A
mission in Texas brought together three distinct groups of people:
missionaries, soldiers, and Native Americans. The Catholic missionaries
were Franciscans who came from Spain by way of training colleges
in Mexico. This order of priests devoted themselves to learning
and spreading the word of God. The soldiers stationed in the
presidios of Texas were predominantly
Spanish, but some were from other parts of the Spanish Empire.
In South Texas
the Franciscans mainly encountered bands of hunter-gatherers called
Coahuiltecans. These bands ranged through what is now the Mexican
state of Coahuila into South Texas. They moved from one campsite
to another, following herds of deer and other migrating animals.
Food and supplies were scarce because of the harshness of the
environment. Sometimes they fought against each other, but all
faced threats from larger groups such as the Lipans, Apaches,
and the Comanches.
Small numbers
of the Coahuiltecans became part of the Spanish mission system
for a number of reasons. The acequia, or irrigation system, promised
a more stable supply of food than in the past because of the availability
of water for the crops. For further information on the Spanish
acequias, check out the Website at
http://www.nps.gov/saan/visit/AcequiaSystemDam.htm
Diseases
brought to Texas by the Europeans had reduced
the numbers of Coahuiltecans, making them more vulnerable to their
enemies. In colonial Texas the presidio, or fort, played an important
role in defending the province. The presidio soldiers protected
the friars and the mission Coahuiltecans from Apache and Comanche
raiders.
A
typical mission day
Mission
life revolved around three goals established by the Spanish Crown
and the Franciscan missionaries:
to instill the Catholic faith, ensure obedience to and protect the
interests of the Spanish Crown, and to acquire skills for integration
into European-Spanish culture.
Morning
For
mission residents, days were highly structured. At sunrise bells
called the Indian converst to morning mass, which was followed
by singing of prayers and religious instruction. They then returned
to their living quarters for their morning meal.
The Franciscan friars and the European craftsmen at the missions
taught the Indian men how to farm, irrigate the fields and gardens,
care for the fruit orchards, and cut stone in the quarries.
They also taught the men how to make tallow, curehides, work in
the forge, and make wooden furniture and doors. Women learned
new ways to prepare food, sew, spin, weave, garden, and make candles
and soap. Children were taught how to fish and make arrows by
older mission residents. All mission residents had to attend
religious lessons taught by the Franciscan friars every day.
Some mission residents were assigned to live temporarily at the
distant mission ranches to tend livestock. For further information,
check out the Web page at
http://www.nps.gov/saan/visit/RanchodelasCabras.htm
A
few Native American converts were trained in the use of firearms,
swords, sabers, and knives. Soldiers detailed from the presidio
to protect the missions were few, usually limited to two military
men and their families. This made it very important for some
Native Americans men to learn some limited European-type military
skills to protect their community.
Afternoon
Ringing
bells at noon called everyone together for the midday meal. The
meal usually was a dish of corn with a daily ration of beef (if
available),
squash, beans, and fruit. After a brief rest, or siesta, work
resumed until the bells summoned all to return home at sunset.
Evening
Mission
inhabitants participated in the saying of the rosary along with
singing of hymns. Before the evening meal, some would dance and
sing songs. After the meal of fish, beans, and corn, the people
went to their quarters to sleep.
Reaction
to the mission system and its way of life
The
Native American inhabitants reacted to the mission system in different
ways. Some of them participated fully, mixing their traditions
with those of the Spanish and marrying to become part of a Tejano
culture. Other Native Americans moved in and out of the missions,
choosing occasionally to return to familiar surroundings for a
change from the farm and carpentry work and religious influences
of the friars. Most refused to come at all and continued to live
their traditional ways.
Questions
[the answers are found in the text above]
1.
What features of the Coahuiltecans’ way of life made them interested
in Spanish mission life?
2. Do you think the Native Americans living in the missions kept
their traditions? Why or why not? How can you find out?
3. Did you ever imagine what it was like to live in a mission
during the 17th and 18th centuries in Texas?
Where would you live? What kind of food would you eat?
Task
The
Missions of San Antonio. Mary Ann Noonan Guerra, Alamo Press,
1982.
