Bexar County under Nine Governments
San Antonio, Bexar County, Texas
Marker Inscription
The administrative government of Bexar County, besides being the oldest in Texas, is distinguished by having served under nine governments. The community served under Spanish rule from May, 1718, until January, 1811, when it was taken over by the revolutionary "Casas regime". Only five weeks later, the "counter-revoluationary Junta of Bexar" overthrew the Casas government and eventually restored Spanish rule. In April, 1812, however, the "Republican Army of the North" deposed the provincial Spanish government and declared independence from Spain. Five months later the Spanish regained control, holding Texas until 1821. The fifth regime, "First Imperial Government of Mexico" was created when Mexico gained independence from Spain in 1821. The emperor relinquished control to army leaders within two years, however, and the "Republic of Mexico" was established. Texas gained independence from Mexico in 1836, thereby establishing Bexar's seventh government, the "Republic of Texas". In 1845, Texas became the twenty-eighth state of the United States and remained in the Union until 1861, when the southern states seceeded to from the Confederacy. Following the Civil War, U.S. rule returned to Bexar County in 1865. (1967)
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Founded under Spanish rule in 1718, Bexar County holds the distinction of having been governed by nine successive regimes—the oldest county government in Texas. Between 1811 and 1813 alone it whipsawed through revolutionary juntas, a short-lived declaration of independence, and restored Spanish control before Mexico won independence in 1821. Imperial and republican Mexico, the Republic of Texas, U.S. statehood, the Confederacy, and finally restored U.S. rule in 1865 each in turn claimed San Antonio.
Why it matters
Few places in North America have flown so many flags, making Bexar County a living record of the contested sovereignty that shaped the Southwest.
Plan your visit
NearbyMake a day of it — museums, food, and places to stay near this marker.
Museums & culture
- Spanish Governor's Palacenearby
- Centro de Artes0.2 mi away
- Artpace0.4 mi away · 445 North Main Avenue, San Antonio, TX
- Buckhorn Saloon and Museum0.4 mi away
- Briscoe Western Art Museum0.4 mi away · 210 West Market Street
- Louis Tussaud’s Waxworks0.5 mi away
Attractions
- Casa Navarro State Historical Site0.2 mi away
- River boat boarding0.3 mi away
- La Villita0.4 mi away
- River boat boarding0.5 mi away
- Sea Life Aquarium0.6 mi away · 849 East Commerce Street, San Antonio, TX
- Yanaguana Garden0.6 mi away
Food & drink
- Paesanos Riverwalk0.4 mi away · 111 Crockett Way, San Antonio, TX
- Landry's Seafood House0.4 mi away · 517 North Presa Street, San Antonio, TX
- Saltgrass Steak House0.4 mi away
- Texas de Brazil0.4 mi away · 313 East Houston Street, San Antonio
- The Original Mexican Restaurant0.4 mi away
- Mad Dogs British Pub0.4 mi away · 123 Losoya Street
Places to stay
- Holiday Inn Riverwalk0.2 mi away · 217 North Saint Mary's Street, San Antonio, TX
- The Westin Riverwalk, San Antonio0.3 mi away · 420 West Market Street, San Antonio
- Mokara Hotel and Spa0.3 mi away · 212 West Crockett Street, San Antonio, TX
- Sheraton Gunter Hotel San Antonio0.3 mi away · 205 East Houston Street, San Antonio, TX
- Omni La Mansión del Rio0.3 mi away · 112 College Street, San Antonio
- Hotel Contessa0.4 mi away · 306 West Market Street
Places data © OpenStreetMap contributors. Hours and details change — call ahead.
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Related events
- · Casas Revolt
- · Mexican War of Independence
- · Texas Revolution
- · American Civil War
Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
Jose Francisco Ruiz
San Antonio, TX
Born in San Antonio in 1783 to a wealthy ranching family, José Francisco Ruiz was educated in Spain and served as a city schoolteacher before joining the Mexican struggle against Spanish rule, a fight that forced him into exile in the United States. Returning home, he broke with Santa Anna's growing dictatorship and was elected a Bexar delegate to the 1836 convention at Washington-on-the-Brazos, where he became one of only a few native Tejanos to sign the Texas Declaration of Independence. He went on to serve as Bexar's first senator in the Congress of the new Republic.
Plaza De Armas (Military Plaza)
San Antonio, TX
First explored by Spaniards in 1691, this plaza became the site of the Presidio of Bexar and for years was ringed on three sides by adobe fortifications. It witnessed executions of captured rebels during the Mexican independence struggle of 1813 and, in quieter times, teemed as a raucous market of oxcarts, vendors, guitarists, and the famed "Chili Queens" serving Mexican food at open-air stands. Though City Hall rose here in 1892 and its military and market roles faded, the ancient plaza remains the municipal heart of San Antonio.
The Woll Invasion
San Antonio, TX
In September 1842, the young Republic of Texas was still an unsettled thing, and Mexico had not conceded its independence. When General Adrián Woll marched 1,300 troops into San Antonio at dawn, just 56 Texians—judge, jurors, and townsfolk among them—fortified Samuel Maverick's stone house and fought before the odds forced their surrender. Fifty-two prisoners were marched more than a thousand miles to Perote Prison in Mexico; Woll himself was checked days later at the Salado, and the last captives did not walk free until 1844.
Memorial to the War Wounded
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