Didja Know? Didja?
History
The first Europeans to visit the freshwater springs in San Antonio were members of an expedition led by Domingo Teran de los Rios and Father Damian Massanet. They arrived on June 13, 1691 – the day of Saint Anthony of Padua – so they named the spot San Antonio de Padua in their native Spanish language.
Early European settlers used irrigation ditches called acequias (ah-say-key-ahs). The ditches carried water from the San Antonio River to farmlands to grow crops. Seven acequia systems linked the five missions built by the Spanish in the 1700s.
Do you know the names of the five missions in San Antonio? They are Mission San Antonio de Valero (The Alamo), Concepción, San Jose, San Juan and Espada. By 1850, water from the San Antonio River powered waterworks and mills, fed irrigation ditches, provided drinking water, put out fires and carried sewage downstream. It only took until 1890 for the artisan wells to lower the river to a “muddy trickle.” That’s what led to the first San Antonio River Improvement Association in 1911.
Six major floods tore through San Antonio between 1914 and 1921, with the last one covering downtown in up to 10 feet of water – and killing more than 50 people. Some residents wanted to turn the river into a concrete ditch to control the floods, but others demanded the natural river be saved. In 1926, the Olmos Dam was built and a “cutoff channel” was added to downtown. That change eventually meant the River Walk could be built.
The “father” of the River Walk as we know it was architect Robert H.H. Hugman. He based his design on old cities in Spain where no car traffic is allowed along narrow winding streets lined with the best shops and restaurants. He called his plan the “Shops of Aragon and Romula.”
About the River
Did you know fish can get sunburn? “Fish lunkers” are cozy underwater caves that were built into the boat landings along the Museum Reach. They provide shade and protection for fish – and for ducks and ducklings too.
The rippling water features along the Museum Reach aren’t just for show. They add oxygen – or aerate – the river water helping the fish “breathe” better.
River barges travel 9-feet up and down in the Lock and Dam. The grade of the river changes that much, and it’s the best way to get the barges up and down the river.
The locks were designed to raise the water level so smoothly that glasses won’t spill their liquid on a dinner barge.
The San Antonio River winds, meanders, twists and turns for 240 miles – starting at a headwater spring known as “Blue Hole” on the campus of the University of the Incarnate Word – and ending at the Gulf of Mexico.
The San Antonio River Tunnel is 150 feet underground and measures 24-feet around. It’s an important flood control tunnel that begins at Josephine Street and runs for three miles under the city to the outlet at Lonestar Boulevard south of the King William neighborhood.
Early settlers used the root of the lechuguilla (lay-shoo-whee-yah) plant – a kind of cactus – instead of soap. Some people still use lechuguilla because it leaves their hair and skin shiny and soft.
Spanish moss served as food for livestock when there was no grass around.
