San Antonio
Military City USA since 1718—JBSA contributes $41.3B to Texas economy. Healthcare and cybersecurity sectors grew directly from military expertise. Now #2 cyber hub outside DC.
San Antonio has been a garrison town for over 300 years, and that continuity shapes everything else. When the Spanish established Mission San Antonio de Valero in 1718—later known as the Alamo—they created a defensive outpost on the northern frontier of New Spain. The military function never left. It just changed flags.
Five Spanish missions along the San Antonio River, now a UNESCO World Heritage Site, formed the nucleus of colonial settlement. The 1836 Battle of the Alamo fixed the city in American mythology, but more importantly, it established San Antonio as a strategic military position. Fort Sam Houston opened in 1876 and became the staging ground for the Spanish-American War and both World Wars. Today, Joint Base San Antonio—combining Fort Sam Houston, Lackland Air Force Base, and Randolph Air Force Base—constitutes the largest joint military installation in the Department of Defense. Eleven percent of San Antonio's population is active or retired military.
This military-civilian symbiosis creates unusual economic stability. JBSA contributed $41.3 billion to the Texas economy in 2019. But the relationship runs deeper than contracts. Military medical training at Fort Sam Houston created the expertise that built South Texas Medical Center—45 healthcare institutions including the largest military hospital in the United States. One in six San Antonio workers now works in healthcare. Military cybersecurity operations spawned a private sector ecosystem: San Antonio has the second-highest concentration of cybersecurity professionals outside Washington, D.C., and in 2025 became home to Texas Cyber Command, the most ambitious state-based cybersecurity agency in America.
San Antonio led all US cities in population growth in 2023, adding 22,000 residents. Corporate headquarters include USAA (insurance), Valero (energy), and H-E-B (grocery)—each reflecting the city's function as a regional service hub. But unlike Dallas or Houston, San Antonio's economic identity remains shaped by its original purpose: a defended position on a contested frontier. By 2026, as federal spending priorities shift and cybersecurity threats escalate, the city's 300-year bet on defense will face its latest test of adaptation.