Juan Leal Goraz(1676–1742 or 1743), also calledJuan Leal Gonzal,was a Spanish settler and politician who served as the firstalcalde(a municipal magistrate with both judicial and administrative functions) of La Villa de San Fernando, which later would become the city ofSan Antonio,Texas. A native of theCanary Islands,Leal went to San Antonio in 1731 leading a group of settlers from the Canary Islands to populate this municipality, founded by the Spanish government under the sponsorship of KingPhilip V.Leal had asserted himself as the Canarian emigrants' leader and spokesman since they left the islands. He served asalcadeof San Antonio between 1731 and 1732, and again in 1735.[1]
Juan Leal Goraz | |
|---|---|
| 1stMayor of San Antonio,Texas (1st term) | |
| In office 1731–1732 | |
| Succeeded by | Antonio de los Santos |
| 4th Mayor of San Antonio (2nd term) | |
| In office 1735–1735 | |
| Preceded by | Manuel de Niz |
| Succeeded by | Antonio de los Santos |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1676 Teguise,Lanzarote,(Canary Islands) |
| Died | March 1742(aged 65) San Antonio de Béjar,Spanish Texas,New Spain (nowSan Antonio,Texas,U.S.) |
| Nationality | Spanish |
| Spouse(s) | Lucía (Catarina) Hernández·María Melano |
| Profession | councilorandMayor |
Early life and first actions as leader of the new settlers
editJuan Leal was born in 1676 in the city ofTeguise,inLanzarote(Canary Islands). He was the son of Antonio Goraz and Maria Perez and became a councilor of the municipality of Teguise.[2]He lived in the village of San Bartolomé, on the same island.[3]
In 1730, theSpanish Crowndecided to send ten or eleven families from the Canary Islands as emigrants to Villa de San Fernando because of a supposed threat to Spanish interests by the French inLouisiana.Leal was the firstCanariancouncilor to respond, and agreed to enlist seven families of the ten more needed for the enterprise.[2]
InSanta Cruz,the capital ofTenerife,Bartolomé de Casabuena, Superintendent of the Court of the Indies in the Canary Islands, appointed the oldest male among the chosen settlers, which happened to be Leal, as their leader. He accepted the assignment.[4]On March 27, 1730, Leal, along with his own[5]and the other Canarian families, departed from Santa Cruz on the frigateSantísima Trinidad y Nuestra Señora del Rosario,headed forVeracruz,viaHavana.The first impression that the Canarians, who were unaccustomed to sea travel, had of their transport was that the ship was very small for such a long voyage. When many in the group panicked from fear and confusion, Leal's calm demeanor reassured them, and helped them endure a passage on rough seas across the Atlantic. This was the first indication of his natural ability as a leader,[2]although not all his decisions were at first accepted by every one of the Canarian settlers. The group eventually came to the mutual conclusion that they needed a leader to choose a course of action to address any problems.[6]
The settler group arrived in Havana on May 10 and were greeted by its governor, who had been made aware of their impending arrival by a letter from Bartolomé de Casabuena at Tenerife. Here they remained for several weeks and were given food and clothing. On July 9 they embarked on the shipSantísima Trinidad y Nuestra Señora del Rosariofor Veracruz, where they landed on July 19 and remained for thirteen days. Thealcaldeof Veracruz greeted them on behalf of the Viceroy ofNew Spain,Juan de Acuña,and ordered horses and mules and wagons, and a guide called Francisco Duval to be made available to them. Continuing their journey overland, they reachedCuautitlán Izcalli,a town northwest ofMexico City,on August 27, 1730, where they received food, shelter, and clothing. Leal went to Mexico City for an audience with the viceroy to request better transportation and tools. Viceroy Acuña committed to providing more resources for the trip, and issued letters of introduction instructing the Governor of Texas and the Captain of thePresidioof San Antonio to assist the Canarians in building the new cabildo.[2]
After the arrival of the settlers' caravan atSan Luis de Potosíon November 14, 1730, Leal told thealcaldeof the city that four Canarian men had abandoned the caravan and fled. Thealcaldesent soldiers in pursuit, and they were arrested several days later and imprisoned at San Luis. Thealcaldetold Leal that if he would agree to be responsible for them, he would release the deserters to his custody. Leal accepted his proposal. The fact that Juan Leal led the four Canarians in handcuffs back to the caravan and did not respond to them while they were incarcerated at San Luis was the source of many problems that divided the Canarian families once they were established in San Antonio. Many days after this, Juan Leal gave a loan to the fugitives, who were not returned until later, when Juan Leal forced them.[6]
After passing through many other towns and cities, the settlers finally reached the Presidio of San Antonio on the morning of March 9, 1731,[7]after eight months of travel in a caravan and almost a year since they had left the port of Santa Cruz de Tenerife for Texas. Leal was 54 years old.[2]
Mayor of San Antonio
editOn August 31, 1731, Leal was electedalcalde(mayor) andregidorof the city. Since departing fromTenerife,he had been the group's leader. Once the Canarian people established themselves in the city, Leal found they had problems, including frequent clashes with theFranciscanmissionaries of San Antonio and the soldiers stationed at thepresidio.The Franciscans were opposed to the Canarians settling in the middle of an area where they had already established their domain and that they regarded as belonging to them.
