Thursday, February 09, 2006
San Antonio Marks 275th Birthday
San Antonio city officials today announced plans for '275 days of celebration' to mark the 275th anniversary of the establishment of San Antonio and the construction of San Fernando Cathedral, the oldest standing structure in Texas.
Mayor Phil Hardberger told an event at the cathedral to mark the anniversary. "... a year before our first president was even born, there were 56 settlers from the Canary Islands, sent by the King of Spain, had already founded this great city."
San Antonio Marks 275th Birthday
Notes & Links of Interest:
The small town of "La Villa de San Fernando" was founded on March 9, 1731 by a group of 15 families who travelled to this remote settlement from the Canary Islands at the invitation of King Philip V of Spain.
The San Fernando Cathedral
The cornerstone of the church building in the new village was laid in 1738, making it the first parish church in Texas. The patronesses of the church were those of the settlers and soldiers in the area: Nuestra Senora de la Candelaria (Our Lady of Candlemas), a patroness of the Canary Islands, and Nuestra Senora de Guadalupe (Our Lady of Guadalupe), the patroness of what would later become Mexico.
San Fernando Cathedral History
Joaquín Leal was born in 1746 in the Villa de San Fernando (San Antonio) to Bernardo Leal and Lenore Delgado who were Canary Islanders and among the villa's original founders. His grandfather, Juan Leal Goraz, had, by royal decree, led the colony and was the first alcalde mayor of San Fernando.
Joaquín Leal (1746-1813)
Original Residents of Texas
Five Spanish Missions were founded in the area by the Canary Island settlers, one of them was the San Antonio de Valero Mission, later known as the Alamo.
Handbook of Texas Online: SAN ANTONIO, TX
