DUANE
Duane's take
Here's how the official marker tells it, and I'm gonna do my best to honor every word. Now settle in, because this particular patch of East Texas ground has been carrying a big story for a long, long time. We're talking about the Site of the Mission San Francisco de los Tejas, right here in Cherokee County, and friend, this mission did not sit still.
It started in 1690. Franciscan missionaries came into this country and established Mission San Francisco de los Tejas, with the purpose of Christianizing and civilizing the Neches and other Indians of the region. That is the stated mission, in every sense of the word.
So there it stood. But nothing about this place was going to be simple. The mission was reestablished in 1716 — which tells you right there that something happened in between worth a story all its own, even if the marker lets that gap breathe in silence.
Then, just three years later, 1719, the whole operation was abandoned. Temporarily, mind you. The reason?
French incursion from Louisiana. Somebody was pushin' from the east, and the mission stepped aside. Now here is where it gets interesting.
In 1721, the Marquis de Aguayo brought the mission back — relocated it right here, to this very site — and it was known by then as San Francisco de los Neches. A new name, same restless spirit. But the wandering wasn't done.
In 1730, the mission was removed to the Colorado River. And then, just one year later, in 1731, it found its permanent home on the San Antonio River, where it would be known from that point forward as San Francisco de la Espada. One mission, one purpose, five locations, and forty-one years of movin' before it finally put down roots for good.
The State of Texas erected this marker in 1936 to make sure we don't forget that right here — right on this ground — something that became permanent somewhere else first learned how to survive. That's a Texas story if I ever heard one.
What the marker says
Originally established as Mission San Francisco de los Tejas in 1690 by Franciscan missionaries for the purpose of Christianizing and civilizing the Neches and other Indians of the region Reestablished in 1716 Abandoned temporarily due to French incursion from Louisiana in 1719 Relocated here as San Francisco de los Neches by the Marquis de Aguayo in 1721 Removed to the Colorado River in 1730 Permanently located on the San Antonio River in 1731 and there known as San Francisco de la Espada Erected by the State of Texas 1936