Poblacion de Dolores, Texas. (original) (raw)

Texas 1936 Centennial Marker Text

"Poblacion de Dolores"

Oldest Spanish settlement on north bank of the Rio Grande. Founded August 22, 1750 by Jose Vasquez Borrego, Lieutenant of Jose de Escandon

Marker Location
Photographers Notes:
"For nearly eighty years, the Texas Historical Commission has had the gray granite 1936 Centennial marker for Poblacion de Dolores inventoried in the wrong county. It is listed to be in Webb County rather than in adjacent Zapata County. After my visit to the marker next to the ruins of Mission Dolores a Visita, it is my observation from maps, satellite images and other historical references, that this particular marker was actually placed, back in 1936, more than two miles from its intended location. The Mission Dolores a Visita has its own, more conveniently located, Centennial Marker on nearby US Highway 83.

A misplaced 1936 Centennial marker is not unheard of given the primitive mechanical means to transport a 1,500+ pound slab of granite to a very remote part of the state, along with possibly incomplete road and trail directions, and the lack of power-assisted equipment. Local weather conditions at the time of delivery and even the political climate could contribute to the convenient placement of the granite monument rather than its correct placement. All this plus the possibility of the confusion of the names, Poblacion de Dolores vs Dolores a Visita. Once the marker was set in place, who would to tell? These are just my thoughts, 78 years after the fact." -

Barclay Gibson, July 2014

Rock Ruins of the old Dolores Mission

The old mission's torreon - circular enclosure used for protection against attack
Photo courtesy Barclay Gibson, June 2014