The Quarterly of the Texas State Historical Association, Volume 8, July 1904 - April, 1905 Page: 286
xiii, 358 p. : ill., maps ; 23 cm.View a full description of this periodical.
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286
Texas Historical Association Quarterly.
fully followed," thirty families were settled on the banks of the
San Antonio River2 near its head, and thus the government took
the first step toward the formation of a settlement that might be
expected to endure.3 The presidio of San Antonio de B6xar which
had been founded by Alarc6n, and the mission of San Antonio de
Valero which had been founded just before by Padre Olivares were
placed near this settlement. Hitherto the Texas country had been
the objective point of occupation. Now, B6xar, which was to be-
come the final rallying point of the Spaniards, begins to rise into
view; while the eastern frontier becomes a secondary considera-
tion, and finally relatively unimportant. B6xar was at first
founded to prevent invasion through Bahia, while later the set-
tlement at Bahia was kept up as a means of protecting the more
important stronghold on the San Antonio River. The military
policy in accordance with which Alarc6n had been sent out to
Texas was not at this time followed up; for, when he asked for ad-
ditional troops, his request was refused. He visited the eastern
frontier, and added some six or seven soldiers to again make the
number twenty-five, which had been left by Ram6n. These with
the soldiers and their families settled at B6xar completed the
guard for the entire country. The settlement and fortification
of Bahia were entirely neglected.4
The next movement toward occupation came in 1721, when as
a result of the French invasion of 1719, a more strenuous military
'Espinosa, Chronica, 448.
COf. ibid., lib. IV, tit. VII, ley v. For a description of the kind of
places to be selected for settlement, see ibid. leyes i, iii, and vi, and tit. V,
leyes i and ii.
8In 1787, the cabildo in a petition presented to Governor Rafael Mar-
tinez Pacheco, protesting against the decision of Governor Cabello in
regard to the ownership of certain stock in Texas, tells the story of the
settlement of Texas from 1715 to 1722. It is strange that in this ac-
count no mention is made of the families settled by Alarc6n. (Representa-
cion ... que la Republica de la villa de San Fernando . .. ha puesto
a los pies de .. . Rafael Martinez Pacheco, etc., 1787, Bextr Archives.)
'For Alarc6n's expedition see Espinosa, Chronica; Bonilla, Brief Com-
pendium; Dictamen Fiscal, in Memorias de Nueva Espaia, XXVII, 171
vta.-175; Dictamen Fiscal, Mexico y Noviembre 30, de 1716; Carla del
P. Fray Antonio de Olivares d S. Exa., ibid., 169-171 vta.; Junta de
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Texas State Historical Association. The Quarterly of the Texas State Historical Association, Volume 8, July 1904 - April, 1905, periodical, 1905; Austin, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth101033/m1/293/?rotate=90: accessed April 23, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Texas State Historical Association.