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San Pedro Springs
The Springs and a small natural lake just below the Springs were a favorite meeting place and campsite for native Americans for thousands of years. The bones of mastadons, giant tigers, dire wolves, Colombian elephants, and extinct horses have been found here, along with projectile points and stone tools. In early historic times, a band of Coahuiltecan Indians known as Payayas called the Springs and their village there Yanaguana. After European settlement, the site was the social and recreational center of San Antonio for many decades, and a number of important old roads, including the Camino Real (King's Highway) radiated from this point. Early travelers would sometimes confuse these Springs with another major cluster of springs four miles to the northeast, San Antonio Springs. A nearby street, Calle del Camaron was named for the abundant crawfish that were found in the Springs and Creek. Limestone quarried from just northwest of the Springs provided stone for many of the town's early buildings.
Locations of the various San Pedro Springs Spanish exploration and settlement By 1680 the Spanish had begun to fear French expansion into lands claimed by Spain, and between 1709 and 1722 several Spanish entradas, or formal expeditions, made their way across Texas. These explorers realized the gentle plain below San Pedro Springs was a strategic spot for a permanent stronghold against French incursion. Father Isidro Felix de Espinosa, one of the leaders of an expedition in 1709, gave the Springs their name and provided the first known description:
Espinosa's description of an irrigation ditch with sluices and terraces has often been interpreted as evidence that native Americans were practicing irrigation here or that earlier Spanish settlers were already present. However, I. Waynne Cox pointed out there is no evidence for either interpretation in any other text or in the archaeological record (in Houk, 1999). There is no evidence anywhere else in the San Antonio River valley that inhabitants became farmers. M. B. Collins has suggested that because the plant and animal resources were so rich and diverse, efficient hunting and gathering prevailed and the labors and limitations of food production were looked upon with disdain (Collins, 1995). The terraces referred to by Espinoza may have been natural limestone outcroppings that were later quarried. In this region, limestone layers erode at different rates, resulting in hillsides having a stair-step appearance that can be mistaken as man-made. Another Franciscan missionary, Antonio de San Buenaventuara y Olivares, also arrived with Espinosa's 1709 expedition and became interested in this area of Texas and the intelligent Papaya Indians. He began a nine year campaign to build a mission here. He got his chance in 1718 when Martin de Alarcon, a Spanish soldier of fortune and governor of the province of Texas, was sent to establish a presidio and settlement. Many delays in mounting the expedition led to acrimony between Alarcon and Olivares, and they took separate routes to their destination. On May 1, 1718 Olivares broke ground just west of San Pedro Springs, built a hut of brush and grapevines, offered Mass, and named his mission San Antonio de Valero. This marked the establishment of San Antonio's first permanent settlement by Europeans. Meanwhile, Alarcon chose the creek just below the Springs for the site of the Royal Presidio, which became the focal point of Spanish defense in western Texas and San Antonio. Olivares' little mission later became known as the Alamo and the shrine of Texas liberty. Originally, the mission was not on the San Antonio River where the famous battle was fought. After establishment west of the Springs in 1718, the mission was moved to the east side of the Springs in 1719 where farmland was better, and then was moved to the location now occupied by St. Joseph's church. Hurricane floods destroyed it in 1724 and the mission was then moved to its final location on the banks of the San Antonio River (Noonan-Guerra, 1987). San Pedro Park was created in 1729 when King Philip V of Spain declared the land surrounding the Springs to be an ejido, or public land. Two years later, in 1731, the ejido was used for the first time in the public interest when the commander of the Royal Presidio designated it the temporary farming land of 56 men, women, and children who had just arrived from the Canary Islands. As such, the land around the Springs was also the site of San Antonio's first permanent settlement by European civilians. Until their arrival, the only colonists had been the military and religious missionaries. In 1731-34 missionairies used Indian laborers to construct acequias to carry water from the Spring headwaters toward town for irrigation and household use. One acequia is still there and occasionally carries a trickle of water from spring c in the graphic above. Though declared a public land in 1729, it took more than a century for the area around the Springs to take on the appearance of a modern day park. It remained little more than an outpost where armed travelers could graze their pack animals and obtain water. Around 1785, Philip Nolan, one of the first English-speaking adventurers in New Spain, brought his pack train to the site and skirted Spanish law to establish a trading network that created American-style commerce in Texas. Military uses of the Springs In the spring of 1813, revolutionists who favored a separation of Texas from Spain formed the Republican Army of the North and achieved victory over Spanish Royalist forces in San Antonio. They declared Texas to be independent, but the first Texas Republic was shortlived, as almost all the Republicans were massacred at the Battle of Medina in August of the same year. Following the battle, the city was systematically raped and pillaged and almost became a ghost town. Records of Spanish land grants in the village archives were lost, such as the one that declared an ejido around San Pedro Springs. Texas finally achieved independence in 1836, but the following decade was one of continued carnage and battles against re-invading Mexican troops and marauding Indians. By 1841, Texas Rangers headquartered in San Antonio under Captain Jack Hays had become experienced riders and Indian fighters. When they were not on expeditions against unfriendly Indians or Mexicans, they would join local Mexican cowboys and Comanche warriors at San Pedro Springs for riding contests and exhibitions of amazing feats of horsemanship. John Duval's firsthand descriptions of these riding matches are the earliest recorded use of the site as a recreation center. He wrote:
