Soy de Duval

  POSTED BY: CARDENAS.AE@GMAIL.COM APRIL 13, 2020 (Reprinted with permission of Homero Vera, Editor, El Mesteño (Vol 1 No, 5).) The economy in the mid to late 1800’s in Duval County relied strongly on the many ranchos throughout the county where ranchers raised cattle, horses, mules, and sheep. Many ranchos served as a village or central point for the surrounding ranchos. For example, more than fifty ranchers in the Concepcion area referred to their rancho as Rancho Concepcion. Some of them lived in the Concepcion community, but ranched in the surrounding area, while others lived on their nearby ranches. Other ranchos that fit in that category were, to name a few, Rancho Santa Cruz, Rancho Clovis, Rancho San Diego, Rancho Guajillo, Rancho La Bandera, Rancho Los Indios, Rancho Amargosa, Rancho La Gloria, Rancho Los Reales de San Roque, Rancho Uña de Gato, and Rancho de las Animas. Some ranchos were referred to as a sole ranch due to their size or remoteness, such as Rancho San Buenaven

  Map of the Rio Grande Frontier, Texas, 1892 POSTED BY: CARDENAS.AE@GMAIL.COM APRIL 6, 2020 Much interest has been expended by this blog and its readers on the original Spanish and Mexican land grants made in Duval County. Rightfully so. But, those land grants did not remain empty spaces. People moved in and established ranchos . So this week we will look at some of the ranchos that we have identified from those earliest years. The first ranchos sprung up in various parts of the county, but most likely the San Diego Creek area were some of the earliest ranchos . The map above shows the three land grants made along the San Diego Creek in which today is the city of San Diego. Included are three ranchos on the north side of the creek. The two on the left, or west side of town, were those of Julian and Ventura Flores, respectively. We do not have specific names for these two different ranchos . These two grants are often referred to as one, but a rancho on each side of the grants’ bo