Espada Acequia
Espada Aqueduct | |
San Antonio, Texas United States | |
| Coordinates | 29°18′16.4″N 98°28′10″W / 29.304556°N 98.46944°W |
|---|---|
| Built | 1731[1] |
| Part of | San Antonio Missions National Historical Park (ID78003147) |
| NRHP reference No. | 66000809 |
| Significant dates | |
| Added to NRHP | October 15, 1966[1] |
| Designated NHL | July 19, 1964[2] |
| Designated CP | October 6, 1975[3] |
The Espada Acequia, or Piedras Creek Aqueduct, was built by
National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark and a National Historic Landmark.[4]
Irrigation system
Mission Espada's acequia (irrigation) system can still be seen today. The main
farmlands. This water is still used by residents living on these neighboring lands.[5]
The initial survival of a new mission depended upon the planting and harvesting of
rainfall and the need for a reliable water source made the design and installation of an acequia system a high priority. Irrigation was so important to Spanish colonial
settlers that they measured cropland in suertes -the amount of land that could be watered in one day.
The use of acequias was originally brought to the arid regions of Spain by the
Puebloan Native Americans
.
In order to distribute water to the missions along the
aqueduct
—a 15-mile (24 km) network that irrigated approximately 3,500 acres (14 km2) of land. The acequia not only conducted potable water and irrigation, but also powered a mill.
Mission Espada has survived from its beginnings to the present day as a community center that still supports a Catholic parish and religious education, however a school originally opened by the Sisters of the Incarnate Word and Blessed Sacrament was closed in 1967.
References
- ^ a b "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. April 15, 2008.
- ^ "Espada Aqueduct". National Historic Landmark summary listing. National Park Service. Archived from the original on October 12, 2009. Retrieved June 26, 2008.
- ^ Texas Historic Atlas
- ^ "S.A.'s Acequia System Gets Landmark Tag by Engineering Society". San Antonio Express. August 27, 1968. p. 26.
- ^ Davila, Vianna (October 6, 2009). "Spanish-era aqueduct finally gets a face-lift". Chron. Retrieved March 8, 2023.
External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Espada Acequia.
- Historic American Buildings Survey (HABS) No. TX-322, "Aqueduct, San Antonio, Bexar County, TX", 5 photos, 2 data pages
- Historic American Engineering Record (HAER) No. TX-1-A, "Espada Acequia, Piedras Creek Aqueduct, Spanning Piedras Creek east of Espada Road, San Antonio, Bexar County, TX", 3 photos, 1 measured drawing, 1 photo caption page
- HAER No. TX-1-B, "Espada Acequia, Diversion Dam", 1 photo, 1 measured drawing, 1 photo caption page