Opposite to them were the Texas Rangers:
and also:
After the arena had been cleared of the large crowd that had come to watch the show, the contest began:
Duval described how other portions of the contest involved shooting arrows and bullets into a target while riding past at full speed, shooting imaginary foes while hiding under a galloping horse's neck, and numerous horseback acrobatics. In the final event, the contestants broke in several wild horses, and then the judges awarded first prize to a Ranger and second prize to a Comanche warrior (Duval, 1892). In 1845, anticipating war with Mexico, the United States sent troops into Texas under Colonel William Harney, and his three companies of the 2nd United States Dragoons pitched camp near the Springs, making the Park the first home of a US garrison in Texas. The city recognized the advantage of having a permanent military presence and offered 100 acres of free land around the Springs for establishment of a fort, but Harney declined, telling City Council "The low land is unhealthful and the open space makes it easy for Indians to attack" (Crook, 1967). In 1849, some of the troops that had fought with William Jennings Worth in Mexico camped around springs in San Antonio during a cholera epidemic in which Worth and 600 others died. The campsite came to be known as "Worth's Spring", possibly referring to a location at San Pedro Springs Park (see the FAQ on Worth's Spring). In 1851, with original records missing, the City sought to re-establish the boundaries around San Pedro Park. Officials had the boundaries marked off as remembered by older residents, and then the city initiated legal proceedings against those it considered trespassers. In the case of Lewis and Others v. San Antonio, the District Court found in favor of the City and granted title to 46.004 acres that is now San Pedro Park. In 1852 the City sold two adjacent lots to Jacob J. Duerler, who built his house within 200 feet of the Springs on city land. In 1854 the City Council officially granted him permission to live on the property. In September of that same year, a two-day county agricultural fair was one of the first large community events to be held in the Park. Farmers and stockmen brought the best samples of their products to compete for prizes. Two years later, in 1854, the United States Army experimented with the use of camels in south Texas and temporarily stabled the animals in San Pedro Springs Park. In 1860 Sam Houston delivered a two-hour speech against secession at a large political rally at the Park. During the Civil War, Confederate soldiers used the Park as a prisoner-of-war camp. These intense uses by the military damaged the Park and in 1863 the City Council prohibited military encampments and livestock. San Antonio's Amusement Park In 1864, Jacob J. Duerler petitioned the city for a 20 year lease of the property in exchange for much-needed stewardship and improvements including fencing, planting of trees and shrubs, and cleaning the Springs. Under Duerler's management, the Park became San Antonio's amusement center, with an amazing array of attractions and interesting improvements to the grounds. Duerler created five fish ponds, planted flower gardens, constructed a speakers' stand and exhibition building with a ballroom and bar, rented boats, built a horse-race track, and opened a small museum and zoo.
In 1873, Edward King, writing for Scribner's Monthly Magazine, captured the spirit of the Park:
J. J. Duerler died unexpectedly in 1874 from injuries suffered in a fall, and and his son Gustave took on management of the site until 1877, when city records indicate that Duerler's son-in-law Isaac N. Lerich was representing the Duerler heirs in management of the Park. In 1878 a mule-drawn cart began continuous runs from the Alamo Plaza to the Park, making it more popular and accessible than ever. About this time a bandstand was added, and there were hot-air balloon rides and daring parachutists, shooting matches, and horse races. Even while the Park was become more popular, dissatisfaction over the management provided by Lerich was growing. The City Council initiated fence repairs and tree trimming on its own, and in 1880 passed a strongly worded ordinance that directed Mr. Lerich to make specific improvements. By 1883, the Duerler heirs had sold their unexpired lease to Frederick Kerbel, and City Council voted unanimously to approve the transfer. In that year, the General Directory of the City of San Antonio described the Park this way:
In 1885, Gustave Jermy, a Hungarian naturalist, opened the Museum of Natural History, a forerunner of today's Witte Museum, and the Park was in what we may retrospectively call its "heyday". Some other interesting features in the Park at that time included a strange little conical building that was built as a Victorian summer home and became known as the "Grotto". Through a pipe in the center, spring water rose to the top under artesian pressure and ran down the sides, creating a habitat for moss and ferns. There was also a large star-shaped rock structure that had an interesting fountainhead at its center, and a very popular, picturesque path called Lovers Lane that began at the east end of the bridge that spanned the lake. Some of the large trees that lined the path are still there. It would be difficult to guess how many romantic interludes occurred here!
