Tall neon sign advertising Del Bravo Record Shop with hanging signs listing Tejano, Oldies But Goodies, Conjunto, Guitar Strings, and Turntable Needles — Cultural heritage Districts

Celebrating San Antonio’s history, culture, and living heritage

Our cultural heritage is defined by the National Trust for Historic Preservation as “the places, artifacts and activities that authentically represent the stories and people of the past and present.” This includes both historic resources of the built environment as well as natural resources. Cultural heritage is further defined as “the historic buildings and landmarks that help us understand who we are…” (Stephanie Meeks, President of the National Trust). Properties or areas that are important to our cultural heritage may not always be recognizable as the most significant architecturally. Many times properties of cultural significance are important to a community because of associated events or people or because they have been long-standing institutions or gathering places within a neighborhood. They are the places that provide a sense of identity. By recognizing and authenticating places of cultural significance in our city as Cultural Heritage Districts or Buildings, we help to preserve our unique and diverse history.

San Antonio has three Cultural Heritage Districts. Click the photos for more information about each district.

Jefferson Heights (2005)

An identified historic context for the Jefferson Heights neighborhood incorporates the historic theme of African American residential occupation and the civil rights movement in San Antonio. The architectural period of significance is from the earliest plat date of 1919 to 1930.

Old Highway 90 (2018)

The Enrique Barrera Parkway has a heritage dating back to the original Spanish expedition routes. Also known as Old Highway 90, the corridor has a long history as an economically important route. Known in the 19th century as the San Antonio – El Paso road, the Lower Immigrant Road and the Lower Military Road, the trade route carried mail, freight and passengers by horse and wagon from San Antonio to West Texas. It has remained a vibrant, economically based route over the centuries. Today it continues to be a commercial corridor featuring small family-owned businesses that evoke a sense of small town America. Its musical heritage and small business heritage, in particular, stand out as two of the most important influences of the corridor. Moreover, both of these forms of living heritage connect the area to the national history of Highway 90.

Hockley-Clay Cemetery (2022)

Jane Warren (b.1825 in Alabama) was a former slave, and matriarch of the Hockley-Freeman- Clay family. She received the deed to the first fifty seven acres of her land in 1873, and later dedicated 1.26 acres “…to be used as a burying ground and graveyard and a road leading to same…” Records verify burials as early as 1908. A number of other black families joined the Hockleys in buying and occupying land in the area. By 1900 the U.S. Census rolls recorded more than one hundred blacks near Jane Warren’s property and the Cibolo Creek to the north. The dedication of land by black citizens for two “colored schools”, two “colored churches”, and three cemeteries, formed the civic core of an extended rural black enclave. Members of the Ellis Griffin family, to the south, and the Dan Winters family, to the north, intermarried into the Hockley family. Members of the Demp Clay family, from the Floresville area, also married into the extended family. The enclave is one example of at least twelve black settlements in Bexar County that originated more than one hundred years ago. The cemetery remains as one of the last original components of a 19th century historic black settlement currently within the San Antonio city limits. This type of cultural resource is extremely rare in a major Texas or American city. The Hockley heirs sold most of the land in 1975, except for the cemetery. Easter Jane Hock-ley Clay (1880 - 1982) resided on the property until its sale in 1975. Burials continued into the 1970’s. In 1980 the Lloyd A. Denton company filed a plat for subdivision of Northern Hills Unit 13 into residential lots north of Uhr Lane. The plat specifically labeled the old Hockley property and easement access as “cemetery”, and arranged the new residential lots around the original cemetery boundary and access.

Silk Road (in progress)

In 2022, City Council District 8 Councilmember Manny Pelaez initiated the creation of a new cultural heritage district celebrating the cultures that met along historic Silk Roads. Located largely along the Wurzbach corridor near the Medical Center, the district will highlight and celebrate the rich traditions of the Middle Eastern, North African, and Asian immigrants here. Click the image to visit the SASpeakUp page with details on upcoming meetings.