El Orcoquisac Archeological District
Encyclopedia
El Orcoquisac Archeological District is a registered U.S. historic site
located near Galveston Bay
in present-day Wallisville, Texas
. The site preserves an important Spanish presidio
and trading center as well as an important settlement for the Akokisa
and Bidai
tribes that once inhabited the area.
Frenchmen, led by Joseph Blancpain and engaged in fur and hide trading with the tribes, had operated in the area near the mouth of the Trinity River
in the early 18th century even though the area was claimed by the Spanish. Alarmed by this the Spanish drove out the French and in 1756 established a presidio known as San Augustín de Ahumada at the El Orcoquisac site. Within the presidio a Roman Catholic mission known as Nuestra Señora de la Luz was also established. The Spanish post was never as successful in fur trading as Blancpain's operation. The presidio and mission were moved and gradually abandoned in the later 18th century.
The site was rediscovered by amateur historian John V. Clay in 1965 and was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1972.
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
located near Galveston Bay
Galveston Bay
Galveston Bay is a large estuary located along the upper coast of Texas in the United States. It is connected to the Gulf of Mexico and is surrounded by sub-tropic marshes and prairies on the mainland. The water in the Bay is a complex mixture of sea water and fresh water which supports a wide...
in present-day Wallisville, Texas
Wallisville, Texas
Wallisville is an unincorporated town in northern Chambers County, Texas, United States, just east of the Trinity River along Interstate 10 and north of Lake Anahuac.-History:...
. The site preserves an important Spanish presidio
Presidio
A presidio is a fortified base established by the Spanish in North America between the sixteenth and nineteenth centuries. The fortresses were built to protect against pirates, hostile native Americans and enemy colonists. Other presidios were held by Spain in the sixteenth and seventeenth...
and trading center as well as an important settlement for the Akokisa
Akokisa
The Akokisa were the indigenous tribe that lived on Galveston Bay and the lower Trinity and San Jacinto rivers in Texas, primarily in the present-day Greater Houston area...
and Bidai
Bidai
The Bidai were a band of Atakapa Indians from eastern Texas.-History:Their oral history says that the Bidai were the original peoples in their region. Their central settlements were along Bedias Creek, but their territory ranged from the Brazos River to the Neches River. The first written record...
tribes that once inhabited the area.
Frenchmen, led by Joseph Blancpain and engaged in fur and hide trading with the tribes, had operated in the area near the mouth of the Trinity River
Trinity River (Texas)
The Trinity River is a long river that flows entirely within the U.S. state of Texas. It rises in extreme north Texas, a few miles south of the Red River. The headwaters are separated by the high bluffs on the south side of the Red River....
in the early 18th century even though the area was claimed by the Spanish. Alarmed by this the Spanish drove out the French and in 1756 established a presidio known as San Augustín de Ahumada at the El Orcoquisac site. Within the presidio a Roman Catholic mission known as Nuestra Señora de la Luz was also established. The Spanish post was never as successful in fur trading as Blancpain's operation. The presidio and mission were moved and gradually abandoned in the later 18th century.
The site was rediscovered by amateur historian John V. Clay in 1965 and was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1972.