Don Joaquin Crossing on Bedias Trail
Lufkin vicinity, Angelina County, Texas
Marker Inscription
Used by Indians, explorers, traders and missionaries, this trail ran from Bedias Indian camps on the lower Trinity River to Spanish missions near Nacogdoches. Don Joaquin de Orobio y Basterra, captain of the presidio at La Bahia (present Goliad), led reconnaissance troops along the trail in 1746 and gave his name to the Angelina River crossing. Italian-born trader Vicente Michili owned a large ranch near the crossing before 1800. Bedias Trail was important in Angelina County's development. Railroads and major highways later followed the Trail's route. (1979)
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Long before highways, the Bedias Trail carried Indians, explorers, traders, and missionaries from Bedias camps on the lower Trinity River to the Spanish missions near Nacogdoches. In 1746 Don Joaquin de Orobio y Basterra, captain of the presidio at La Bahia, led reconnaissance along the route and lent his name to this crossing of the Angelina River. Italian-born trader Vicente Michili later ran a large ranch nearby, and in time railroads and major roads traced the old trail's path, making it a backbone of Angelina County's growth.
Why it matters
The crossing marks how Indigenous footpaths became the arteries of Spanish colonial expansion and, ultimately, the modern transportation grid of East Texas.
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Related people
- · Don Joaquin de Orobio y Basterra
- · Vicente Michili
Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
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