Tomás Sánchez de la Barrera (June 4, 1709 – January 21, 1796) was a veteran Spanish captain who founded

Laredo, Texas Laredo ( ; ) is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the county seat of Webb County, Texas, Webb County, on the north bank of the Rio Grande in South Texas, across from Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas, Mexico. Founded in 1755, Laredo grew from a villag ...

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

Origins

Captain Tomas Sanchez de la Barrera y de la Garza was born into northern Mexico's oligarchic families. His father's family roots can be traced to the old hidalgo families of

Andalucia Andalusia ( , ; , ) is the southernmost autonomous community in Peninsular Spain, located in the south of the Iberian Peninsula, in southwestern Europe. It is the most populous and the second-largest autonomous community in the country. It i ...

, Spain. His mother is descended from the noble Oñate-Zaldivar family, conquistadors of New Mexico; and the politically entrenched De La Garza family, conquerors of

Nuevo León Nuevo León, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Nuevo León, is a Administrative divisions of Mexico, state in northeastern Mexico. The state borders the Mexican states of Tamaulipas, Coahuila, Zacatecas, and San Luis Potosí, San Luis ...

, Mexico, who controlled extensive lands from Saltillo to the

Rio Grande The Rio Grande ( or ) in the United States or the Río Bravo (del Norte) in Mexico (), also known as Tó Ba'áadi in Navajo language, Navajo, is one of the principal rivers (along with the Colorado River) in the Southwestern United States a ...

Founding of Laredo

He first arrived in Texas in 1749 to a place he named "El Paso de Jacinto", later called "Indian Ford", which is now west of

Downtown Laredo Downtown Laredo is the second main business district in Laredo, Texas. Downtown Laredo is the starting point for Interstate Highway 35 and State Highway 359. It is home to all of Laredo's high-rise buildings. Laredo's and Webb County's main ...

. He then petitioned Colonel José de Escandón, 1st Count of Sierra Gorda for permission to found a town at this location. His petition was granted on May 15, 1755. He named the new townsite, Villa de San Agustín de Laredo, in honor of

Saint Augustine Augustine of Hippo ( , ; ; 13 November 354 – 28 August 430) was a theologian and philosopher of Berbers, Berber origin and the bishop of Hippo Regius in Numidia (Roman province), Numidia, Roman North Africa. His writings deeply influenced th ...

and Colonel Escandon's hometown Laredo, Cantabria,

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

. Don Tomás Sánchez first established three families in the new villa. The site selected is located in the San Agustine Historical District in Downtown Laredo near the San Agustine Cathedral.City of Laredo; A Brief History of Laredo, Texas
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Gallery of Old Laredo

Image:La Posada Hotel in Laredo, TX IMG 1773.JPG, Typical

Hacienda A ''hacienda'' ( or ; or ) is an estate (or '' finca''), similar to a Roman '' latifundium'', in Spain and the former Spanish Empire. With origins in Andalusia, ''haciendas'' were variously plantations (perhaps including animals or orchards ...

in the late 1700s in Laredo, now La Posada Hotel Image:Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic Church in Laredo, TX IMG 1856.JPG, Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic Church Image:Rio Grande Republic Capitol.jpg, Typical home in the late 1700s, later the

Republic of the Rio Grande The Republic of the Rio Grande () was one of a series of political movements in what was then the Centralist Republic of Mexico, which sought to become independent from the authoritarian, unitary government of Antonio López de Santa Anna; t ...

Capitol building, now a museum

References

External links

Tomás Sánchez de la Barrera y Garza
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sanchez, Tomas 1709 births 1796 deaths History of Laredo, Texas History of Nuevo Laredo People from Laredo, Texas People from Nuevo Laredo People of Spanish Texas Tejano people