The area around San Antonio was established in the early 1700’s. Its early history centers around several Spanish missions built during that period. The most famous of these missions, the Alamo, served as a fortress in the Texas Revolution at the Battle of the Alamo. Centrally located between the settlements of Texas and the interior of … Read more
Settled in 1716, Nacogdoches claims to be the oldest town in Texas. It was then that Nuestra Senora de Guadalupe de los Nacogdoches was established as one of a series of Spanish missions in the area. The mission and the town were named for the Nacogdoches Indians, who originally inhabited the area. The missions were … Read more
Located on Matagorda Bay at the mouth of the Colorado River, the town of Matagorda lies near the site where French explorer LaSalle landed with some 200 colonists in February of 1685. It was there that LaSalle established the short-lived settlement of Fort St. Louis. The present town of Matagorda was founded in the late 1820’s following … Read more
La Grange is perhaps best known today as the home of the “Chicken Ranch” that provided the inspiration for the screenplay and movie “The Best Little Whore House in Texas.” The town got its start, however, because it was located at the crossing of the Colorado River and an old buffalo trail known as La … Read more
The above map shows the major settlements in Texas that date from the time of the Republic. Additional background information is available for each town by selecting the desired point on the map, or by selecting the name of the settlement from the alphabetical list below. Austin Bastrop Brazoria Columbia El Paso Galveston Goliad Gonzales … Read more
For millennia, various tribes of Native Americans occupied the region that is now Texas. They were as diverse in culture as the geography of Texas itself. The following is a very brief overview of the major tribes that existed at the time of the first European exploration: The Caddos in the east and northeast Texas … Read more
Carved out of a portion of the Austin colony grant of Richardson Harris, the town of Harrisburg was laid out in 1826. Located on Buffalo Bayou near present day Houston, it became an important trading center before the Texas Revolution. Before it was burned by Santa Anna a few days before the Battle of San … Read more
From time to time, we like to dive into our TexasProud.com email bag and answer a reader question…. “I’d like to learn more about the Civil War incident where Captain Duff and his Partisan Rangers captured four Kerr County residents, Sebird Henderson, Gus Tegener, Frank Scott, and Hiram Nelson, took them to Spring Branch near … Read more
A chain of five missions established along the San Antonio River in the 18th century became the largest concentration of Catholic missions in North America. Built primarily to expand Spanish New World influence northward from Mexico, the missions also served to introduce native inhabitants into Spanish society. Four of the missions (San Jose, San Juan, … Read more
Military Plaza in San Antonio dates back to the eighteenth century as a military and commercial center in San Antonio. Long before the Texas Revolution, Spanish troops marched in the plaza. After statehood, the site became a popular gathering place for medicine shows, entertainment, flea markets, and other town events. In 1876 — about the … Read more