The Texas-Mexican railroad was built with a wide curve southward in order to pass near the outpost, with Peña becoming an official stop in 1881. It had two restaurants, a hotel, a post office, and a mercantile store selling food, dry goods, tools, and hardware.

However, the Peña family declined to sell land for a townsite, so the railroad moved the station to land owned by James Hebbron a half mile to the west, which became the town of Hebbronville.

Peña continued to be an important depot for freight and travelers on the route between Corpus Christi, Laredo, and Rio Grande City until at least 1917.