The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 27, July 1923 - April, 1924 Page: 197
344 p. : maps ; 23 cm.View a full description of this periodical.
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St. Denis's Second Expedition to the Rio Grande 197
about it. The re-occupation of the abandoned missions, on a much
larger scale, was decided upon.
The expedition, including soldiers and settlers as well as priests,
among whom was the, no doubt, complacent Hidalgo, was under
the command of Captain Domingo Ram6n, the son of Diego. St.
Denis was offered and accepted the position of guide. The party
assembled at Saltillo and proceeded to San Juan Bautista, where
St. Denis had recently married Mafiuela Sinchez,6 the grand-
daughter of Captain Diego Ram6n. Leaving the Rio Grande on
April 26, 1716, they arrived among the Tejas in June, where four
missions and a presidio were soon founded, St. Denis taking an
active part in the work and winning the good opinion of the mis-
sionaries especially. He then went on to Mobile, accompanied by
Alferez Diego Ram6n, his father-in-law, and a soldier, to report
the results of his trip to Governor Cadillac.
II. TI-IE SECOND EXPEDITION7
1. Preparations.-Once more in Mobile, St. Denis seems to
have lost no time in preparing for a second trip to the Rio Grande.
Whether his plans concerned himself alone, or whether he was
acting under the direction and in the interest of Governor Cadillac,
or others, is not clear. According to St. Denis's own statement,
made under oath, his purpose in returning to Mobile was to dis-
pose of property which he owned there, and to collect the salary
'The daughter of the alf6rez, Diego Ram6n. She often is erroneously
called Dofia Maria Villescas, the daughter of Diego Ram6n, Sr., the com-
mandant at San Juan Bautista, the mistake being derived, no doubt,
from Penicaut's account (see below, note 23).
'This account of the second St. Denis expedition' has for its principal
source an expediente of Spanish documents entitled Testimonio de Dili-
gencias hechas por El sor Oydor Dn Juan de Oliuan Contra Las Personas
de Nacion frasesas sobre La Yntroducion de Mercansias que de la
:Mouila y Masacra han hecho a la Prouia, de Quahuila. It is further de-
scribed as having Vino Con carts Del Virrey de Na Spa Marqs de Balero
de 18 de febrero de 1718. V. con auiso en 17 de Junio del mismo ailo.
and is signed by Srio Dn Pedro de Luna y Gorreas. This expediente will
be referred to hereafter as Testimonio de Diligencies. It is to be found
in the Archivos de Indias, at Seville, Spain, Mexico, 61-6-35.
A transcript of this expediente, in the University of Texas Library,
was used in preparing this paper. French sources have been used to
complete and supplement the story. The accounts of the St. Denis epi-
so-de given in most of the earlier Texas histories have been supplanted by
'the works of later investigators who give the incident in the light of its
true importance. The present account is an' effort to supply the inci-
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Texas State Historical Association. The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 27, July 1923 - April, 1924, periodical, 1924; Austin, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth101086/m1/203/: accessed April 25, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Texas State Historical Association.