2000 census population (rank): 1,144,646
(9); % change: 22.3; Male: 553,245 (48.3%);
Female: 591,401 (51.7%); White: 774,708 (67.7%);
Black: 78,120 (6.8%); American Indian and Alaska
Native: 9,584 (0.8%); Asian: 17,934 (1.6%); Other
race: 221,362 (19.3%); Two or more races: 41,871 (3.7%);
Hispanic/Latino: 671,394 (58.7%). 2000 percent population
18 and over: 71.5%; 65 and over: 10.4%; Median
age: 31.7.
Chamber of Commerce: Greater San Antonio
Chamber of Commerce, 602 E. Commerce, San Antonio, TX 78205
San Antonio, the third-largest city in Texas and the seat of Bexar
County, is located in the south-central part of the state, on the San
Antonio River.
The site of San Antonio was first visited in 1691 by a Franciscan friar
on the feast day of St. Anthony and was named
San Antonio de Padua in his honor. San Antonio was permanently settled on
May 1, 1718, when the Spanish governor of Coahuila and Texas, Martin de
Alarcón, founded the presidio (a fort) of San Antonio de Bejar
(Bexar) and the mission of San Antonio de Valero (later called the Alamo) on the site of a
Coahuiltecan Indian village. San Antonio remained almost continuously
under Spanish rule until 1812, when Mexico won its independence from
Spain.
During the outbreak of the Texas revolution (1835) against the tyranny
of Mexican dictator General Santa Anna, San
Antonio was captured by a small band of rebels who occupied the fortified
mission of the Alamo in Dec. 1835. The
historic battle of the Alamo was fought there (Feb. 24 to March 6, 1836),
and its 183 besieged defenders were massacred by Santa Anna's troops.
Their heroism aroused the anger and fighting spirit of Texans and led them
to shout their famous battle cry “Remember the Alamo!” and
defeat the Mexicans six weeks later (April 21, 1836) at the battle of
San Jacinto. Texas became
an independent republic in 1836, and San Antonio was incorporated as a
city on Jan. 5, 1837.
After the Civil War, with the arrival
of the railroad in 1877, San Antonio prospered as a major shipping point
for cattle. The city has been an important military center since World War
II and is the home to five of the largest military installations in the
nation, including Fort Sam Houston, constructed in 1876. San Antonio is a
leading livestock center and one of the largest produce exchange markets.
The city's industries are highly diversified, and tourism is also
important to the economy.
