Archaeology of the Area
People, who lived here long before we arrived, chose to live near water for a
number of obvious reasons. Because of
this, it is important that scientific study of an area near water is completed
before any evidence of prior civilization is destroyed by construction projects. That’s true of any area, but especially true
of areas near water as the likelihood of finding archaeological evidence is
high in areas associated with water.
We
continue to get more skilled at the study of the area before any major
construction is started. When Falcon Dam
(1960) was built, many artifacts went underwater never to be seen again. Canyon Dam study was managed better but still
missed some things. It’s amazing how much we learn about the archaeology of an
area when we have to search for it because of an imminent construction project.
A
tremendous amount of archaeological information lies just beneath the
surface. Here are some examples:
In
2002, a flood of the Guadalupe River caused Canyon Lake to overflow the relief
area next to the dam. This huge flow of
water flowed over the spillway and washed away up to 80 feet of overburden soil
at an area below the present Canyon Dam.
Channel cut by overflow
With the lower level of limestone exposed, it
was found to be covered with several sets of dinosaur foot prints.
In
a separate example, when a private land owner started to clear a level area for
a building on Hwy 3237 in Canyon City, they discovered evidence of dinosaur
footprints in the limestone. It’s now
the site of the Heritage Museum of the Hill Country, below.
Inside
the Heritage Museum is a display of fossils and dinosaur replicas. Up a few
steps to another room is an arrowhead collection from central and south Texas.
In
yet a third example of archaeological discovery, when Wonder World Drive was
set for extension north of Hunter Road, an organized study of the area revealed
a wealth of information on habitation by Native Americans. The local people knew it was rich in
archaeological evidence because they had found artifacts on the surface near
Purgatory Creek.
And
as for Canyon Lake, we know of one personal collection of Indian stone
artifacts that was unearthed from a depth of six feet at a point where a
tributary creek bed entered the Guadalupe River. This collecting was done when it became known
that the area would be flooded by the construction of the dam. Of course this collection was not lost by
inundation, but on the other hand no scientific information was collected
regarding the find.
So,
the archaeological study before construction is not so much to recover
artifacts as it is to learn about prior civilization. Amateur collectors usually don’t do this part
very well.
The
creation of Canyon Dam provided a significant incentive to study the area, but
the project itself took a long time to fruition.
Early
Settlement
It’s
known that ancient people lived in this area more than 12,000 years ago. In more modern times Spain attempted to
establish missions, however none survived.
In 1808 eighty people tried to settle in Gonzales, but were defeated by
Indians and floods. The first successful
colony was the Martin de Leon grant to found the city of Victoria in 1824. In 1825 Gonzales was born when Kentuckian, Green de Witt was awarded a grant
to settle 400 people. By 1850 Seguin and
New Braunfels became important centers in the Guadalupe Valley and over the
next 50 years the population increased from 9,300 to over 100,000. Cattle, cotton, timber and oil provided the
economic base.
Early
Hydropower Development
1912:
Guadalupe Water Power Co. was formed, but its work to create dams, lakes and
electricity was interrupted by WWI and the deaths of several of the principals.
1924: Alvin J. Wirtz, a prominent local citizen
secured financial backing and effected a deal with Comal Power Co. to purchase
all the electricity that could be generated from water flow of the Guadalupe.
1926:
Construction began on the $2 million initiative.
1927:
Three dams between New Braunfels and Seguin created lakes that took up nearly
all that stretch of the river. The power
plants used water wheels turning generators averaging 1,400 KW. The Seguin
Enterprise described it as one of the foremost hydro-electric enterprises
ever pushed forward in the Southwest.
All that is left of these power plants are the Reservoirs; Lake Dunlap,
Lake McQueeny, and Lake Placid.
Following
is a copy of a postcard of the Seguin power plant as it looked in 1939. The vestiges of this power plant are still
observable today.
1929: Flood Control Becomes A Priority
Frequent
floods caused loss of life and destruction.
