Come and Take It

The Spanish mission system had a critical role in the early exploration and settlement of Texas. The system’s purpose was to bring European civilization and Christianity to Native American tribes inhabiting Spanish Texas. Today we take a special look at the history of missions in the New World, its origins, and the influence it played in the development of the Lone Star State This week we are joined by our friend Stephen Guerra of The History of the Papacy podcast to look at the rich and fascinating history of the Texas Missions.

Before we begin… What’s your favorite Texas-shaped novelty item?

The University of Texas has created a truly amazing virtual history museum about a wide varieity of information on many different archeological sites in Texas. Here are some about Texas missions and what life was like in these missions.

• http://www.texasbeyondhistory.net/st-plains/images/he15.html 

• http://www.texasbeyondhistory.net/espiritu/index.html 

• http://www.texasbeyondhistory.net/sansaba/index.html 

• http://www.texasbeyondhistory.net/gateway/index.html 

• http://www.texasbeyondhistory.net/dolores/index.html 

You don’t have to be in Texas to visit missions! Spanish Missions were established throughout the southern and western US, from Virginia to California. Many of these, especially in the west, are still active! For information on the different mission founded throughout the country, visit

• http://www.usmissiontrail.com/index.shtml 

Stephen Guerra is the host of the History of the Papacy podcast, which details the history of the Popes of Rome and Christian Church. If you want to learn more or listen to the show, you can go to the website atozhistorypage.com, his Facebook at The History of the Papacy Podcast, or email him at steve@atozhistorypage.com. Steve is one of our fellow podcasters on the History Podcast Network and you can find his show as well as ours at http://historypodcasters.com/ .