San Juan De Carricitos Land Grant

El Agostadero de San Juan Carricitos, a pasture grant of more than half a million acres, went to José Narciso Cavazos on February 22, 1792; the Handbook spells the name Cabazos. In 1881 the grant was split after a suit by Richard King and Mifflin Kenedy. King Ranch land was then sold at nine dollars an acre to an irrigation company, and the pastures became farm towns. Lyford was platted on the grant in 1907, Lasara was laid out in 1924 and San Perlita was planned in 1926.

What the plaque says

San Juan De Carricitos Land Grant The largest land grant in South Texas, the San Juan de Carrictios lands were awarded to Don Jose Narciso Cavazos in 1792 by the King of Spain. Comprising over one-half million acres, the grant included virtually all of present Williacy County, including the sites of the towns of Sebastian, Lyford, Raymondville, Lasara, San Perlita, and Port Mansfield. In 1793 Cavazos took formal possession of the land grant seven miles north of this site. Most of the grant was later sold by Cavazos' heirs, although some descendants still live within its boundaries. (1988)

Where it stands

Worth the stop nearby

• Laguna Atascosa National Wildlife Refuge — 23 mi
  A coastal refuge set up in 1946 for wintering redhead ducks, with 417 bird species recorded and, by the Fish and Wildlife Service's account, the largest ocelot population in the United States.

More markers nearby

• San Perlita "Pearl of the Valley" — 4.1 mi
• Edward Burleson Raymond — 13 mi
• Willacy County — 13 mi
• Lyford — 15 mi