The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 49, July 1945 - April, 1946 Page: 68
717 p. : ill., maps, ports. ; 24 cm.View a full description of this periodical.
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Southwestern Historical Quarterly
by Don Manuel de Godoy, Spanish generalissimo and Prince
of the Peace.4
Despite confusion and unreliable maps, a usable map of the
Neutral Ground may be reconstructed. Since the Neutral
Ground agreement was effected by the representatives of the
two contending parties, on their own authority, while encamped
on the eastern and western boundaries of the disputed territory,
it is deemed advisable to use their testimony and the state-
ments of other contemporaneous and indigenous sources in the
preparation of this map.
The western boundary of the Neutral Ground may be said
to be the Sabine River from its mouth to the thirty-second
parallel of north latitude and the intersection of the 94 line
of longitude and the Sabine River. It is true that the Herrera-
Wilkinson agreement left the northern limit of the western
boundary undefined, but the thirty-second parallel was clearly
stipulated as the line between American and Spanish possessions
by the Treaty of San Lorenzo, and, if extended west of the
Mississippi, it would cross the Sabine River at that point.
Furthermore, the only available map of the Neutral Ground5
shows a straight line cutting the Sabine River at the thirty-
second parallel. Additional force may be given to this line by
the statement of Commandant General Nemesio Salcedo in a
letter to Governor William C. C. Claiborne that the Caddo Indian
villages were within Spanish jurisdiction. To prove his con-
tention, the Spanish officer pointed out that Governor Claiborne
had recognized this fact by requesting a passport for Thomas
Freeman, the explorer, to go up the Red River to the Caddo
village and beyond.6
The eastern boundary of the Neutral Ground consisted of
Calcasieu Pass, then along the west bank of Calcasieu Lake,
the west bank of the Calcasieu River to its source, thence a
straight line running north to Kisatchie Creek, along this creek
to the 937' line of longtitude, where the Arroyo Hondo fades
into Sibley's Marsh, thence along Arroyo Hondo to its source -
about 9308' and 3147'30" --thence a straight line north to
Bayou Pierre, along this bayou to the west bank of Bayou Pierre
4April 6, 1804, in Archivo General de Indias (hereinafter referred to as
A. G. I.), Provincias Internas (Hackett Transcripts, Vol. 200, 240).
5Doc. 190.
6Salcedo to Claiborne, September 18, 1806, A. G. I., Prov. Int. (Hackett
Transcripts, Vol. 200, pp. 134-141).68
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Texas State Historical Association. The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 49, July 1945 - April, 1946, periodical, 1946; Austin, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth146056/m1/77/: accessed April 30, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Texas State Historical Association.