James McAllen Jr. of Linn, Texas is manager and co-owner of his family’s ranch, which was established in 1791. He has extensive knowledge of cattle operations, ranging from a commercial cow calf herd to a registered Beefmaster seed stock herd. In addition, James oversees all hunting and wildlife management on his family’s property.
James was born March 18, 1973 in McAllen, Texas. He graduated from Avon Old Farms School in Avon, Connecticut in 1992. In 1996, he earned a Bachelor’s Degree from Texas Christian University. After graduating, James returned to his family’s ranching operation where he continued to work with his father, James A. McAllen.
Within the cattle operation, James has implemented several techniques in cattle breeding and management to help improve revenues for the ranch. He expanded McAllen Ranch’s artificial insemination program within the commercial herd to help improve overall quality, performance, and uniformity of the cattle.
In 2018, James and his ranching family created an entity known as Los Faroles, LLC which owns a one mega-watt solar array and delivers electricity to the local community and South Texas Electric Cooperative.
James is co-manager and president of Oxford Solar, LLC and RGV Solar, LLC, two solar businesses which operate in the South Texas area. He is also CEO of Rio Grande Geothermal, LLC, a development company partnered with Sage Geosystems of Houston, to build the first Enhanced Geothermal System (EGS) in the United States.
James and his wife Katherine founded the Guadalupe El Torrero Foundation (GeT Foundation), a non-profit organization to bring awareness of art and culture to the borderlands of South Texas. Local scholarships are provided every year to high school, college, and graduate students. www.gettexasart.org
James is currently active with various organizations within his community: South Texans’ Property Rights Association – Board Member, Linn-San Manuel Community Improvement Corporation, The Linn-San Manuel Scholarship Committee, Texas Native Seeds, Texas A&M, Kingsville, Red Sands Groundwater District – President, Remember The Alamo Foundation – Board Member.
James is married to Dr. Katherine Moore McAllen, a professor of art history and the Maryalice Shary Shivers Endowed Chair of Fine Arts at UTRGV, and they have three children, James III, Salomé, and Georgiana.