Texas Meets Arizona

The Superstition Mountains of Arizona are quite picturesque and have many hiking opportunities and of varying levels of difficulty.

Despite less-than-optimal weather conditions, we went further on our hike and were rewarded with some pretty scenes.

Near the end, we saw several longhorn cattle freely roaming about within the park lands. It made me feel like I should have been in Texas! I wondered what the process was for rounding up all the cattle - and what precautions the ranchers must take to protect themselves against those horns. Somehow, within all those prickly cactus and scrubby bushes, the cattle (who looked very well-fed) must find enough to eat. Gosh, if that would have been the Holstein cows we had on our farm in Wisconsin....

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San Antonio River Walk

One of the major attractions of San Antonio is its River Walk. Initially constructed in 1939 as a WPA project, the network of over 17,000 linear feet of walkways and 20 bridges continues to be expanded. Lining the edge of the shallow river were bars, shops, hotels, and restaurants. Pedestrians strolled past full cafés. Guides led boat passengers through portions of the river, revealing a bit of the history and attractions. Water birds paused along the beautifully indigenous landscaped shores. On the opposite side of the narrow river, a flamenco concert was held at an outdoor theatre. Interspersed were a few small waterfalls, adding to the ambience. With the exception of some areas where cafés were right up to the river, railing was absent. This made everything more attractive, but I wonder if people falling in the river has been a problem.

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Mission San José y San Miguel de Aguayo

Having already seen the Alamo, I wanted to further explore San Antonio’s missions. Since my time was limited and the other missions spread a few miles apart from each other, I selected to go to the San José Mission that was on the public bus line and had a visitor’s center. Founded just 2 years after the first mission, San Antonio de Valero (the Alamo), Mission San José once housed up to 350 Indians in 84 2-room apartments. Although rather simple, the apartments were a huge change for the nomadic Indians.
Amidst the mesquite honey trees were remains of workshops and other unidentified buildings. Because no documentation existed on these buildings in the central courtyard, they were not reconstructed.

Limestone Church
Near the far end of the wall was the limestone church, one of the best examples of Spanish colonial Baroque architecture. Built in 1768 at the height of the mission’s development, the church contains a rich collection of statues of the Holy Family and several saints on its façade, a replica of the original richly carved wooden door, and an arched back entrance with carved animals. Pomegranates, a symbol of unity, appeared throughout the relief carvings, much as grape vines did on other churches I’ve seen. The interior of the church, still in use and under the direction of the Catholic Church was much simpler in its decoration, particularly for a Baroque church. Once completely adorned in bold patterns and primary colors, only a small portion of the exterior painting remained. Next to a small tower partially held together by old wooden stairs was the Rose Window. Perhaps the best example of Spanish Colonial ornamentation in America, this richly decorated non-circular window opening remains a mystery as to its sculptor and significance. Next to the church was the Convento, a residence for the missionaries and a place of lodging for visitors. Remnants of a few rooms and the many arches (including a few incorrectly restored as pointed arches by the Benedictine monks) remained.

Just beyond the walls of the structure was the gristmill, which ground wheat to accommodate the residents’ new diet. A park ranger was there to demonstrate the process, increasing the flow of water to the wooden wheel below, which also sped up the grinding. Periodically the church bells rang out, much like they summoned the mission residents to worship three times a day. Back inside the walls, I visited the exhibits and a spacious granary with a barrel-vaulted ceiling.
In the 104 years that San José was a mission, over 2,000 Indians were baptized. Even today, some of the church worshippers can trace their lineage back to the mission Indians.

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The Missions of San Antonio

The chain of missions located along the San Antonio River in the 18th century were one of Spain’s most successful attempts to extend the Spanish kingdom northward and establish a concentrated area in which to spread the Catholic faith. In this way, the Franciscans helped expand the Spanish Empire against the encroaching French colonialists and focus on the spiritual conversion of the Native Americans of the region, supported financially by the Spanish Crown and the Catholic Church. Flourishing between 1747 and 1775, these missions also provided food, shelter and protection for the Coahuiltecan Indians. In return, these hunters and gatherers had to give up their nomadic way of life, language, clothing, names, and spiritual beliefs. In addition, they had to learn Latin and Spanish, as well as new jobs. Although European diseases such as smallpox did eventually ravage the mission and others chose to return to their former way of life, the San Antonio missions were considered a success and chartered the spiritual and cultural outcome of the region.

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San Antonio de Valero (The Alamo)

Located in the heart of today’s downtown San Antonio and just off the famous River Walk, the Alamo was the first mission on the San Antonio River. Established in 1718, the Alamo was once a walled community constructed out limestone and built under the direction of skilled craftsmen recruited from New Spain (present-day Mexico).

Today little remains other than the small iconic church whose façade we associate with the Alamo. After mission activity began to wane at the end of the 18th century, the Alamo was abandoned and used as a fortress by the Mexican army. Plaques, illuminated in the early night sky, told of the historic struggle of the outnumbered Texas defenders against the advance of the Mexican army in 1835. Now a national historic landmark, the Alamo continues to draw visitors and influence local architecture.

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