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Victoria is a city in the state of
Texas, United States. It is the county seat
of Victoria County. The population was
62,592 as of the 2010 census. The three
counties of the Victoria Metropolitan
Statistical Area had a population of 111,163
as of the 2000 census. Victoria is
located 30 miles inland from ... Wikipedia
Victoria, Texas City website
Early History Of Victoria, Texas
In 1530, only 38 short years after
Columbus made his historic voyage, a Spanish
expedition was shipwrecked in the Gulf of
Mexico and the survivors landed on the coast
of Texas. Because of the abundance of
stately pecan trees, the Guadalupe River was
given the name of "The River of Nuts". The
leader of the expedition was Cabeza de Vaca.
Fortunately, of the four main Indian tribes
which he encountered in the area, the Lipans
and the Toncahuas were friendly and helped
the Spanish castaways recover their health.
Later, the expedition led by de Vaca made
its way to California and then returned to
Spain. Indications are that Cabeza de Vaca
was the first white man to ever set foot in
Texas.
A tiny fort was established
by Robert de La Salle and named for his king
- Fort St. Louis. Hostile Indians and
disease forced La Salle to abandon the fort,
but not before the news of this French
foothold had reached Spain. This caused
much consternation at the Spanish court, and
word was sent to Mexico. "Locate and get
rid of the French." This was more easily
said than done. It took four attempts
before an expedition led by Captain Alonzo
De León got through to this area,
rediscovered our river, and named it for the
patron saint of Mexico, Our Lady of
Guadalupe, in 1689.
In 1722, the Spanish
established a mission and a fort for its
protection on the site of old Fort St.
Louis, thus reclaiming the soil for Spain.
But Indians and disease were too much for
the Spanish, and both the mission and the
fort were moved to a valley on the Guadalupe
River, where there was only irrigation and
cattle raising. This area is today known as
Mission Valley and is located just northwest
of Victoria. Later, the mission and fort
were moved to a place on the San Antonio
River, the site of today's city of Goliad.
Permanent buildings were erected and
visitors to Goliad can visit the mission,
which has been restored to its original
state. The chapel was also restored, and
services are conducted regularly. This
mission, called La Bahia, played a prominent
part in the Texas Revolution.
Neither the French nor the
Spanish settlements made a permanent
impression on the area. It was left to
Martín De León to change forever this
vast and virgin countryside. The year was
1805 and many things were happening. The
United States had won its freedom from
England, the French monarchy had been
overthrown, and Spain's most important
colony in Mexico had thrown off the Spanish
yoke. Permission to establish a settlement
with the official name of Nuestra
Señora de Guadalupe de Victoria was
granted, but following Texas Independence
the name was shortened to Victoria.
The boundaries of
De León’s colony included parts of
Jackson, Calhoun, DeWitt and Victoria
counties, located roughly between the lower
Guadalupe River and the Lavaca River. The
seat of government was located on the banks
of the Guadalupe River in 1824 on a 640 acre
grant, and the original city plot was one of
the first in Texas to show a site for a
school. There were eight Anglo-American
families of good standing and of Catholic
Faith. Each colonist received one league of
land and a town lot, and the colony
prospered. In 1829,
De León obtained a contract to bring
150 families. His death and a cholera
epidemic of 1833 prevented this.
De León's first task was to plan his
city which was laid out in accordance with
his knowledge of European and Mexican
cities. Of prime importance was the market
square used by itinerant traders and local
settlers. Today Victoria's City Hall stands
on the old market square. Apparently,
De León's best friends lived on our
present Main Street because it was
originally named La Calle de Los Diez Amigos
- "The Street of Ten Friends". It was not
until after the Texas Revolution that
Victoria started taking on its
Anglo-American characteristics. Under the
Republic of Texas, Victoria County
was created on May 17, 1836, with the City
of Victoria for the county seat.
Victoria, Texas Chamber of Commerce
website
