San Antonio Missions receive world heritage status from UN – KAUZ

The missions were built in the 18th century in and around what is now the city of San Antonio to convert indigenous people to Catholicism and make them Spanish subjects. This amount seems especially small compared to countries like Italy and France where world heritage sites are almost inescapable – both countries have more than 40 UNESCO sanctioned spots, despite the fact that each of their total areas is smaller than the state of Texas alone. The missions continued to play an important role in early Mexican history and in the struggle for Texas independence, contributions that can still be seen in the modern layout of the streets and neighborhoods of San Antonio. The San Antonio Missions is the first site with world heritage status in Texas.

The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) remembers The Alamo and other Spanish missions in the San Antonio, Texas, region on Sunday as one of the new World Heritage sites.

The world heritage site list is made up of more than 1,000 properties throughout the world, including the Statue of Liberty, Stonehenge and Machu Picchu in Peru.

Among those with United Nations Ambassador to the United States Crystal Nix-HInes in Bonn were Bexar County Judge Nelson Wolff and Mayor Ivy Taylor. “This is a designation that will draw visitors to our destination, and allow us to share our splendid missions with the world”.

“The chain of Spanish missions reaching from the Alamo to the South Side is the wellspring of our rich heritage”.

The World Heritage designation is expected to be a catalyst for socio-economic change.

Officials hope the designation will boost tourism, already responsible for one in eight San Antonio jobs. Disease reduced the native population, accelerating the missions’ decline.

“The San Antonio Missions are a tangible representation of everything required for a functioning Spanish colonial mission system, all within a short trek along the San Antonio River”. The missions shaped the San Antonio landscape with their acequias, farmfields, ranchlands, and compounds. “It estimated that a flood of tourists visiting the Missions could eventually deliver an economic impact of $100 million per year”, he said.

There are reasons for the listing of four missions, which are still used as Catholic churches, and the Alamo, a fortified church, barracks and other buildings that were the scene of the 1836 battle for Texas Independence.