosts.

We assume that the contest name meets the large specimens who were in the area. The English word “tarpon“translates into Spanish as”shad” And on the other hand, “rodeo“refers to the fact that”mount and bind” or, in another sense, “tame”.

The map’s creator, Joe Godfrey Jr, thanks all the men who love sports and cartography, whose help made it possible to produce an accurate and informative map.

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He material also includes the following caption “Allah does not deduct from the time allotted to each man, the hours he spends in fishing.” A clear reference to the benefits of the activity, which helps clear the mind and forget the problems of the outside world.

Did you know of the existence of the “Tampico Tarpon Rodeo”? In 1936, our city held the world record for the largest tarpon caught, with a total weight of 112 kilos. Do you think we can still find a specimen of similar size today?