San Antonio, Texas

SMALL TOWN HISTORY: San Juan, Texas

Ellie Santillan Fall 2002
History 1302 Hines

The year was 1910 and a man by the name of John Closner decided to buy 406 acres of land. He names the town after his name Juan, meaning John in Spanish. The town had merely 175 people. One of the main reasons this town was created was because of the railroad, which ran through the middle of San Juan.
San Juan is a city full of crops and fields. Many people began to grow cotton and oranges as well as many vegetables. With the railroad running through town it was the perfect career. Although farming plays a big role in San Juan, it is known for something much more historical, the Basilica.
The church was built in 1979 and became a National Shrine in 1998 and a year later was name as a Basilica. There are only three in the entire state of Texas, which is why every weekend it hosts up to 25,000 visitors. The visitors come from as far as Europe, Canada, and South America.
Before the Basilica San Juan only had one church, St. John's Catholic Church. St. John's was a very well known church and it had beautiful stained glass windows, with the Virgen de San Juan. There were also tall statues of God, which stood around the church. St. John's not only conducted mass, it was a school for the neighborhood children and a little restaurant where people could meet after church or wait while their children got out of school. This was a very joyous time in San Juan until October 23, 1970.

Back in 1970, a minister by the name of Alexander from Upper Valley Aviation in McAllen, TX, was convinced St. John's was stealing from his church. Alexander was so convinced that on October 23, 1970 he decided to fly a twin-engine plan straight to San Juan. Alexander called the McAllen tower and informed them he was in the air and was going to do something unforgettable. The McAllen tower had no time and did not know what to do. Little did they know he was headed for San Juan, which was only 12 miles away.
Meanwhile, back at St. John's, our two priests were conducting mass, school was being held, and people were conversing in the restaurant. Then all of a sudden, there was a loud crashing noise and then fire erupted everywhere! Everybody ran out of the mass, my aunt was teaching and got all the kids out, and the people eating ran out as fast as they could. No one knew what had happened, but they knew it was not good. The plane landed in the men's bathroom upside down.
As the church was burning up into flames, the two priests decided to run back inside and save the Virgen de San Juan, which was the soul of the church. The people tried to tell them not to go back in, but the two had so much faith that they knew they would return. As faith would have it all three returned without a scratch. The most amazing thing was that only Alexander died.
During this time my uncle was living with my grandma. Their house was only a block away from the church, so when they heard the crash they grabbed a camera and ran out to take pictures. To the people of San Juan this was devastating. The feelings they felt wewe like the ones we all felt on 9/11. This mortified the town, but just like September 11, the community became more united than ever. The people of San Juan decided to start donating to rebuild the church and most of the donations came from the pilgrims. It took the town eight years to finally complete the new rebuilt church. It reopened its doors Easter weekend 1979.

            The town started off with about 175 people and now holds about 27,500 citizens.  In the last ten years alone, the city has grown 125 percent.  Throughout this time, the town has annexed many new neighborhoods.  Houses in this community are much easier to sell than once before.  More people are moving into town, which makes it harder to find open land or houses for sale.  Since many people have taken interest in this little town, the commercial businesses are doing so as well.  

            In the past five years the town has brought in: McDonald’s, Hollywood Video, Speedy Stop, and its very own Boy’s & Girl’s Club.  This may not seem much to us in San Antonio, but to the people of San Juan it meant growth and opportunities.  The main street used to be full of cantinas, and made the streets unsafe for children at night.  San Juan’s board of commission decided to clean up and shape up the town.  If you drive down main street today, you will no longer see these cantinas as you may have seen several years back.  While doing this, the board also built a brand new park.  The park has two softball fields, two full size basketball courts, and a soccer and football field.  It also has barbeque pits and benches for families to relax on the weekends.  The park is very well lit and is patrolled by the city police department.

            San Juan has also added a new substation for the police and fire department.  They have also remodeled their city hall, but most importantly have rebuilt and relocated the San Juan city public library.  San Juan is a city on the move.  People from other cities thought San Juan would always be a “hole in the ground.”  Little did they know what potential it actually has.  The citizens of San Juan have really made the town what it is today, because without them there would not be a new St. John’s Catholic Church.  This is only one example of what a united community can do to help out their hometown.

 

ORIGINS: It was founded in 1910 by John Closner.  He purchased 406 acres of land.

HISTORICALLY SIGNIFICANT STORIES?: The most historically story is the one about the beautiful St. John’s Catholic Church.

HISTORICAL LANDMARKS: The city of San Juan is known for The Virgen de San Juan Basilica.

INTERVIEWS:  Mr. George Arcuate, San Juan’s City Manager “The way the country felt on September 11 was the way our town felt on October 23, 1970.”

PHOTOGRAPHS: These pictures show St. John’s burning up into flames and then what it looked like afterwards.  They also show the inside of the church as well.  The men in the other picture are the San Juan Commission Board.  Mayor- Robert F. Loredo, Commissioner- Eleazar Romero, Commissioner- Rick Rodriguez, Commissioner- Jose Luis Santillan, (not shown) Commissioner- Luis Ramos.

FUTURE PROSPECTS: The community hopes to bring in more commercial businesses to provide opportunities to the people of San Juan.

WEBSITES:

www.lone-star.net/mall/txtrails/SanJuan.htm

ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY:

Bashaw, John.  San Juan, in the Heart of the Rio Grande Valley of Texas.  San Juan: San Juan Commercial Club, 1920.

Nicolau, Juan.  Welcome to the Basilica of National Shrine of our Lady of San Juan del Valle.  Brownsville: Basilica of the National Shrine, 1999.

Ramos, Juan.  Spanish Speaking leadership in the two Southwestern cities.  1968, c1969.

Texas Economic Development Commission.  General Community Profile of San Juan.  Austin: The Commission, 1984.

Texas Industrial Commission.  General Community Profile of San Juan.   Austin: The Commission, 1977.

Weddle, Robert S.  San Juan; Gateway to the Spanish Texas.  Austin: University of Texas Press,1968.

 

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