The Beginning of the End By 1891, wells were being drilled into the Edwards Aquifer. In August of that year, the impact of one well was documented in the San Antonio Daily Express. The event created great excitement, but it was not recognized as the harbinger of the Spring's end:
Although the completion of this particular well actually increased the flow, the drilling of many others was about to ensure a long, slow decline of the Springs towards intermittent and meager flow, and then long-term cessation. Also in 1891, upon expiration of Kerbel's lease, the City Council voted to assume management of the Park. Over the next few years, both springflows and the Park itself suffered serious deterioration. In 1897 Mayor Bryan Callaghan was elected for a second term and took a great interest in renovating the Park. The lake was cleaned and its stone walls repaired, Duerler's ponds were filled in and his pavilions demolished, and a replacement bandstand was moved from Alamo Plaza. Grass, tropical plants, caladium, and water lilies were added, and driveways, bridges, benches, pathways, planting beds, and a boat landing were built.
The Park formally reopened on August 11, 1899, but by this time it was surrounded by San Antonio's rapidly growing residential neighborhoods, and the drilling of numerous wells ensured that springflows would never again be as vigorous and reliable as in the past.
Legends of San Pedro There are many haunting legends and mysterious tales associated with the San Pedro Springs and Park. For example, Francisco Rodriguez, a Canary Island immigrant to Texas in the 1730's, is reported to have buried several chests of gold and silver coins near the Springs, perhaps in caves under the northern edge of the Park. He died before telling anyone the location, and they have never been found. (Brune, 1975). The same caves were reputed to have been used as hideouts for bandits in the mid 19th century. Several hundred feet east of the Springs is a very old small stone building with vertical slits for rifles thought to have been used as an early refuge against hostile Indian attacks. It's date of construction has not been firmly established, but some believe it may be the oldest structure in Texas. One theory is that it was built by Spanish soldiers between 1690 and 1716 and was the southwest corner of a stockade, the rest of which was made of cedar and was burned by the Indians. If this is true, it would predate Olivares' 1718 mission. Casting doubt on this theory is the fact that no mention of the building is made by the friars who carefully recorded descriptions of the land. An old San Antonio legend says the structure was built by the Texas army to store powder. Others say it was only a hay barn. In later years, J. J. Duerler used the little building as a smokehouse.
One of the legends of San Pedro Springs, The Lure of Lolita, appeared in a 1911 newspaper article and involves the inhabitants of this old structure. The article says that about 60 years earlier, around 1851, a man named Vincent Boone sought shelter from a storm at the Block House. A very old, dark man who called himself Pedro Lara answered the door and, noticing that Boone carried a fat money bag, offered him food and the opportunity to stay the night in a hut nearby. He introduced Boone to Lolita, an extremely beautiful young girl that Lara said was his daughter. Boone was wary of Lara, and decided to spend the night with his gun on his chest and his clothes on. During the night, Boone heard noises in his hut, struck a match, and saw Lara approaching with a knife. The match went out, and Boone shot into the darkness. He lit another match, but Lara was nowhere to be seen. Then, Lolita ran up to the hut and revealed a trap door that led to a shallow cave where Lara lay dead. She begged Boone for mercy, saying she was not Lara's daughter but had been bought by him as a young child and had been used time and time again to lure travelers into staying in the hut so Lara could rob and kill them. She said the cave already contained the bodies of two people Lara had killed. Whether or not any of this is true no one can say. But in 1900 city workers were extending San Pedro Avenue past Dwyer Street and found a shallow cave with three skeletons. Another legend that persists to this day concerns a tunnel that once connected the Alamo and San Pedro Springs Park. The passageway was supposed to have been formed by a cave that ran much of the distance between the two sites, beginning in the Flag Room at the Alamo. Some say the opening at the San Pedro Park end was in the "bear pit", a small quarry that was a part of San Antonio's first zoo and that has been covered since 1897. Others say the tunnel emerged under the gazebo and was so large one could ride a horse through it. Geologists say it's highly unlikely such a tunnel ever existed because it would have had to go underneath the San Antonio River. 