My first stop as I hit the road about 7:45 this morning was
to find the place where Anza and his caravan spent their first night in what
was, eventually, to become a part of the United States. I had no trouble finding the place on the
grounds of an Episcopal Church. A shallow depression on the south side of the
Church and a deeper wash on the north side would have been a buzz of activity
on the morning of October 15, 1775.
Fortunately the preschool that is located in the church was not in
operation yet, so the quiet morning was not interrupted by children running
around when I was there - but I am sure it was when Anza was there. But it was
not hard to imagine that the people, the horses, the cattle, the mules all
making ready for the day’s trip.
I am quite sure that what Anza and his companions saw as
they moved 7 leagues North from their campsite to the Church at Tumacacori was
not what I saw – a veritable trucking mecca.
Numerous warehouses with truck loading docks – some empty, some full,
and most in between, lined the highway between the outskirts of Nogales and the
little town of Rio Rico. I am not sure
of the origin of the town name – the local river is the Santa Cruz River (hence
the county name). But the Rio Rico may
refer to the river if the highway that accommodates what certainly appears to
be a substantial commercial operation between the US and Mexico. If one needs a reminder of the effect of
NAFTA, all one has to do is look at Rio Rico, or the trucks lined up at the
Border Patrol check station a few miles north of Rio Rico. When I went through the area the night
before, going south, I noticed a long line of trucks headed north. This morning there were very few.
You can follow the route from Nogales to Yuma that Anza
took, and see some photographs I took along the way by clicking here.
You can see the photographs without the map by clicking here.
The history of the church at Tumacacori is an interesting
one. Apparently the local Natives had learned from one of their wandering
friends that the Spanish were planting some new and wonderful crops in Mexico. So they sent an emissary to the Spanish
community in Mexico and asked for someone to come north and teach them what had
been taught to the others. Father Kino –
a storied Jesuit priest in Mexico – agreed.
He came in 1691 and supervised the building of the church and the
surrounding agricultural improvements. A
few years later the discovery of silver in the surrounding foothills resulted
in a flood of miners to the area. The
raw silver, in one case an essentially pure silver slab weighing over a ton was
discovered, was readily mined in spite of constant raids by Apaches. Silver mining continued sporadically for a
several decades – interrupted regularly by Apache raiders.
Finally, though, the native Pima Indians decided they had
enough of the newcomers, so in 1751 they staged a revolt, killing two priests
and over 100 settlers. The Spanish
response was to build the presidio at Tubac.
The commandante of that Presidio was Juan Bautista de Anza, the father
of the Anza who came to California.
Anza, senior, was killed by Indians while exploring the area north of
Tubac – his son, who was only three years old when his father was killed,
continued in his father’s footsteps.
The mission church at Tumacacori was rebuilt in a different
location than the original, in 1757.
Following the expulsion of the Jesuits in 1767 Tumacacori was taken over
by the Franciscans. Continued trouble with the Apaches, the abandonment of the
support from the Spanish and Mexican governments, the withdrawal of all Spanish
priests, the Mexican War, and, finally, the Gadsden Purchase all contributed to
a troubling story for the Tumacacori.
The Church and grounds have been taken over by the National
Park Service and a National Historic Park has been established. They are in the process of restoring both the
building and the agriculture on the grounds.
They have located 11 fruit varieties that are heirloom varieties of the
fruit that were located in various farms and gardens throughout the southwest
and even in Mexico. The church is slowly be renovated – I am not sure if the
intent is to restore the church as shown in some of the images that are on
display, or they are simply trying to preserve it in its present state.
The only death on the long voyage to California occurred at
Tumacacori: A woman died in childbirth.
The journey was delayed by a day while Anza took the woman’s body to the
mission at Tubac for a Christian burial. The child survived, as did several
other babies born on his journey.
Leaving Tumacacori I continued north following Anza’s path
to Tubac – the site of a presidio establish around 1750 and the first European
city in Arizona. The story of Tubac is similar to that of Tumacacori. Apache
raids waxed and waned, local populations fled and returned, and the Spanish
government seemed to be unable to deal with the situation. Foreshadowing what is happening in Oakland
these days, the Spanish territorial governor, Galvez, promised the Apaches that
they would be given clothes, food, alcohol, and other rewards if they would
only discontinue their raids. If they did not, they would be treated with a
heavy hand. Today Tubac is a tourist
attraction – not so much for its history, but for the arts and crafts colony
that started there after some military veterans moved to the area. The area south of Tucson, including Green
Valley, Tubac, and other developments seems to be a retirement mecca – warm weather,
relatively inexpensive housing, and some local color – Tubac – has drawn a
large number of retirees. As I walked through the shops selling all manner of
crafts and art pieces I was struck by the fact that there were many women in
small groups wandering through the shopping areas. The few men I saw were mostly sitting on
benches that were scattered around - reading, sipping coffee, or chatting with
another abandoned spouse. I ate lunch in a small café which featured, of
course, “wraps.” The outdoor dining area had about 10 tables, with probably 50
women, and I think there was one man with his wife there too.
After lunch I headed north on IS19, then followed the
driving directions that went a bit NW of the freeway toward the mission church
at San Xavier del Bac. The church at San
Xavier del Bac is fantastic. The church is set at the base of a small, conical
mountain. The white façade of the church stands in stark relief to the dark
background of the mountain. It is
clearly visible from the freeway as I had noticed when I drove to Nogales the
day before. The structure itself is
impressive, and the interior decorations are magnificent. It is still in operation as a Parish church,
and the large courtyard in front has a line of sheds where food and souvenirs
are available for the tourists.
Anza was at this location on October 25. He left the next day for the long trek across
the desert to the Colorado River. I did
the same thing. The route took me to the
western outskirts of Tucson where I connected with IS 10 for the 240 mile, 3+
hour drive to Yuma where I arrived at dusk.
That trip took Anza some 39 days. He arrived at the Colorado River on November
30, then at the Yuma Crossing on December 3.
