Col. José de Escandón y Helguera: Leading the colonization of Nuevo Santander
Part 2 of 2:
José de Escandón y Helguera was born May 19, 1700, in Soto la Marina, Spain, near the Cordillera Cantábrica in the area known as Santander. His parents were Juan de Escandón and Francisca de la Helguera, descendants of a prominent family of that region. Early in life he chose a military career and soon was on his way to "hacer las Américas" (to seek fame and fortune in the Americas). He arrived in Mérida and went on to Querétaro, México, in 1721.
His military experiences and his successes in dealing with the indigenous population earned him the respect of his superiors, and the Audiencia de México under the Viceroy began to see him as the likely candidate to command expeditions and settlements of the Seno Mexicano. On Sept. 3, 1746, he was appointed and charged with pacifying and eventually settling the area.
Escandón proposed to Spanish authorities that the "entradas," or expeditions into the interior, with a total of 1,750 soldiers, be executed from seven points and would call for all entradas to converge at the mouth of the Río Grande, or Río Bravo, as it was also known. Three would be from the south and three from the west, with the seventh departure performed from the Misión La Bahía del Espíritu Santo, near present day Goliad, Texas. It would cross the Nueces River and move north with 20 soldiers from the presidio and some from the Texas-Louisiana border.
His group left Querétaro on Jan. 24, 1747, heading north, reaching the Río Grande on Feb. 24 and setting up camp nearby. Six of the columns arrived on schedule, with only the La Bahía entrada somewhat delayed. Escandón determined the area would be suitable for settlement because it could be irrigated easily and also was suitable for missions. He found a large number of horse and burros, presumably left there by early Spanish explorers, as well as large deposits of salt near and around Reynosa and present-day Edinburg.
After the expeditions reached their goal, Escandón made his report to Spanish authorities, recommending that 14 sites be chosen for settlement, two of which would be in the present state of Texas and the other 12 in the present state of Tamaulipas. He also recommended that families from other parts of the Seno Mexicano be recruited with promises of land grants, and that 100 to 200 pesos be given to the families to cover one year of supplies.
He also recommended that soldiers who had made the entradas be given first choice. Each settlement would be governed by a capitán, who would have both civilian and military authority. Large porciones, or land grants, were bestowed on Spanish individuals beginning in 1767 b y King Carlos III of Spain, and these families, whose descendants still are active in Valley endeavors, became Spanish Grantees and among the earliest of South Texas’ families.
To Christianize the Indian population, missionaries were brought in from the Franciscan Order from Mexico City and Zacatecas.
During this time, too, the area comprising the Seno Mexicano officially became known as Nuevo Santander, honoring Escandón’s birthplace in Spain). It included the same dimensions as before: from the Pánuco River in Tampico to below the Nueces River, covering all of present-day Tamaulipas and present-day South Texas.
Spanish authorities bestowed on Escandón the title of Conde de la Sierra Gorda and made him a Knight of the Order of Santiago, the most distinguished military order in Spain, which dated back to the Middle Ages. He also was given the title "Lieutenant of the Viceroy of his Excellency the Viceroy of New Spain."
It was due to Escandón’s colonizing efforts that he is now known as the "Father of South Texas."
Brownsville native Dr. Lino García Jr. is Professor Emeritus of Spanish Literature at the University of Texas-Pan American in Edinburg, Texas. You can reach him at LGarcia@utpa.edu, or by calling (956) 381-3441.
PART 1 – Sunday: Col. José de Escandón y Helguera … How One Colonizer Came to Power
