From the very beginning, San Antonio’s black community has shaped the city’s history. In celebrating our 300th anniversary, it is important that we revisit these beginnings and analyze how the San Antonio we know today came to be.
No history is ever complete, but knowing the diverse tapestry of San Antonio’s origins is ever-important. To this end and in the celebration of the Tricentennial, we must take a close look at the black community’s contributions to San Antonio.
Located on the near-Eastside of San Antonio, close to Sunset Station, is St. Paul Square. This area was the center of black life in San Antonio for many years, its name derived from the St. Paul Colored Methodist Church that was established nearby on Center Street.
One of the leaders in the African-American community during Reconstruction was Lafayette Walker, a veteran of the Civil War and a black union soldier who pressed the idea of making political deals that would provide infrastructure improvements for the black community.
Established in 1866, St. Paul Methodist Church is the oldest black church still in existence in San Antonio. The church was active in civil rights for blacks, with leaders like Rev. Matthew “Mack” Henson carrying on the fight. Like Walker, Henson advocated for political candidates running independently. This helped create the nonpartisan city elections we have in San Antonio today.
Mount Zion First Baptist Church was founded in 1871 by 22 freed slaves. The church was located on Santos Street in the Baptist Settlement, a large section in the southern sector of San Antonio that extended from near Commerce Street in the north, to around Labor Street in the south. It was bounded on the west by South Presa Street, and on the east by present-day Interstate 37.
By 1927, Mount Zion had moved from the heart of the Baptist Settlement, which was on the eastern side of the San Antonio River. In later years the church would be active in the 1960s Civil Rights movement under the leadership of the Rev. Claude Black. Today, Mount Zion is located at 333 Martin Luther King Dr.
The Canary Islanders who arrived in San Antonio in the 1700s included white Spaniards and blacks. This is noted in Kenneth Mason’s 1997 research, which provides evidence that darker-skinned Canary Islanders – people of color quebrado, or broken color – were forced to live east of the river.
Mason writes:
“Racially conscious Islanders associated blacks with slavery and lower-class status. Class or ‘castas’ designation established social standing, and persons identified as ‘whites’ were held in higher esteem than the darker Indians and blacks. Islander attitudes reflected these views, and physically dissociated themselves from the darker residents. A separate community, Villa de San Fernando, was established by the Islanders on the west bank of the San Antonio river, leaving Villa de Bejar, east of the river, as the resident [sic] of the blacks, mission Indians and the racially mixed.”
The San Antonio River served as the borderline of segregation during this period, establishing racial spaces and boundaries. That is how the Eastside became the black section of town and the future home to San Antonio’s African-American community.
In his classic 1989 work, An Empire for Slavery, Randolph Campbell documents the approximate number of slaves held in Bexar County across various time frames. In 1855, Bexar County recorded on its tax rolls 979 black slaves in the area. By 1864 that number had increased to 1,193.
We know from historical records (City Directory of 1855), that slaves were held and sold by at least three San Antonio mayors and many other city officials. Well-known historical figures in San Antonio who were pro-slavery include José Ángel Navarro, Juan Seguín, and Mayors Samuel Maverick, John M. Carolan, Charles F. King, and Francis Giraud.
Slave sales took place at the Menger Hotel, along the Salado Creek, the San Antonio River, and other areas near the present City Hall. According to Mason, slaves in San Antonio were sold at the “auction houses of such well-known names as Henry Burns, John M. Carolan, Charles F. King, George Collamer, WD. Greenwood and Company, J. N. Henriques, E. J. McLane, and Francis Giraud.”
Having been long established, the eastern side of the river remained the black part of town and was solidified by the advent of the railroad coming to San Antonio. Additionally, blacks came to occupy smaller enclaves in the northern and western sections of San Antonio that included Newcombville in the San Pedro Park area, and its westward expansion toward Zarzamora Street on the city’s Westside. But the Eastside remained the principle location of the largest black community.
Through Jan. 20, Dreamweek will host a series of programs aimed at promoting tolerance, equality, and diversity in our community. This year, these programs are part of the Tricentennial calendar of events. While we look back and study San Antonio’s history, we must also work to create the kind of city we want in the future.
