San Antonio – Mission to See the Missions

We finally took a day to tour the historic Spanish Missions during our week in San Antonio. One of the first things we did upon arriving in town, was to walk the Riverwalk and have lunch at one of the fine restaurants. We love the riverwalk. I could do that every day. It’s like walking a beach at sunset. You are simply drawn to it. On the other hand, the majestic missions are rich with 1600’s history and are interesting to study. So, just before we left San Antonio, we were on a mission!

There are five missions in the area including the most famous: The Alamo. The others are San José, Concepción, San Juan, and Espada. Most include some ruins along with a restored church that is still in use today.

History

Spain’s colonization was being threatened by the French moving west from Louisiana. Spain stepped up their presence by building six missions beginning in 1690. The Spanish friars were here to establish the Catholic Church and along with that taught the native Americans how to irrigate and farm the land, including raising livestock. Prior to that, they were hunter/gatherers.

Increasing hostility from the mission Indians’ traditional enemy, the Apache, and later the Comanche, coupled with inadequate military support, caused the communities to retreat behind walls. Disease reduced the native population, accelerating the missions’ decline.

MIssion completed! I’m a bit behind on the blog. We have since been to Fredericksburg Texas for nine days and are now in west Texas on the way to Carlsbad, New Mexico. Stay tuned for upcoming blogs for these areas.

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