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El Camino Real
The King's Highway
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In 1691 the first Spanish provincial Governor
of Texas, Domingo Teran de los Rios, ordered that a trail be blazed as a
direct route from Monclova, then a capital of the province, to the Spanish
Missions established among the Indians of East Texas in 1690. Spanish Explorers
blazed the road from the Rio Grande across Texas to the River San Francisco
De Sabinas (Sabine River). The distance of more than 500 miles was known
as the El Camino Real, King's Highway, which is one of the oldest and most
traveled overland routes in North America. Today's travelers are able to
travel parts of the historic El Camino Real which, in 1929, was incorporated
into State Highway 21. The road crosses the Toledo Bend Reservoir at the
Pendleton Bridge, now spanning the Sabine River and connecting with Highway
6 in Louisiana. This route was later known as the Old San Antonio Road,
beginning in Louisiana and transversing the land area that is now Sabine
County, the Old San Antonio Road continued westward through Nacogdoches,
Crockett, Bastrop, San Antonio, and on to Monclova, Mexico.
West of the Sabine River (now Toledo Bend Reservoir) the Old
San Antonio Road swung slightly south and westward. An artesian spring on
the road located about 7 miles west of the Sabine River became a favorite
camping spot. From this point (later the town of Milam),
routes paralleling the Sabine River were established northward and southward.
As the population grew other routes were established that connected the
growing communities in different parts of the country. Some of these routes,
still unpaved, are in use today. These old country lanes provide visitors
with an opportunity to enjoy a quiet drive over wooden bridges and shaded,
rock strewn creeks. Find out more about these roads, and drive over
them, by checking out the Self
Guided Road Tour for Sabine County. |
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