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| Ruins - Templo de la Virgen del Rosario Church |
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| Ruins del Rosario Church |
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| Ruins del Rosario Church |
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| Templo de la Virgen del Rosario Church |
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| Fort Museum atop Cerro de San Basilio |
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| Fort Ruins |
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| One of Several Cannons that Protected the Town and Valley Below |
After a short rest from our long cruise from Mazatlan to San Blas as noted
in the previous blog, we found the energy to tour the town including the
historic site on top of Cerro de San Basilio about a mile from the center of
town.
It was from atop this hill that
the original accounting office and fort was built in 1770, named La
Contaduria.
Also at this site are the
ruins of the Templo de la Virgen del Rosario Church built in 1769, which remained
active until 1872.
When the aging bronze
bells were removed from the belfry, this sad event is said to have inspired
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow to write the poem, “The Bells of San Blas.”
The founding of San Blas began in 1530 when Nuio de Guzman and his Spanish conquistadors
landed on the mangrove lined shores; however, the official
date of founding is 1768 when Don Manuel Rivera and 116 families arrived on
the order of the Viceroy of New Span.
The
fort atop the hill served as a defense for the town’s extensive sea trade with
the Philippines and provided logistical support for the Franciscan missions of
Alta California.
San Blas also became
the base for Spanish expeditions to the Pacific Northwest.
From 1789-1795 San Blas was responsible for
establishing and maintaining the Spanish post of Fort San Miguel at Friendly
Cove in Nootka Sound and the Nootka Sound settlement of Santa Cruz de Nuca, the
first colony in British Columbia.
At its
height, San Blas had 30,000 inhabitants and was one of the busiest ports and
shipbuilding centers on the American Pacific Coast rivaling Acapulco.
Today, the small fishing town of San Blas has
12,000 people with a new focus on tourism.
After the Spanish-American War, the once busy port went into decline,
plagued by many of the same challenges it faces today, the shifting sand bar, silting
from nearby Rio Grande de Santiago, and a humid tropical climate with mangrove
swamps that surround the town producing annoying insects.
The location
of San Blas was useful and logical, however, because it minimized travel time
from Guadalajara and Mexico City without increasing the total distance to the California’s.
The area also had a plentiful supply of
hardwoods for ship building and repair plus a year-round supply of fresh water
from a spring.
In spite of the changes over time, San Blas retains the heart and
soul of a self-reliant, friendly people who enjoy the simple things in life.
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| Fort Museum |
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| Fort Defenses |
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