San Antonio v. Odin

• Decision Date: 01 January 1855
• Citation: 15 Tex. 539
• Parties: SAN ANTONIO v. JOHN M. ODIN.
• Court: Texas Supreme Court

15 Tex. 539

SAN ANTONIO

v.JOHN M. ODIN.

Supreme Court of Texas.

1855.

The congress of the republic authorized the council of the city of San Antonio to sell such public lots, etc., as lay within their jurisdiction, and such houses or other buildings as had formerly been the property of the corporation of said city; the proceeds of such sale to be appropriated to the erection or repairs of a court house, jail, and other such public edifices as may be deemed most fit, and to the erection and endowment of a public school; afterwards, before a sale, congress acknowledged and declared certain churches to be the property of the present chief pastor of the Roman Catholic church in the republic of Texas, and his successors in office in trust forever, for the use and benefit of the congregations residing near the same, for religious purposes and purposes of education and none other; afterwards, at same session, congress passed an act declaring that the church of the Alamo, in the city of San Antonio, was thereby yielded and granted for the use of the Catholic church upon the same terms and conditions as the churches of Concepcion, San Jose, San Juan and others (the churches named were named in the previous act): Held, that both the latter acts should be construed together; that the grant for the Alamo was not void for uncertainty, either as to trustee or beneficiaries; that said grant was not unconstitutional for perpetuity; and that it repealed the power previously given to the council of San Antonio, and vested the title of the republic, if any, in the grantee, for the purposes named.

Appeal from Bexar.

I. A. & G. W. Paschal and Stribling, for appellant.

Webb & Oldham and L. A. Thompson, for appellee.

LIPSCOMB, J.

This suit was brought by the appellant to recover the property known as the Alamo, in the city of San Antonio. From the statement of the facts, it appears that the city of San Antonio was founded about the year 1730. The corner-stone of the Alamo was laid on the 13th of May, 1744. This mission, as well as the others in the valley of the San Antonio river, was erected by order of the king of Spain, for the purpose of civilizing the Indians. The missions were under the charge of the Franciscans, or the friars of that order, which was an order independent of the regular church. The mission of the Alamo was formerly known as the mission of Valerio, and was secularized by order of the government in 1794. After the secularization, the Indians remaining were sent to the missions of Concepcion and San Jose. None of the property pertaining to this mission was ever distributed by order of the government, except a few suertes assigned to the Indians. The friars continued to occupy the buildings till 1801, when the Spanish soldiers took possession of the buildings and continued to occupy them until 1835. The consent and permission of the curate of the parish was obtained at the time the troops took possession of the same. In the year 1794, after the secularization of the missions, the baptismal registry of births and deaths of this mission were delivered over into the hands of the curate of Bexar, and the people of this mission became subject to his jurisdiction. From 1808 till 1835, there was a separate registry kept by the company stationed at the Alamo for the births, deaths and baptisms of said company. From the year 1801 till 1835, mass was frequently celebrated at intervals of from eight to ten days, and other religious rites, such as baptisms and burials and marriages. The part of the building originally intended for the church attached to the building was never completed; it never had a roof. One of the rooms in another part of the building was fitted up as a chapel and was used as such. The mission of the Alamo is situated within the limits of the city of San Antonio. In 1827, the secretary of the treasury of Mexico ordered one Erasmo Seguin to make an inventory of the property belonging to the national government of Mexico in Bexar. He then included these buildings in the inventory and forwarded the same to the treasurer. In the year 1823, an order was issued by the government of Mexico for the sale of the houses, lots, mills and lands pertaining to the extinguished missions of San Jose, Concepcion, San Juan and Espado, and the property was so sold, but the conventual houses were reserved from sale, except the convent attached to the mission of San Jose, which was sold. There was no order for the sale of the mission of the Alamo. All these missions were erected in the same manner and were subject to the same authority. The city of San Antonio never pretended to exercise any authority or control over the buildings or lots of the Alamo. The church, prior to the revolution, exercised such claim, as before stated. After the year 1835, these buildings were vacant and in a very dilapidated condition, and so remained until 1841, when there were two or three families living in or occupying different rooms. They took possession without the consent of any one. After being there two months, they were told by the bishop at San Antonio that the property belonged to the church and were requested to occupy and take care of the same for the church. These families remained there ten months afterwards and then left. About the beginning of the year 1847, the quartermaster of the United States army took possession of the Alamo buildings and claimed them as belonging to the United States government, but, in April of the same year, acknowledged to hold them as tenant of the bishop of Texas. The fact that the government held as tenant was not known to the public until about eighteen months before the...