Outdated historical plaques to be replaced on Scenic Dr.

Scenic Drive provides some of the best views of the Borderland for visitors, many of whom stop to take photos or enjoy the usually pleasant weather.

There is one area that has several historical markers and plaques with information and facts about the region, except some of that information is now outdated.

Some of the plaques are more than fifty years old.

An ABC-7 viewer pointed out some of the discrepancies noted on the plaques.

One plaque still references the University of El Paso at Texas as Texas Western College and another plaque directs visitors to look out for the Asarco smokestacks.

ABC-7 visited Scenic Dr. while tourists were enjoying the sights and snapping photos. Two tourists were surprised to hear that some of the information on the plaques were outdated.

“It’s a bit disturbing because I have grandchildren, and if I wanted to go back to give them some history of Texas, which is what I planned to do, I would be giving them inaccurate information,” said one woman visiting from Georgia.

“There’s no longer a ‘smelting works’ over there. I could’ve spent all day looking for it,” said another man from Australia.

ABC-7 found out the El Paso County Historical Commission is in charge of all state historical markers and plaques, including the ones on Scenic Dr.

Janine Young, commission chairperson, told ABC-7 they were not aware about some of the information found on the plaques.

“We really rely on the community to let us know if there any issues with any markers,” Young said.

Young said the commission plans to assess all the historical markers in the county to determine which ones need upgrades and maintenance.

There is an application process that the commission would need to begin through the Texas Historical Commission in Austin before getting any plaques replaced. Young said that could take up to a year.

The commission would also have to decide what will be done with the plaques when they are removed. Young said they will look into possibly getting the plaques preserved.

“These markers definitely have reason to be at the top of our priority list,” Young said.

Since the project is still in its preliminary stage, Young could not say exactly how much it would cost to replace the markers, but added there is more than enough funding.

The commission has an $18,000 annual budget for historical markers and plaques.