On May 16, 1872, Gregorio Villarreal purchased from Mauricia A. Belden, the widow of Frederick (Federico) Belden, all of the La Encantada grant for $3000.00. In the description of the property, the southwest corner was placed at an original land mark called El Cuerudo; then proceeded North 1 degree west for 12565 varas to a large rock for the northwest corner, designated as San Pablo del Granjenito and being near the laguna Retamoza; thence East 10325 varas to the northeast corner, a large rock designated as land mark Layadero (also being the northwest corner of Encino del Pozo); thence South 12500 varas to the land mark called San Antonio for the southeast corner; thence west 10000 varas to the place of beginning. La Encantada comprised 5 leagues, or sitios, of land and had originally been granted by Mexico to Jose Manuel Chapa on June 26, 1834. Jose Manuel Chapa, a citizen of Camargo, became discouraged due to damage to cultivation from daily incursions by savage tribes and, on April 10, 1837, sold La Encantada to Antonio Martinez Chapa, citizen of Matamoros, for 300 pesos. Only 12 days later on April 22, Antonio Martinez Chapa combined La Encantada with the Encino del Pozo grant (which he apparently purchased from Luciano Chapa on the same date that he purchased La Encantada from his brother, Jose Manuel Chapa) and sold both of them to French Strother, a citizen of Matamoros, for 932 pesos. French Strother held the properties for less than a year, and then, on March 15, 1838, sold La Encantada and Encino del Pozo to Federico Belden for 500 pesos, only about half of what he had paid just 11 months earlier. Thirty four years later, Federicos widow sold La Encantada to Gregorio Villarreal. Not long after purchasing La Encantada, Gregorio began selling one-league parcels of land to friends and relatives. The 5 leagues of La Encantada were laid out by dividing the northern and southern boundaries into 5 equal lengths, creating long rectangles with the longer sides oriented north-south. Gregorio first sold the westernmost league of land to Eligio Garcia on a date I have not yet determined. Next, on September 25, 1873, Gregorio sold second most westerly league of La Encantada to Manuel Perez and the third most westerly league to Juan Longoria. Beginning from the westernmost boundary of La Encantada, I believe the Manuel Perez league was the second league toward the east, followed by the Juan Longoria league. At a subsequent date which I have not yet determined, Gregorio apparently sold or conveyed the fourth most westly league of land to his brother Sabas Villarreal. This left Gregorio owning only the last remaining league of land in La Encantada, that being the most easterly league which adjoined the western boundary of the Encino del Pozo land grant. *Article, map and photographs are from Raul Longorias website.
Posted on: Thu, 11 Sep 2014 00:10:48 +0000
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