Los Adaes | |
   | |
| Location | Natchitoches Parish,Louisiana, USA |
|---|---|
| Nearest city | Robeline, Louisiana |
| Built | 1721 |
| NRHP reference No. | 78001427 (original) 93001622 (increase) |
| Significant dates | |
| Added to NRHP | June 7, 1978[1] |
| Boundary increase | November 4, 1993 |
| Designated NHL | June 23, 1986[2] |
Los Adaes was the capital ofTejas (Texas) on the northeastern frontier ofNew Spain from 1721 to 1773. It included aFranciscanmission, San Miguel de Cuéllar de los Adaes,[3] and apresidio, Nuestra Señora del Pilar de Los Adaes (Our Lady of the Pillar of the Adaes). The name Adaes derives from the indigenousAdai people, members of theCaddoan confederacy ofIndians who were the people the missionaries aimed to convert toChristianity. The presidio and mission were established to counter French influence in Louisiana territory and defendNew Spain (Mexico, including Texas) from possible invasion or encroachment by the French. In 1763Louisiana came under the control of Spain and the Los Adaes outpost was no longer necessary for defense. In 1773 the Spanish closed the mission and presidio and forced the population to move toSan Antonio.
The site, now preserved in the state-runLos Adaes State Historic Site, is located onLouisiana Highway 485 in present-dayNatchitoches Parish,Louisiana. It was designated aNational Historic Landmark in 1986.
Although Spain claimed much of theGulf Coast of North America as part of its colonial territory, it largely ignored the region to the east of theRio Grande throughout the 17th century.[4] In 1699,Frenchforts were established atBiloxi Bay and on theMississippi River, ending Spain's exclusive control of the Gulf Coast.[5] The Spanish recognized that French encroachment could threaten other Spanish areas, and they ordered the reoccupation of Texas as a buffer betweenNew Spain andFrench settlements in Louisiana.[6]
On April 12, 1716, an expedition led byDomingo Ramon leftSan Juan Bautista for Texas, intending to establish four missions and apresidio.[7][8] At the same time, the French were building a fort inNatchitoches, having founded the town in 1714. The Spanish countered by founding two more missions just west of Natchitoches, including San Miguel de los Adaes (for a total of six missions in the region).[9] The latter two missions were located in a disputed area;France claimed theSabine River to be the western boundary of colonial Louisiana, whileSpain claimed theRed River to be the eastern boundary of colonial Texas, leaving an overlap of 45 miles (72 km).[10]
In 1719, European powers embarked on theWar of the Quadruple Alliance. In June 1719, 7 Frenchmen from Natchitoches took control of the mission of San Miguel de los Adaes from its sole defender, who did not know that the nations were at war. The French soldiers explained that 100 additional soldiers were coming; the Spanish colonists, missionaries, and remaining soldiers abandoned the area and fled toSan Antonio.[11]
TheMarquis de San Miguel de Aguayo volunteered to reconquerSpanish Texas and raised an army of 500 soldiers.[12] By July 1721, Aguayo reached theNeches River. His expedition encountered a French forceen route to attackSan Antonio de Bexar. The outnumbered Frenchmen agreed to retreat toLouisiana. Aguayo then ordered the building of a newpresidio Nuestra Señora del Pilar de Los Adaes, located near present-dayRobeline, Louisiana, only 12 miles (19 km) from Natchitoches.[13] The newfort became the firstcapital ofTexas, and it was guarded by 6 cannon and agarrison of 100 soldiers.[12] All six of the eastern Tejasmissions were reopened, under the protection of the new presidio.[14]
Spain discouraged manufacturing in its colonies and limited trade to Spanish goods handled by Spanish merchants and carried on Spanish vessels. Most of theports, including all of those in Texas, were closed to commercial vessels in the hopes of dissuading smugglers. By law, all goods bound for Texas had to be shipped toVera Cruz and then transported over the mountains toMexico City before being sent to Texas. This caused the goods to be very expensive in the Texas settlements.[15] Because of the great distance between Los Adaes and the rest of the populated portions ofTexas, the settlers in the area turned most often to the French colonists in neighboringNatchitoches,Louisiana, for trade. Without many goods to trade, however, theSpanishmissionaries and colonists had little to offer theIndians, who remained loyal to theFrench traders.[16]
Although the Spanish settlers in the area did not encounter hostileNative Americans, since the localCaddoan-speaking peoples were friendly, theFranciscan missionaries were unsuccessful inconverting the local people toCatholicism. After many years of frustration in this regard, the College of Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe de Zacatecas, which was the sponsor of themissionaries at Los Adaes, recalled their missionaries in 1768, and the mission was closed.[17]
On November 3, 1762, as part of theTreaty of Fontainebleau, France ceded the portion of Louisiana west of the Mississippi River to Spain.[18] With France no longer a threat to Spain's North American interests, theSpanish monarchy commissioned theMarqués de Rubí to inspect all of the presidios on the northern frontier of New Spain and make recommendations for the future.[19] Rubí was not impressed with Los Adaes. Two Franciscan missionaries lived there but 46 years of missionary endeavor had done "little more...than baptize a few of the dying." Not a singleIndian lived at the Mission. Twenty-five Spanish families lived nearby on "little ranches." Crops were poor due a lack of irrigation and there was scarcely enough water to drink.[20] Sixty-one Spanish soldiers were stationed at the presidio of Las Adaes.[21] Rubi recommended that eastern Texas be abandoned, with all the population moved to San Antonio.[22] WithLouisiana in Spanish control, there was no need for a mission and presidio at Los Adaes to counter French competition. In August 1768, the acting governor,Juan María Vicencio, Baron de Ripperdá, moved his headquarters and the garrison toSan Antonio, which became the newcapital ofTejas in 1772.[23]
The settlers who had lived near Los Adaes were forced to resettle in San Antonio in 1773.[24] In the six years between the inspection and the removal of the settlers, the population of eastern Tejas had increased from 200 settlers of European descent to 500 people, a mixture ofSpanish,French,Indians, and a fewblacks. The settlers were given only five days to prepare for the move to San Antonio. Many of them perished during the three-month trek and others died soon after arriving.[25]
After vociferously protesting, the former residents of eastern Tejas were allowed to leave San Antonio the following year (1774); but they were not allowed to locate beyond theTrinity River, 175 miles (282 km) from Natchitoches.[24] In 1779, theComanches began raiding the new settlement. The former Los Adaes settlers chose to move farther east to the oldmission of Nacogdoches, where they foundedthe town of the same name. The new town quickly became a waystation forcontraband.[24]
The site of Los Adaes was declared aNational Historic Landmark in 1986.[2][26] It is a site on theEl Camino Real de los Tejas National Historic Trail.
Today the site of Los Adaes is near the town ofRobeline, Louisiana. The Los Adaes site has proven to be one of the most important archaeological sites in the US for the study of colonial Spanish and Adai culture presented by theAdai Caddo Indians of Louisiana.[27]
Dr. Hiram F. "Pete" Gregory Jr., an archaeologist at nearbyNorthwestern State University, conducted landmark excavations at the historic presidio from the 1960s through the 1980s. In the 1990s, the state appointed Dr. George Avery to the newly created position of station archaeologist of the Los Adaes State Commemorative Area (as it was called at the time). In this capacity, Avery contributed a great deal in his own right. Los Adaes has since lost its station archaeologist position. However, Avery, Gregory, and other archaeologists specializing in the Spanish colonial borderlands continue to advance the knowledge of this frontier outpost. Gregory, in particular, has championed the need for more academic interest in Los Adaes and the colonial history of northern and centralLouisiana in general.[28]
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