Given these considerations and his investment in his own decision to settle in Texas, Leal traveled from San Antonio toMexicoto speak to the viceroy and request that the appropriate orders be given to the Captain of the presidio, Almazan, and thus ensure that theCabildo(council) constituted by the new settlers in Texas had the greater power in the matter and the Canarian settlers would be enabled to succeed in their mission. He also requested necessary instructions on how to administer the council. The viceroy, again assisted by Brigadier Rivera, sent clear orders to the captain of the presidio to recognize and respect the will of the council. Leal succeeded in establishing the new colony and the city was populated with new families.[2]
During Leal's administration, the settlers twice requested that the viceroy assign Native Americans working in the Spanish missions to farm their lands (whether they were willing or not). The settlers maintained that missionaries should engage in ecclesiastical functions only and forego entering trade or enlarging their farm lands, since they were trained as clerics, and should not compete with the farmers in either endeavor. The viceroy, however, rejected both their requests.[4]The following year, 1733, Leal completed his term asalcadeof San Antonio and was replaced by Antonio de los Santos.[8]
In 1735, Leal was appointed as town councilman, and soon after was appointed to a life term asalcalde.Leal was not considered either tolerant or judicious by many among the military, the clergy, and the settlers themselves, and soon gained their general contempt.[4]Consequently, his second term as mayor lasted only a year and he was replaced again by Antonio de los Santos.[8]
Although Leal's administration seems to have been successful, he had clashes with other Canarians in Texas. The first of the Canarians with whom he had problems was MayorAlguacilVicente Álvarez Travieso,from whom he was to reclaim a loan in court when they arrived in Coahuila. Leal had made a loan to Travieso in San Luis Potosí, and Travieso had not repaid him by the deadline. This circumstance and the distribution of land lots (Juan Leal had chosen the last one and therefore the worst one) in the city was a trigger for a series of lawsuits and claims against other families like the Traviesos, the Curvelos, the Padróns, and the Santos. These events occurred between 1732 and 1735.[6]
Later years
editJuan Leal Goraz died in the Villa de San Fernando in March 1742 or 1743 in San Antonio, Texas. He was buried in theCampo Santoof theCathedral of San Fernando.[9]
Personal life
editAccording to theOur Lady of the Lake University,Leal married Lucía (Catarina) Hernández in his native Lanzarote,[8]and they had five children: Juan "El Mozo" (born 1700), José (born 1708), Catalina (1714–1794), Bernardo (1717–1751)[8][5]and Vicente Leal,[8]but Lucia, exhausted by the rigors of the long journey to San Antonio, became ill and died, as did many other Canarians.
Leal then married María Melano, who bore him three children: Juan Leal Goraz, Jr., Bernardo and Catrina Leal.[5]His son, José Leal, was mayor of San Antonio in 1748.[8]Currently, some of their descendants still live in San Antonio, as in the case of John O. Leal, historian and president of the Canary Islands Descendants Association of San Antonio, Texas.[8]A descendant of Juan Leal was a Bexar County's archivist at the end of the 20th century.[10]
References
edit- ^Congressional Record, V. 147, Pt. 3, March 8, 2001 to March 26, 2001.Government Printing Office. 16 June 2005. p. 4100.ISBN9780160749636.GGKEY:3F50QNXHQD4.
- ^abcdef"Fundación de San Antonio de Texas por canarios (The founding of San Antonio, Texas by Canary Islanders)".Temas canarios(in Spanish). November 2007. Archived fromthe originalon November 8, 2015.
- ^Manuel A. Fariña González (2005)."Biografía apresurada del Lanzaroteño Juan Leal Goraz, en el aniversario de la fundación de San Antonio de Texas (1731-2006)"[An Abbreviated Biography of Lanzarotean Juan Leal Goraz, on the Anniversary of the Founding of San Antonio, Texas (1731 - 2006)](PDF).XII Jornadas de Estudios de Fuerteventura y Lanzarote(in Spanish). Arrecife de Lanzarote: Cabildo Insular de Lanzarote: 220. Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 2015-11-17.Retrieved2015-09-22.
- ^abcRandell G. Tarín."Leal Goraz, Juan".Handbook of Texas Online.Texas State Historical Association. Archived fromthe originalon September 9, 2015.Retrieved28 November2015.
- ^abcFamily Tree Maker's Genealogy Site: Genealogy Report: Ancestors of Sylvia Alice Villarreal
- ^abcCURBELO FUENTES, Armando, La Fundación de San Antonio de Texas. Canarias, la gran deuda americana (The founding of San Antonio Texas: Canarian people, the Great American Debt). Page: 71 - 81. Tercera edición, 1990.
- ^Ranchos de Texas y Lanzarote.
- ^abcdefgBalbuena Castellano, José Manuel. "La odisea de los canarios en Texas y Luisiana" (The odyssey of the Canarians in Texas and Louisiana). Chapter I (Los canarios en Texas: Juan Leal, el primer alcalde de San Antonio), Page 23; chapter II (La Aldea deYanaguana), Page 32; and chapter IV (La organización de los isleños), pages 42–46; (ed) 2007,editorial: Anroart Ediciones.
- ^San Fernando Cathedral Burial Records
- ^La provincia.es: Aquellos locos canarios(in Spanish: Those crazy Canarians). José M. Balbuena Castellano. 09 February, 2013