Diego de Guadalajara expedition
Spanish pearl-seeking expedition into Jumano country, 1654.
The Diego de Guadalajara expedition of 1654 was a Spanish entrada sent to investigate freshwater pearls found in the Concho River in present-day Texas. Though the pearl harvest proved disappointing, the venture spurred ongoing contact with local peoples and eventually led to Spanish settlement near San Angelo, Texas.
Quick Facts
- Year
- 1654
- Leader
- Sergeant Major Diego de Guadalajara
- Size
- 30 soldiers and 200 Christian Indians
- Destination
- Concho River in Jumano country
- Duration
- 9 months
- Distance traveled
- 300 leagues east
Facts from the source article.
Castillo-Martin expedition
In 1650, New Mexico governor Hernando de Ugarte y la Concha sent Captains Diego del Castillo and Hernan Martin from Santa Fe to explore north-central Texas. They followed the route Dominican friar Juan de Salas had taken to the Jumano Indians in 1632, traveling about 520 miles southeast. Reaching the Concho River, they named it for the Tampico pearly mussel and called another watercourse the Río de las Perlas. Some members continued 130 miles farther to the edge of Tejas Indian territory but halted there. The Tejas chief sent an envoy, and the expedition spent six months in the region collecting freshwater pearls.
Guadalajara expedition
The 1654 entrada, led by Sergeant Major Diego de Guadalajara, probably departed before Easter with 30 soldiers and 200 Christian Indians. According to Christoval de Anaya’s 1663 testimony, the party traveled 300 leagues east for nine months through friendly non-Christian Indian lands. The main force camped on the Concho River among the Jumanos, who were recruited to harvest mussels for pearls. Captain Andrés López took 12 soldiers about 80 miles east, where they encountered a ranchería of Cuitao people, fought them, and took 200 prisoners along with 200 bundles of animal skins. The reunited expedition returned to Santa Fe with pelts and slaves.
Results
The expedition yielded far fewer pearls than anticipated, but Spanish interest in the region grew. No specific expeditions are recorded for the next 30 years, though Mexican archives indicate many trading journeys occurred, likely exchanging iron tools and horses for pelts and buffalo meat. Juan Domínguez de Mendoza, a veteran of the 1654 entrada, led another expedition into the area in 1683–1684. Missions were built, and eventually the town of San Angelo was established. A modern fishery for the mussels and their pearls still operates.
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