From the Beginnings of Texas the Navarros Were There
Capt. Angel Navarro, Cdr Texas Mounted Volunteers
Capt. Angel Navarro, Cdr Texas Mounted Volunteers
The grandfather of Jose Angel Navarro, III was alcalde (mayor) of San Antonio during the Spanish era. Angel’s father signed the Texas Declaration of Independence in 1836. This was Jose Angel Navarro, scion, of one of the oldest families in San Antonio de Bexar. Born in 1828, Angel attended St. Vincent’s College in Cape Girardeau, Missouri. He then attended Harvard Law School in Boston. Angel was elected to the Texas state legislature in 1857-1859, 1859-1861, and 1861-1863.
In 1860, Gov. Sam Houston dispatched him to Brownsville to investigate the “depredations” of one Juan Cortina, alleged bandit. Angel’s father, Jose Antonio Navarro, sent a letter with Angel addressed to Juan Cortina telling him that Anglo “outrages” along the border were committed by some Americans and did not represent them all.
Angel did not own any slaves. But, his father, Jose Antonio Navarro owned seven slaves at his ranch in Atascosa county. Jose Antonio generally supported secession and slavery. There were 592 slaves in San Antonio in 1860, with a white population of 7,643. 186 San Antonio families…