Historical Preservation Plan of 1977 – The Written Record Part III

In 1977, the Lower Rio Grande Valley Development Council created the Historical Preservation Plan which presented an inventory of the districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects in the tri-county area which were significant in American history, architecture, archaeology, and culture. We will share some of the chapters included in this plan that provide valuable historical information about Cameron, Hidalgo and Willacy Counties.

Historical Awareness in the Lower Rio Grande Valley – The Written Record.

With the conclusion of the Louisiana Purchase in 1803 the United States acquired the property from France, the area having been ceded to France in 1800.  The prospect of a controversy over the Southern boundary of Texas resulted in Spanish issuance of a royal proclamation fixing the official boundary between Texas and Nuevo Santander at the Nueces River.

Mexico began a struggle for independence from Spain in 1810.  When the area became a part of the Mexican State of Tamaulipas in 1821, Matamoros was but a small village.  Prior to 1828 there was little river commerce, due to the fact that Spain did not allow her colonists to trade with foreigners, and later, because Mexico made no effort to develop shipping.  In 1829, Henry Austin operated the first commercial vessel on the Rio Grande.

The year 1836 brought the formation of the Republic of Texas.  Between 1836 and 1846, both the Republic of Texas and the Mexican State of Tamaulipas had been unsuccessful in their attempts to establish settlements in the region lying between the Rio Grande and Nueces Rivers.