The Lavaca Neighborhood Association

Lavaca - San Antonio's Oldest Residential NeighborhoodThe Lavaca Neighborhood is the oldest existing neighborhood in San Antonio. It is bounded on the north by Durango Street, on the south by Carolina Street, on the east by IH-37, and on the west by South Alamo and South St. Mary's Streets. The Lavaca area is defined by its small 19th century vernacular houses built primarily by working class families beginning in the early 1870s. This was approximately the same time that affluent San Antonians were building much larger homes several blocks away in the King William neighborhood. The neighborhood's original residents included carpenters, stonemasons, shopkeepers, clerks, tailors, bartenders, teamsters and butchers. The houses are primarily 1-story with some 2-story buildings interspersed and range from the very simple to the highly decorated; notable styles are the vernacular stone or caliche block cottage, Victorian cottage, two-story Victorian, Craftsman and a few Neoclassical.The area was originally part of the Labor de Afuera, the farmlands of Mission San Antonio de Valero (the Alamo) which were watered by the Acequia Madre, an irrigation ditch built by the Spanish in the 18th century. The mission lands were subdivided into suertes (smaller pieces of land based on a Spanish unit of measure) in the early 19th century, and the property was owned by individuals. By the middle of the 19th century, land speculators including Thomas J. Devine and Sam Maverick, had purchased large tracts in the Lavaca area.When the Augustus Koch Bird's Eye view of San Antonio was published in 1873, the development in the Lavaca neighborhood was well underway, with construction along Lavaca and Barrera Streets. The later 1886 Bird's Eye View map documents further development in the area. Subdivisions of land made in 1877 on Barrera and Camargo Streets, and in 1888 on Callaghan Avenue, indicate the area's ongoin development. In the 1890s, Robert and Sarah Eager and William Leigh subdivided land south of Callaghan and along Leigh Street. Along the western boundary of the neighborhood of South Alamo Street, a firehouse, meat markets and beer gardens stood alongside residences. In the early 20th century, 1 and 2-story commercial buildings were constructed.The first City Directory for San Antonio was published in 1877, and at that time, Lavaca Street residents included families with German, Polish and Hispanic surnames.Of those listed, Germans were by far the predominant group. African Americans also resided in the area, primarily at the eastern end of the neighborhood that came to be known as "Baptist Settlement" named for the New Light and Mount Zion Baptist churches, both founded there. The housing in that portion of the neighborhood was razed for construction of the Victoria Courts public housing project in 1941.The area to the north of Durango Street was an Urban Renewal area where that portion of what once was the Lavaca neighborhood was razed for the 1968 Worlds Fair.Lavaca Overview:Lavaca is the oldest neighborhood in San Antonio, with some of the residences dating back to the 19th century. It is part of the King William District that is also a part of the larger Southtown area. Confused yet? Don't be – Lavaca, King William and the rest of Southtown are all a part of an urban reclamation project initiated by the city to not only beautify these once run-down areas but also to bring commerce and jobs to the residents of the area.Lavaca Boundaries:Lavaca runs from Durango Blvd, South St. Mary's Street and along IH-37 to the Missouri-Kansas Railroad line. Lavaca History: San Antonio used to be a small town that was a stop for cattle and oil barons, until the end of the 19th century, when people decided to start settling in the area. Lavaca is a part of this rich history, having once been referred to as Labor de Afuera which were the farmlands surrounding Mission San Antonio de Valero. That would be the modern-day Alamo to you and me.Lavaca Homes:As the wealthy oilmen built their houses in the nearby King William and Monte Vista areas, the people who either worked for them or became employed due to the influx of business settled in Lavaca, building mostly modest homes. Many of these were later abandoned or crumbled over time due to the building nearby of the Victoria courts. These courts became a constant source of crime, drugs and poverty that crippled Lavaca.Lavaca Reclamation:As a part of the project to improve all of Southtown, the city of San Antonio has mad an effort to revitalize Lavaca, including razing the courts and spending money on improvements and rebuilding efforts. To find out more about the rebuilding efforts and what neighboring areas think of Lavaca, visit kingwilliamassociation.org. Lavaca Attractions:The quarterly newsletter Esta es Lavaca has lots of information pertaining to area events and happenings. You can download current and past issues of the newsletter in .pdf form here: Lavaca newsletter.Just south of HemisFair park sits Lavaca's fire station (Fire Station 48) where the San Antonio Fire Museum Society is grooming to be the new site of the official city fireman's museum. This would mark the first time that the entire collection of memorabilia is housed in one section, and Lavaca is proud to be the site of it.Lavaca Schools:The Lavaca area is served by San Antonio ISD. Elementary schools in Lavaca include Bonham Elementary, David G. Burnett and Robert B. Green. Middle schools include Page Middle School while Brackenridge serves as the area's main high school.