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Remember The Alamo and don’t forget that Heard & Smith, LLP is here to protect the rights of the elderly and the disabled residents of San Antonio. Call us today with questions or concerns about Social Security or estate planning.
San
Antonio, Texas, may well be the most fought over city in the United
States. Located in South Central Texas.
Six National Flags have flown over San Antonio (a couple of them
more than once): Spain. 1519-1685 and 1690-1821; France. 1685-1690;
Mexico: 1821-1836; The Republic of Texas: 1836-1845 Confederate:
1861-1865; and the United States: 1845-1861 and 1865-Present. Texas
was the 28th State in the Union. San Antonio has been the county seat
of Bexar County since 1860.
 San Antonio has seen an increase of
population of 2 percent per year during the past decade. The figure
stood at 1,144,646 in 2002.
As
befits an important military center, In 1858, the US Army chose San
Antonio as the location for a permanent
Arsenal, and in 1878 the city deeded ninety acres to the federal
government for
Fort Sam Houston. During World War I,
Kelly and Brooks fields (later Kelly Air Force Base and Brooks Air
Force Base) were key sites for pilot training. Jack Hays' Minute
Men, the
Civil War vigilantes, the famous
Belknap Rifles (named for Augustus Belknap, who helped form the
company after admission to the San Antonio Rifles was refused), and
the
Alamo, are milestones in the life of San Antonio.
 Named for San Antonio de Padua in
1691, San Antonio's history is also Texas history. From a mission
church through it's term as the capital of the province of Texas, San
Antonio has been the key for shipping, supplies, and military
operations (including Revolution). In 1811, the center of
revolutionary activity against Spanish rule, in 1813 San Antonio was
seized and Texas proclaimed an independent state. Confiscation,
detentions, and executions followed until Texas forces occupied the
city of San Antonio in 1835.
San Antonio has a diversified and
well established economy. The subtropical climate has spurred
agriculture with a growing season of about 265 days a year. Income
from tourism began in the 1890's, with
Hot Sulphur Wells
drawing distinguished guests from the Midwest
and the East Coast.
The Alamo is one of the most visited attractions in Texas. Oil
has contributed greatly to prosperity since its discovery in Bexar
County in 1889.
 The
law has always contributed greatly to the economy here. The
Bexar County Courthouse, the only major remaining Romanesque
style structure in San Antonio, is included in the National Register
of Historic Places. Bexar County's original courthouse (1731) was a
one-story adobe called Casas Reales). The floors were dirt,
the flagpole was a cactus, and there was a sundial over the door. The
Casa Reales was the oldest capitol, and courthouse in Texas for over a
hundred years. The greats of their day walked through the doors of
Casas Reales, including
Austin, Bowie, Houston, Ruiz, Santa Anna and the great
JosŽ Antonio Navarro (1795 - 1871), one of the founders of Texas.
The blood of Texas history was spilled in the San Antonio
Courthouse and on the Council House steps. (The famous Court House
Fight with the Commanches was in 1840)
The
Witte Museum (est. 1926 and located across the
street from the Courthouse) presents an online
Visual History of San Antonio. The Museum houses an
extensive collection of historic Native American objects,
archaeological artifacts, vertebrates and invertebrates from South
Texas, gems and minerals, fossils, and live Texas animal specimens,
textile and costume exhibits including quilts, clothing, and
accessories from the early 1800s, as well as Texas art, furniture,
decorative arts, firearms, western memorabilia, photographs,
documents, etc. The restored 1795 Ruiz House, the 1835 Navarro House,
the 1841 Twohig House, and two log cabins are located on the museum
grounds.
 Bexar
County has had a system of courts since the Texas Constitution was
adopted (1836). In addition to 228 District Courts, there are six
county courts at law, five Justice of the Peace Courts, the District
Attorney, the County Clerk, and the District Clerk located in the
Bexar County Courthouse today. The legal profession contributes
greatly to the economy in Bexar County and San Antonio.
The
San Fernando Cathedral, the first parish church in Texas
(cornerstone was laid in 1738), plays a vital present as well as
historical role in the life of San Antonio. Typically, over 4,000
congregants will attend weekend Masses here, where Presidents and the
Pope have attended.
 The
Riverwalk is the second most visited attraction in the state of
Texas (only second to the Alamo). See San Antonio by water, while
taking a riverboat ride. The
Alamodome sponsors sporting events, boat shows, quad wars, and
monster truck racing.
Six Flags Fiesta Texas is America's top show park.
La Villita, (Spanish for little town), is the original settlement
of Old San Antonio and comprises one block in downtown San Antonio.
While there, have dinner at the
Tower of the Americas, and be sure to see the
Botanical Gardens,
San Antonio Zoo,
Sea World, and
SplashTown.
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