Alamo Heights

Alamo Heights, off U.S. Highway 281 five miles northeast of the center of San Antonio in north central Bexar County, has always been economically and socially a part of San Antonio. The area below the headwaters of the San Antonio River in Brackenridge Park in Alamo Heights was an American Indian campground and haven for many explorers, travelers, and troops; visitors included Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca, Domingo Terán de los Ríos, and Fray Damián Massanet. Massanet celebrated Mass at the spot in 1691 and changed the name from Yanaguana to San Antonio de Padua. In 1718, with the founding of San Antonio de Béxar, the use of the headwaters was guaranteed to the missionaries and early settlers under the rules of the Recapitulation of the Indies. In 1731 the Canary Islanders were granted similar rights to the use of the river.

Adapted from the official Handbook of Texas, a state encyclopedia developed by the Texas State Historical Association (TSHA). It is an authoritative source of trusted historical records.