Old Spanish Trail

Nicolas de Lafora, who mapped the trail, was a military engineer born in Alicante about 1730. He joined the Spanish army in 1746 and served in Italy, North Africa and Portugal before coming to Mexico in 1764. Chosen for the Marques de Rubi's inspection of the northern frontier, he kept daily records of terrain, coordinates and peoples, traveling by his own count about 7,600 miles in twenty-three months. His account of the frontier provinces was called the best single source on them yet found. He later served as corregidor of Oaxaca from 1774 to 1785.

What the plaque says

Old Spanish Trail The Old Spanish Trail was a significant route from San Antonio through Bandera Pass, Camp Verde, Kerrville, Ingram and Mountain Home. For centuries, it was used by Native Americans, including Comanches and Lipan Apaches. Spanish colonists living in the San Antonio area asked for protection from the Lipan Apaches, and in 1732, Juan Antonio Bustillo y Cebalos won a victory against the Apaches at Bandera Pass on the trail. A short period of peace was followed by further violence. In 1739, Captain Jose de Urrutia used the Old Spanish Trail to push into San Saba River country, where his soldiers surprised an Indian camp and seized a number of captives. Other expeditions were made between 1753 and 1756, possibly using the Old Spanish Trail among other routes through this area. In 1757, the Spanish established Santa Cruz de San Saba Mission and Presidio San Luis de la Amarillas, several miles apart, along the San Saba River near present-day Menard (Menard Co.). Activity in the San Saba area and along the Old Spanish Trail continued sporadically over the following decades, with the allure of nearby silver mines attracting adventurers. Nicholas de Lafora mapped this route in 1771. Traffic continued even after the presidio and mission closed in 1772. In 1828, noted Swiss botanist Jean Louis Berlandier traveled this route with Comanche guides. In 1855, Camp Verde was established at the junction of the Comanche Trail and the Old Spanish Trail. Camp Ives was established in 1859, four miles north of Camp Verde. Soldiers from both posts used the Old Spanish Trail in patrolling duties.The trail later became part of a military road leading from San Antonio to Fort Terrett (Sutton Co.). Today, the Old Spanish Trail is remembered as an ancient road that played a significant role in shaping the settlement, culture and history of Kerr County. (2009)

Where it stands

Worth the stop nearby

• Schreiner Mansion — 1.7 mi
  The 1879 downtown home of Charles Schreiner, the Alsatian-born merchant, banker and rancher whose store and mohair trade built Kerrville.
• Treue der Union Monument — 16 mi
  An 1866 German-language monument in Comfort over the graves of Hill Country Unionists killed at the Nueces in 1862, its flag of thirty-six stars kept at half-staff.
• Old Tunnel State Park — 21 mi
  A railroad tunnel abandoned in 1942 that now shelters up to three million Mexican free-tailed bats, who fly out each evening from May through October.
• Vereins Kirche and Main Street — 23 mi
  The octagonal Society Church on Fredericksburg's market square, rebuilt in stone in the 1930s, beside a main street laid out like a Rhine village.

More markers nearby

• Kerrville Lodge No. 697, A.F. & A.M. — 0.7 mi
• Gatlin Site — 1.1 mi
• First Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) of Kerrville — 1.2 mi
• Mount Olive Baptist Church — 1.2 mi