Juan Francisco Farías Residence
Laredo, Webb County, Texas
Marker Inscription
Soldier and Laredo alcalde Jose Andres Farias and his wife Guadalupe Sanchez married at San Agustin Church in 1803 and had seven children; the oldest, Juan Francisco Manuel de la Trinidad Farias, was born in January 1807. He followed the family tradition of civic duty, serving as alderman and mayor of Laredo. Juan Francisco was also named secretary to the Republic of the Rio Grande, formed in Laredo in January 1840. Juan Francisco married Maria de los Inocentes Benavides on June 15, 1832. His bride was a widow born in Parras, Coahuila in December 1810. Juan Francisco and Inocentes had eleven children. Family oral tradition states that their home on this site dates from July 1840. The earliest historical reference is an 1864 deed when the property, along with a stone building and water well, was sold by Juan Francisco Farias to his daughter, Encarnacion Farias de Herrera. The builder of the Farias residence is unknown. The modified rectangular plan house is built of locally fabricated brick clad with stucco. Rooms directly access the exterior, facing the street or patio area. The house has two-foot wide walls of brick and stone along with four fireplaces. A projecting cornice features distinctive rectangular, tooled stone projections, with similar craftsmanship seen on the lintels. Truncated Corinthian wooden columns support the south entrance porch. The site historically included stables and a cart house, water well and cistern. During the Civil War many strategic planning meetings were held in the house. Colonel Santos Benavides and select members of the Benavides Regiment along with then-mayor Juan Francisco Farias planned for the defense of Laredo against the Union Army. Five generations of the Farias family lived here continuously until 1974. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 2009
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
This Laredo home traces to about 1840 and the family of Juan Francisco Farías, son of a Laredo alcalde and himself an alderman, mayor, and secretary to the short-lived Republic of the Rio Grande. Built of locally fired brick clad in stucco, with two-foot walls, four fireplaces, and Corinthian porch columns, it stayed in the family for five generations until 1974. During the Civil War, Colonel Santos Benavides and Mayor Farías reportedly gathered here to plan Laredo's defense against Union forces.
Why it matters
The residence anchors the Tejano civic and military leadership of the Rio Grande borderland, from the Republic of the Rio Grande through the Confederate defense of Laredo.
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Related people
- · Juan Francisco Farías
- · Santos Benavides
- · Maria de los Inocentes Benavides
Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
Benavides Brothers
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The three Benavides brothers descended from Tomás Sánchez, who founded Laredo in 1755, and became the town's best-known Confederate soldiers during the Civil War. Santos Benavides rose to colonel—the highest rank achieved by a Mexican-American in the Confederate army—while his brothers Refugio and Cristóbal earned captaincies; together they defeated a raiding party under Juan Cortina at Carrizo in 1862 and, badly outnumbered, held Laredo against Union sympathizers in 1864. Their victories helped keep open the vital Confederate cotton trade with Mexico, and they were leading merchants and politicians in Laredo.
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