City of San Antonio history

The city had relinquished control of the river’s headwater springs in 1852 when the surrounding land was sold to raise money for the public treasury.

In 1864, the Confederate government purchased a 75-acre tract of land west of the river to construct a tannery and sawmill.

When the tannery was advertised for sale after the war in 1867, the facility consisted of 12 stone lime vats, 52 wooden vats, seven stone pools, one steam sawmill, and one small stone building.

George W. Brackenridge, a mercantile agent and financier who became wealthy during the Civil War, moved to San Antonio immediately after the war and, in 1869, purchased the land surrounding the river’s headwaters.

In addition to the headwaters, Brackenridge purchased 200 acres on the east side of the river below his home in 1877, and it was this property that later comprised a major portion of today’s park.

Brackenridge, who owned both the headwaters and land across from the pump house, was Lacoste’s major creditor, and by 1883, he had acquired the water supply system.

All of this took place in today’s park long before its modern history began in 1899.

In 1915, the park was consisted only of the Brackenridge bequest east of the river.

The quarry was an abandoned eyesore in 1916 when Lambert transformed the deepest pit into an attraction that he called the Lily Pond.

It was designed in 1925 by Johannes C. Scholze, a resident of San Antonio.

By the time Ray Lambert died in 1927, Brackenridge Park had been transformed from a passive, contemplative place, to a multi-use destination for locals and visitors alike.

An elaborate entry drive and stage structure were added to an outdoor theater built in 1930 on the site of Ray Lambert’s Texas Star Garden.

City commissioners unofficially adopted the flag in 1935 and two copies were made, one for City Hall and the other for the Chamber of Commerce.

They operated a tearoom for visitors until in 1942 when they were evicted during the anti-Japanese backlash of World War II. Replaced by a Chinese family, the Jingus were invited back 40 years later for the garden’s rededication as the Japanese Tea Garden.

However, no action was taken to formally adopt the flag’s design until 1976.

Scholze created a wood carving that includes an Alamo at the top, the Lone Star of Texas, and the words “Libertatis Cunabula” which is Latin for “Cradle of Liberty.” The emblem was not designated as the City’s Official Seal until 1981.

A portrait of Mayor Lila Cockrell circa 1989

In October 1991, the new office opened with a grand ribbon-cutting ceremony at which not one but two San Antonio mayors were present: now-former Mayor Cockrell and newly-elected Mayor Nelson Wolff.

The Casa program was initiated prior to the signing of NAFTA, which took place in San Antonio on December 17, 1992

Henry Sauvignet realized the need for a Casa in the political center of Mexico and opened an office in Mexico City in September of 1995

In March 1999, this picture depicts an exchange carried out by the Casa Mexico City Offices with a delegation from San Antonio and President Ernesto Zedillo.

Starting in 2003, Casa San Antonio also organized trips for San Antonio’s Export Leaders Program, which required participants to visit Mexico at least twice.

In 2010, as a response to the changing economic situation, the City closed their physical offices in Monterrey and Guadalajara in favor of a consultant model in both cities.