French trader Joseph Blancpain established a trading post in this vicinity in August 1754. He had been living in Natchitoches, Louisiana, where he was the owner of a mercantile store.
With a small group of men, Blancpain arrived in August and soon opened trade with the Atakapan and related Indian tribes of this region. He had entered Spanish territory, and the Spanish soon received word of his presence. The Spanish governor ordered a detachment of soldiers to arrest the French. Aided by the Bidai Indians, the Spaniards located the settlement and attacked on October 10. The Frenchmen were imprisoned in Mexico City, where authorities concluded that Blancpain was an agent of the French government. He died in prison in Mexico on March 14, 1756, and the other members of his party were imprisoned in Spain for life.
The Spanish established Presidio San Augustin de Ahumada and Mission Nuestra Senora de la Luz on the site of Blancpain's trading post. The complex was destroyed in a 1766 hurricane. One hundred years later the archeological remains of both the French and Spanish settlements were uncovered and were later entered in the National Register of Historic Places.
Texas Sesquicentennial 1836-1986
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