Notes from Dr. Borkosky

spanish land grants in east texas

A typical surveying party of the last quarter of the nineteenth century consisted of a chief of party, a transitman, two chainmen, one or two flagmen, a corner builder, and a cook. This collection started with the work of borderlands historian, Dr. Sonia Hernandez, who oversaw student research on porciones or Spanish land grants. The Spanish and Mexican Land Grants in South Texas not only go hand in hand with history but also with Genealogy. The amount of land disposed of under the pre-emption and homestead laws of Texas is recorded at 4,847,136 acres. El Paso, TX: Texas Western Press, University of Texas at El Paso, 1971.

The 1808 description of the property is vivid: “…the plants are chaparral, huisache, mesquite, and retama, and such vegetation is so plentiful that it makes the land uninhabitable…The animals are tigers, leopards, wolves, coyotes, rabbits, hares, deer, antelope and snakes, and these last named are abundant.”. Subjects: Anthropology, Geography, Oral History

Given the location of The University of Texas-Rio Grande Valley, in the heart of South Texas, this project to recover the history of the porciones is of immense value to the community. N� ����d� ��V$ Yes, I would like to begin receiving history-rich content, news, and updates from TSHA. The Pereda tract was eventually confirmed by the District Court of Webb County in accordance with the provisions of an 1860 legislative act and patented in 1872. Published by the Texas State Historical Association. In this case, however, the title is a testimonio — a certified copy of the original — made at Revilla soon after the issuance of the title. Videographer: Mayra Zepeda Many of the grants, especially the larger ones, also acquired names, usually derived from saints' names, physical or natural characteristics of the region, or events. by Jim Turner. Thomas L. Miller, Bounty and Donation Land Grants of Texas, 1835–1888 (Austin: University of Texas Press, 1967). In the location of railroad grants, field notes to hundreds of sections were made and filed by surveyors who were never on the land they described. %%EOF The early surveyors used a linked chain twenty varas long or a Gunter's chain corrected to the vara standard. https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/surveying. Land was the reason that many of our ancestors followed Jose de Escandon to populate what is now Northeastern Mexico and South Texas.

Production Reports as of April, 2010 indicate that some part of the mineral estate remains in the unknown heirs on the following grants: This list is about 75% complete and will be updated as more grants are reviewed.Items in bold are new entries to our database. Officials of Tamaulipas, which included much of what is now South Texas, also sought to encourage colonization of its vacant lands through the colonization law of 1825. Private land grants in what is now South Texas did not begin until the mid-eighteenth century. A light buggy was provided for the transitman, and the corner builder used a light wagon. B. DIMMIT (275) WEBB (139,207) P. WELL (66,975), GARCIA Y GARCIA, De la Garcia NICOLAS, MATIAS, and BRUNO*, Jim Wells: 60.29% umps & Duval County: 57.14% umps, LAS VIBORITAS, SANTA RITA Y LOMA DEL SORDO, Webb County: 28.9% umps & Zapata County: 13.95% umps, LAS ANIMAS or ALBERCA DE ABAJO (also referred to as ALBERCA CISNERENA), 'Santa Maria De Los Angeles De Abajo' or El 'Mesquite'. While research efforts to recover and publish this history have been made in the past decade or two, a wide gap remains unfilled. In February, 1860, the legislature passed a measure that gave the responsibility for confirming Spanish and Mexican titles to the district courts. Pre-emptors, or homesteaders, were required to cover their locations with valid certificates within three years. Ranching lands further away from the town were generally held informally in the early years of Spanish Texas, and only regularized in later years. Surveyors are also often needed to help settle compensation cases. In the twentieth century surveyors in Texas used increasingly advanced technology to survey subdivisions, highways, railroads, pipelines, and wells. To view the full length video, come to the Border Studies Archive Monday - Friday 1-5pm. Spanish Land Grants This collection started with the work of borderlands historian, Dr. Sonia Hernandez, who oversaw student research on porciones or Spanish land grants. The history of land grants in Texas is a long and complex one. After some negotiation with the authorities, the Peredas agreed to pay an additional 12 pesos for the land, plus other fees, for a total of 99.5 pesos for the entire 17,000-acre tract. During the mid-18th century, private land was documented, surveyed, and divided into porciones, or long thin strips of land, by a Spanish royal commission in southern Texas, while tracts of land in North Texas were informally granted to settlers. All copyrighted materials included within the Handbook of Texas Online are in accordance with Title 17 U.S.C.