For what it’s worth, my mom and dad bought in Eastwood Village (bounded by E. Houston, WW White and Upland) in 1951 when they moved down here from St Louis. Dad worked for almost 40 yrs at Ft Sam. My mom said when they first arrived, they found St Peter Claver Catholic Church and wanted to go to mass there but were told no, they had to go to St Gerard’s (St Benedict’s wasn’t built yet) because St Peter Claver was the “colored” church. My folks were confused and just wanted to go to mass, they didn’t care where they went. My dad was from Sicilian parents thus his skin darkened easily in the Texas sun so he was often considered a “Mexican.” My mom said she and my dad were repeatedly surprised at how intolerant people were here compared with their immigrants-from-around-the world-filled lives back in St Louis.
If you look at the Tricentennial Events they were implemented independently, however, the Tricentennial Commission via DCCD only funded one organization clearly identified by name and not necessarily the proposal that spoke to the history of African American recognition and contributions to San Antonio 300 year anniversary! The total proposals submitted exceeded 100, a bit skewed don’t you think.
Thanks for the information. When Wheatley HS was closed, I was teaching at Fox Tech and we had “East Side Blacks and West Side Blacks”. I slwondered about this separation but no one could explain. For the most part, both sides got along, but there were times when there were issues. This was understandable since the East Side Blacks felt that their school was taken away.
Thanks again
Great post. It’s important to understand the social and geographical history of how neighborhoods become what the are, as they are living things that need to be tended to.
Agree 100%
Blacks on the Eastside …Hispanics on the westside ….It took 300 years to finally get somewhat of a recognition. .
Thanks for the sharing “How the Eastside became Home to San Antonio’s Black Community”. I am beaming with pride in learning this part of San Antonio’s . I have followed his works and with each of his publications he’s made me explore and re-think events in our history which were consciously eliminated. His works are not perception but rather fact based and informative. You know…sometimes the earth shifts for reasons we aren’t able to comprehend and when these moments in time happen you realize someone did the digging, someone researched beyond publicly designed records, someone took the time to chisel out fact from fiction and make our history relevant. Mario Salas is a gentleman historian and is among the most brilliant minds of our generation. Thanks for sharing and informing.
For what it’s worth, in 2003 I published a book on late 19th-century festivals in San Antonio entitled “San Antonio on Parade” (Texas A&M University press). One of these was Juneteenth. In doing so, I found out a great deal about how San Antonio’s African-American community celebrated their own identity during the period from 1866-1900. Life was truly difficult and unfair (in city directories of the day, their names and occupations were marked out by a “C” for “colored”), but on June 19th, the downtown streets and plazas saw their parades and heard their speeches. It wasn’t much recognition, but it was something–until even this was surpassed in later decades by Jim Crow laws.
I read it …..wonderful work
One thing that I remember, although I was young at the time, was how Phyllis Wheatley High School used to dominate high school sports in San Antonio, year after year. That was the primary reason for changing it to a middle school. Yes it was an older building, but they could have put money into reconstruction.
I’m sixty-seven years old Black female born are raised here in San Antonio, Texas. I went to John J. Pershing school which was mixed the few Whites that came was poor like the Spanish and the Black students. There where only White teachers, but at the time I didn’t know anything about racism. Raised by my mother and stepfather we always told that we are the same as anyone else. It was wasn’t until I had to leave my neighborhood for JR. high did find out about racism. I had whip cream sprayed on me because I had to catch the bus to school. I was very late home, crying ask why did they do that to me. The only racism I had seen was on Tv from up state, My mother would cut off the TV when she saw any of us looking at that, because I learn later she grew up with that and wanted to protect us. As I grew I learn my share, and had to work harder to make it(L.V.N. for 30 plus yrs) I see that our City Mangers and Council still don’t doesn’t include many Blacks on TV front line for our young to say I want to be a New or Weather person, Mayor Taylor we all know was a joke. Our schools and education is also joke. All our big name schools was taken away. February is Black History Month, but only recognition was shown was MLK march, and after I complaint on facebook maybe one TV station made one or two “little known history”. Black’s help build this city, we are somebody and aren’t going anywhere. I pray before I die the East side will become apart of the city like the West and Southsides are. Thank You’