This city that was born as a gathering of 13 livestock farms in 1774. A little later Franciscan missionaries arrived, in charge of tracing the new city in the purest Spanish colonial style, naming it Congregación de Nuestra Señora del Refugio.

With the arrival of the new century, El Refugio, as it was known, was a population in need of a formal government, for which they elected the first Mayor, Don Juan José de Chapa. He would soon receive orders from the Viceroyalty to open Puerto del Refugio and establish a Customs House.

At the end of the Independence War, the inhabitants of the new Mexican city decided to honor brave insurgent hero Mariano Matamoros, changing the name of the city and port to Matamoros, name of the locality since 1826.

Its strategic geographic position with the neighboring country on the north called the attention of Mexican military men who one by one came to the city for fortifying it and prepare against an imminent North American attack. Once the hostilities with Texas neighbors began, Matamoros served as a fort until in 1846 it was overtaken by the North American army and couldn't be freed until half of the nation's territory was handed over in 1848.

In the mid XIX century, Texans and some inhabitants of Tamaulipas went to arms in response to a denial of the Mexican government to create a free trade zone in the border. Mexico's government suspected the armed uprising would repeat the history of the former North American invasion and therefore refused the rebels' petition. When facing that refusal, the city of Matamoros was forced to an armed defense in 1851, obtaining the definite victory. Through this event, the city won the title of Heroic City of Matamoros.

Soon after the exile of Military Dictator General Porfirio Diaz, Mexicans began to reconstruct the country under a Republican model and fairer laws for all. In Matamoros, General Lucio Blanco imposed guidelines by giving out his estate among the workers; a historic event for the country and the reason this city is known as the Cradle of the Mexican Agrarian Movement.

The border of Mexico with United States is probably the largest frontier regarding size and international commerce operations in the world. Because of this, each Mexican border city has experienced an accelerated growth in the industries of commerce and services, particularly during the last years. In the border of Matamoros there are currently 4 border crossings, making it the Mexican city with the greatest number of such commercial corridors.

This is how today a modern urban infrastructure receives visitors, with modern public services attending in a satisfactory way most of the locality's population.