20th Century Decline and Renewal As the 20th century began, an exploding number of Edwards wells intercepted greater and greater volumes of water that would have been destined to become springflow at San Pedro. Still, the Park remained popular, and another major renovation began in 1915 and extended into the 1920s. The zoo animals were moved to a new facility in Brackenridge Park, a swimming pool was built in the old lake bed, and tennis courts, a library, and a community theater were constructed. The swimming pool was a naturalistic lake replenished by the Springs. An astonishing variety of early 20th century postcards depicting San Pedro Springs can be found in area antique stores and on ebay (see collection below). Mostly produced between 1900 and 1920, they attest to the popularity and importance of the Park. Their disappearance after about 1920 confirms that springflows and the Park itself were in serious decline by then. Crawfish and other aquatic life that was in abundance until the early 1900s began having a difficult time surviving. By the 1940s, springflows were reduced to almost zero by drought and pumping, and there was no longer sufficient water to fill the natural swimming pool, so it stood empty for a decade. In 1954, with assistance from philanthropist and grocer Howard E. Butt, it was replaced by a smaller, rectangular pool that was filled with chlorinated municipal well water. In the same year, the bandit caves where Rodriguez may have buried the gold were destroyed by construction of the McFarlin Tennis Center (Rybczyk, 1992). The Springs remained mostly dry for the next 35 years, and several new generations of San Antonians grew up swimming in a municipal pool much like any other, without much remembrance or personal connection to the Springs. But after record rain events in 1991 and 1992, the main Springs flowed profusely again and dozens of long-forgotten tiny springs bubbled up all over the Park. For several months, the Spring pools were once again a magnet for swimmers and waders, although such recreation was officially disallowed. In 1993 the City adopted a Park Master Plan that called for showcasing the Springs and restoring the original lake as a swimming pool, and voters passed a bond issue in 1994 to fund renovations. In 1996 disputes erupted between citizens groups and city staff over what to do with the McFarlin Tennis Center and several baseball stadiums that impeded open-space views to the Park's interior. Many considered the Tennis Center an aesthetic eyesore - it's stadium riser seating and light towers loomed over and dominated the Springs. Another controversy involved placement of a fence around the restored lake. Almost everyone agreed a fence around a natural-looking lake would look stupid. In 1996 city legal staff decided no fence was needed and noted "...the city will incur the same type of liability that exists with Woodlawn Lake and lakes and ponds in other city parks." But at the last minute in 1998 the city attorney's office changed its mind, describing great liability exposure for the city if no fence was built. A design for a permanent stone pier and metal fence was presented, and neighborhood objections were loud and immediate. A compromise was reached - the fence was redesigned for easy removal and storage most of the year and is only left in place only when city swimming programs take place during the summer. In July of 1998 work was finally set to begin on the makeover of the historic Park and Springs. Showcasing the Springs and restoring the pool were priorities, along with a new network of wide walkways, new lighting, removal of parking to the fringes of the Park, removal of old drainage channels to create more open green space, and reconfiguration of the McFarlin Tennis Center to reduce its visual impact. The graphic near the to of this page shows the configuration of the Park prior to the 1998 reconstruction and the locations of the major Spring outlets. The pool has been completely replaced and the parking areas have been moved to the north of the Springs, but the locations of the Springs are still the same. Spring e is the largest. Springs a and b, in front of the bandstand, were sealed by the City Parks and Recreation Department many years ago to divert more flow to the other Springs. Park Reopening On Saturday May 20, 2000, the beautifully restored San Pedro Springs Park reopened for public use. To give the new pool the feeling of a natural lake, it was finished in dark plaster and surrounded by a broad limestone walkway. At the opening festivities descendants of the native inhabitants, the Yanaguana Drummers, shared a tribal ceremony and a mesmerizing, riveting drum performance. Then there were many long speeches about everything the waters and Park have meant to people over the years. It seemed ironic that at the last minute no one was allowed in the water. It had been announced that when the ribbon was cut, swimmers would jump in. But just before this was to occur it was announced this would "send the wrong signal" because no lifeguard was on duty and the other city parks did not officially open for swimming until May 27, a week later.
As part of the 1998 restoration, designer and fabricator Jack Robbins created this series of panels, each referencing a historical segment of the history of San Pedro Springs Park. They are attached to the lightpost bases around the Park.
The Springs and Park today Since the mid-1990s, limitations on Edwards Aquifer pumping have been in place and world-class conservation efforts have been undertaken by the San Antonio Water System and local residents. These measures have resulted in longer periods of springflow than have been witnessed in many decades. While the renovated Park still has plenty of fans, as seen below, it has never regained its former prominence as San Antonio's most beloved playground. Many long-time residents have never even visited the park - most are completely unaware it even exists and know nothing of its history and importance to San Antonio. A group of volunteers is working to change that. The Friends of San Pedro Springs Park is a non-profit support group under the umbrella of the San Antonio Parks Foundation, and their mission is to help with the restoration and preservation of the Park, and to communicate its long history. Membership is open to the public, and you can get more information from their website.
San Pedro Springs photo gallery
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