De León, a Tejano Family History

Epilogue

 IfMartíndeLeónweretoreturntohistownsomanyyearsafterhisdeath, what would he have said of the contributions of his family to the settlement of Texas? Was their struggle characteristic of life on the frontier of northern New Spain? What lessons about the Hispanic past can the de León family offer their descendants and other Mexican Americans throughout the Southwest today? Martín de León was by no means unique among those who faced the frontier experience of the Spanish in Texas. On the contrary, he and his extended family were typical of the settlers found in northern New Spain during the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. The history of thedeLeónfamilyrevealsmuchaboutthenorteñosettlersonthedespoblado, the unsettled lands of the north. As the de León case shows, these early settlers survived as family units, supporting and defending each other. Theirliveswerenotluxurious,buttheydidekeoutapassableliving.They maintainedresilienceinthefaceofadversityandretainedstrengthofcharacter that kept their families and their community united and strong. First, the case of the de León family demonstrates that many Spanish trailblazers settled the northern frontier, and not all of them came from wealthierbackgrounds.BernardodeLeónwasoneamongthousandswho moved north to find better lives. Tejano scholars are beginning to explore the stories of other early settlers, such as the Benavides brothers, the Carbajal family, the thousands of de la Garza kin. Their stories likewise will reveal struggles and successes. Presently, there is no evidence that the de León family was among the wealthy elite of northern New Spain. The de León name does not appear among those granted the giant estates along the Rio Bravo del Norte by the king. Had Martín’s family been among the ricos, he would have been entitled to a commission as colonel with the militia, a position that he never attained. Nor was the family part of the peasant poor, for Martín was well educated, although he never received a university education. Whether his mule train was his own or whether  Epilogue •  someone else hired him is unknown. Muleteering was an avocation that required intelligence, skill, courage, and honesty, but not necessarily socialpositionorwealth .Thefrontier,therefore,providedopportunitiesfor many among the rising middle classes of New Spain. A second point in the story of Martín de León provides evidence that frontier settlers learned to adapt to new political and economic concepts asthreesovereigntieschangedaroundthem.Theybegantheirlivesonthe Spanishfrontierasaproductoftheexpansionandgrowthtriggeredbythe Bourbon reforms of Charles III and the great land rush started by José de Escandón.WhenMexicoCitymerchantsimposedtaxes,restrictinghope amongthenorthernsettlersforprofitfromlegaltrade,thefrontierfamilies counteredbydevelopingasuccessfulcontrabandtradewithNewOrleans. Little wonder that many of the embittered settlers were among the first revolutionaries and supporters of independence from the Spanish crown. A third lesson from the de León story shows Mexican frontier settlers to have been people of vision. Once the new federalist Mexican government had been instituted in , de León, influenced by his upbringing during the heady years of the Escandón settlements, saw the possibilities for growth for his family in the lands of Texas. He took advantage of the empresario system and the changing land laws to lay claim to ranches in the river valleys of Texas for his family. He also opened land to other immigrants from Mexico. As with frontier settlements the world over, Tejanos encouraged their relatives and friends in Mexico to come across the Rio Grande to settle in the new colony. Difficulties did not deter the new Mexican immigrants, and they came in trickles and then floods to take advantage of the land and the possibilities for a new and better life. That siphon effect still continues today. The fourth concept evident from the story of the de León family is a more complex view of the interactions that took place during the s and s between the Mexican and the incoming Anglo-American and European settlers. Not all Tejanos hated all Anglo Americans or vice versa. De León’s colony, multinational from the start, encouraged people ofallnationalitiestointeractandtoknoweachotherasindividuals.What hatreds and conflicts existed occurred at a personal level. Friendships also developed with little regard to race or nationality. The support and companionship between the de León family and the Linns, as well as the antagonisms between Fernando and his enemies, were typical of the kinds of relationships that took place between Tejanos and Anglos. AfifthdeductionfromthedeLeónfamilyexperienceisthatnosimplis-  • D L, A T F H tic view will suffice to explain the attitudes of the Tejanos toward Texas independence. The years of the Texas Revolution were a...