There's some spooky history here in Texas. Induced by titles and estates, Spanish adventurers ventured into the frontier, followed by traders and artisans. Bounty and donation grants for military service amounted to a total of 3,149,234 acres. In addition to large grants made directly to the contractors, settlers in such colonies were granted 640 acres each, if heads of families, or 320 acres, if single. We created this eBook for you, and it was made possible through the contributions of our members and supporters. [1] The difference between this document and the thousands of others in the Spanish Collection is that this particular document is stained through with blood. Curtis Bishop, Lots of Land (Austin: Steck, 1949). As time passed and the sovereignty of South Texas changed from New Spain to Mexico, to the Republic of Texas, and finally the state of Texas, the subsequent owners of the property suffered decades worth of bureaucratic hassles in order to confirm the land under the state. This collection is part of a larger project devoted to documenting Borderlands history developed with the Community Historical Archaeology Project with Schools (CHAPS). Between 1821 and 1835, forty-one empresario grants were made, the majority going to emigrants from the United States. Surveyors could not agree on the declination; some thought it should be east, others thought it should be west; others used no declination at all but simply ran a magnetic course. Virginia H. Taylor, Index to Spanish and Mexican Land Grants (Austin: General Land Office, 1976). The porciones in each of the five settlements was assigned a number. Later on the Mexican Government gave more land grants stretching up to the Nueces River and beyond.

Production Reports as of April, 2010 indicate that some part of the mineral estate remains in the unknown heirs on the following grants: Austin warned surveyors to avoid leaving vacancies between tracts. A Though the grant was declared void after the Mexican War of Independence, Austin succeeded in negotiating a new contract under President Agustín de Iturbide's colonization law of 1823 (see MEXICAN COLONIZATION LAWS). Most of these grants, which were intended for grazing, went to influential citizens of Camargo and Reynosa. Investigation of the mineral estate status on Spanish and Mexican land grants in South Texas reveals that many appear to have royalties going into suspense, or have in the past had royalties going into suspense. In January 1821, Moses Austin was promised a contract to land on the Brazos River in exchange for bringing 300 Catholic families from Louisiana. Despite the granting of large areas of land in the north, the number of inhabitants of the region remained small. south Texas Spanish land grants Spanish and Mexican Land Grants of South Texas Unnumbered Porciones Please note this list is from 2002, and not updated, but we are looking for a more updated list. The reports contain ample proof of these changes, including official documents such as land title and warranty deeds, official family trees, maps, photos, oral histories and letters. Others, however, had to go through the courts in order to be confirmed and entered into the record as privately-owned land. The wording of the decree as it pertained to slavery was vague and did not immediately prohibit the importation of slaves. The Republic of Texas made many headright grants, that is, grants given on the condition that specified requirements be met by the grantees. In order to attract settlers, the Republic of Texas also made colonization contracts with various individuals to establish colonies in the republic and receive payment in land. Students conduct land title research in the Hidalgo County Courthouse and conduct family oral interviews. The surveyor's fee was to be five dollars per Spanish mile, payable in property, or three dollars per mile, payable in cash.

An act of 1868 granted warrants to Texans who had fought in the Union Army, but no land was ever claimed under this law. A Location: Edinburg, Texas Grants were made to Mexican ranchers, but the attempts to attract large numbers of settlers proved unsuccessful. 3E's Grant Programs (E3E & X3E) Texans Feeding Texans - Surplus Agricultural Products Grant Program ; Texans Feeding Texans - Home-Delivered Meal Grant Program (HDM) Urban Schools Agricultural Grant Program (US) Rural Health Grants. / Under the state government this period was extended to January 1, 1854. A These elongated quadrangles were known as porciones. Subsequently, a preliminary survey was made that described how the surveyors had walked the property with the father and son for three days, taking note of the flora and fauna. Land grants from the state of Texas to railroad companies were often patented in blocks and sections, and occasionally in units of square miles, officially considered sections. Guide to Spanish and Mexican Land Grants in South Texas (Austin: Texas General Land Office, 1988). Demands for speed often meant that surveys were not closed on the ground and that careless errors in chaining and bearings were made. If you wish to use copyrighted material from this site for purposes of your own that go beyond fair use, you must obtain permission from the copyright owner. Interviewer: Dr. Margaret E. Dorsey Following the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, the land grants in the Trans-Nueces Strip were to be confirmed by the state and remain in private hands, unless they had been abandoned. Individuals could petition for grants directly, but more often applications were handled by immigration agents, or empresarios.

And, although it is not mentioned in the testimonio, as part of the final process of taking possession of the land, the local authorities would have instructed the Peredas to pull grass, dig the earth, walk the land, throw stones, and place fixed landmarks at the corners to affirm their ownership of the tract.

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