USA HISTORY

Detailed explanation-1: -On May 1, 1718, Father Antonio de San Buenaventura y Olivares performed the rites and rituals establishing Mission San Antonio de Valero west of San Pedro Springs, located just a few miles from the headwaters of the San Antonio River.

Detailed explanation-2: -The meaning of places can change drastically through time. There is no better example of this transition than the remains of the mission complex established by Franciscan missionaries as Mission San Antonio de Valero in 1718.

Detailed explanation-3: -Known today as The Alamo, this Spanish mission complex was the first of six San Antonio missions founded by Catholic missionaries along the San Antonio River in the early 1700s. The mission was a town and learning center to acculturate the local indigenous people to Christianity and Spanish life.

Detailed explanation-4: -On the first of May 1718, Father Antonio Olivares, a Franciscan missionary, established the mission of San Antonio de Valero which had been founded by the governor “about three-fourths of a league down the creek” from the presidio.

Detailed explanation-5: -San Antonio was founded May 1, 1718, when a Spanish expedition from Mexico established the Mission San Antonio de Valero. The mission, later called the Alamo (Spanish: “Cottonwood”), was one of five founded in the area and was named for St. Anthony of Padua.