A more comprehensive study by the Corps of Engineers (COE) finally
recommended construction of a dam that would control floods downstream,
regulate stream flow and provide water conservation storage.
1935:
The Texas Legislature created the Guadalupe-Blanco River Auth. (GBRA). The initial dam site proposed, 5 mi. upstream
from New Braunfels, was rejected after new studies found the honey-combed rock
to be so porous that too much leakage was feared. Construction was dropped at the time for more
studies.
1936-1938:
Major flooding occurred. Local leaders formed the Guadalupe-Blanco Improvement
Assoc. and began to demand the Federal Government take action on flood control.
About
1945:
The Corps of Engineers issued a favorable report and Congress authorized
construction of the dam in the Rivers and Harbor Act of 1945.
1951: The
COE recommended the dam site be moved 16 miles upstream and postponed power
generation because leakage losses were still projected to be 25% of total
storage. Later they would have more
data.
1954:
Flood Control Act gave final approval.
1955:
The TX Board of Water Engineers reaffirmed the GBRA’s role as the state agency
with which the COE should negotiate and coordinate the details and operation of
Canyon Reservoir.
1964:
The construction was essentially complete at a cost of $20.2 million.
1972
and 1998: Intense rains
below the dam resulted in devastating floods in New Braunfels.
2002: A low pressure system over the area upstream
of the dam in July dumped almost a year’s rainfall in less than a week. Full to capacity, lake waters rushed over the
spillway and more than 8oo homes were damaged or destroyed. The raging spillway
waters created a scenic 64 acre gorge exposing early Cretaceous limestone
formations deposited about 110 million years ago, dinosaur footprints and
aquifer waters that course through the gorge as springs, channels and
waterfalls.
The
3 hour tour looks really interesting for the able-bodied, but unfortunately too
strenuous for us. So if anyone goes, please
take plenty of pictures to share.
The
archaeological survey above the dam site in the area slated for inundation
revealed many Native American camps and worksites, but no sites of such
historic value to do any extensive study before inundation.
There
were several ranch homes that were left intact as the waters rose when the
filling of the reservoir began.
More
significantly, two old towns went underwater. They were Hancock and Cranes
Mill. The only reminders of these towns
are the names of the roads around the reservoir that were cut off by the rising
waters.
Sightings
This
is definitely the year of the Huisache
(acacia minuta). The Honey Ball tree is loved by bees for its nectar and you
can see them in fields all over town. This is an invasive tree, but it sure
makes a good looking single specimen.
From our roadways here, one is on the Vinson property and the other is
directly across the road to the south.
If you want to see a lot of them, look to both sides of RR 12 by the San
Marcos Academy. Last year, we waited for
the blooms, but saw none. Later we
learned that Huisache blooming is highly dependent on spring cold weather. This is probably the reason why their
territory does not extend much farther north.
The inset picture shows the blooms of the Huisache.
The
Antelope Horns milkweed is blooming
again, so this is a reminder to not mow them down. They are a major source of food and an egg
laying site for the Monarchs.
Years
ago, touring the backroads of Texas we spotted a stand of Red Buckeye plants and then have not seen one since----until we
spotted a single plant just below Canyon Dam.
It is located on the east side of the South Access Road right where the
Gorge was cut.
The
Red Buckeye (Aesculus Pavia) has a
rather limited range of only 5 or so counties in this area. It has a yellow flowering cousin with a
limited range.
If
this is the year of the Huisache, it’s also the year of the Herbertia (Alophia drummondii). You may remember this flower from last year’s
newsletter, but last year they were scarce.
This year, they seem to be everywhere showing as large colonies of misty
blue in the fields. It is not listed in Marshall
Endquist’s book Wildflowers of the Texas
Hill Country , but this little member of the Iris Family can be found in
Geyata Ajilvsgi’s book Wildflowers of
Texas. Ms. Ajilvsgi points out that
“Herbertia is endemic to the southern portion of Texas but is usually abundant
where found, forming large areas of almost solid blue.”
R & D
Tusch
