Tomás Sánchez (captain)

Tomás Sánchez de la Barrera (June 4, 1709 - January 21, 1796) was a veteran Spanish captain who founded Laredo, Texas, United States, and Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas, Mexico, the only town in the Nuevo Santander province.

Tomás Sánchez
Sánchez monument in Nuevo Laredo
Born
Tomás Sánchez de la Barrera

June 4, 1709
Ciénega de Flores, New Kingdom of León, Viceroyalty of New Spain
(now Nuevo León, Mexico)
DiedJanuary 21, 1796 (aged 86)
Villa de San Agustín de Laredo, New Santander, Viceroyalty of New Spain
(now Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas, Mexico)
NationalitySpanish
OccupationCaptain
San Agustin Church was the first church established in the new town of Laredo built as a chapel in 1760
Map of Laredo 137 years after founding

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, 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, Mexico, who controlled extensive lands from Saltillo to the Rio Grande.

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. 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 Agustin de Laredo, in honor of Saint Augustine and Colonel Escandon's hometown Laredo, Cantabria, Spain. 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.[1]

  • Typical Hacienda in the late 1700s in Laredo, now La Posada Hotel
  • Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic Church
  • Typical home in the late 1700s, later the Republic of the Rio Grande Capitol building, now a museum
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References
  1. City of Laredo; A Brief History of Laredo, Texas
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