Texas Almanac, 1968-1969 Page: 85
[706] p. : ill. ; 23 cm.View a full description of this book.
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Historic Sites
MEDINA COUNTY
t ..... ..
s :
Just west of San Antonio, on historic High-
way 90, is Medina County, with an Old World
flavor not often ound in Texas. The first
settlers here came largely from Alsace-Lor-
raine and their descendants have preserved
many of the customs and buildings of the
1840s.
Henri Castro, the French native of Portu-
guese stock who brought those first settlers
to Medina County, was one of the great
colonizers of early Texas. To supply the
needs of his colonists, he spent more than
$200,000 of his own money, a huge sum then.
His memoirs and the maps which he circu-
lated in Europe provide valuable records to-
day, and they served to attract settlers long
ago.Castro made a contract in 1842 with the
Republic of Texas to bring settlers to Texas.
He had great difficulty in making the ar-
rangements, and it was not until Sept. 3, 1844,
that the first 35 families arrived on the banks
of the Medina River to establish a town
which they later named in his honor, Castro-
ville. These Castro colonists also established
other towns, including Quihi and D'Hanis in
the same county.
Frequent attacks by Indians, cholera and
other diseases, a severe drouth and other
hardships made the first years difficult. But
by 1848 Medina County was created and or-
ganized out of Bexar Counly, with Castro-
ville as the county seat. The present county
seat, Hondo, replaced Castroville as the cen-
ter of government in 1892.
Among the historic sites in Castroville to-
dlay are the original parsonage for St. Louis
Church, built in 1847 and pictured on this
page; the original St. Louis Church, a small
stone building with a hand-carved door; and
the St. Louis Church built in 1869 and still
used today. (Also shown.)
There also are the Landmark Inn (for-
merlv Vance Hotel) and other homes and
buildings of Alsatian design that attract many
visitors.
Overlooking Castroville is a mesa,
crowned by a cross, which was named Mont
Gentilz for an artist-surveyor among the
original colonists, Theodor Gentilz. Many of
the first settlers were buried in cemeteries
there and processionals to the top of the hill
occur during holy days.
Castroville's St. Louis Day Homecoming
each August attracts many visitors for a
family-style barbecue, games and tours of
historic buildings. In addition, many other
visitors go to Castroville throughout the year
to enjoy its unique atmosphere and Alsatian
foods.
Quihi, Vandenburg and D'itanis also
contain pioneer buildings of interest. Just
north of D'Hanis is the marked site of Fort
Lincoln, established in 1849 to protect tray-
elers in an area that then was the western
outpost of settlement.
Numbered on the map are: No. 1, Castro-
ville; No. 2, Quihl; No. 3, D'Hanis and No. 4,
the site of Fort Lincoln.dc
t:
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Texas Almanac, 1968-1969, book, 1967; Dallas, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth113809/m1/87/: accessed May 5, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Texas State Historical Association.