Juan Jose María Erasmo Seguin | |
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San Antonio Postmaster San Antonio Mayor 1820 Quartermaster of Presidio San Antonio de Béxar 1825-1835 |
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In office 1807–1874 |
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Personal details | |
Born |
San Antonio, Texas |
May 26, 1782
Died | October 30, 1857 Floresville, Texas |
(aged 75)
Spouse(s) | María Josefa Becerra |
Profession |
Mayor Postmaster Minister Quartermaster Political Delegate Chief Justice |
Religion | Catholic |
Juan Jose Maria Erasmo Seguin (May 26, 1782 – October 30, 1857) was a prominent citizen and politician in San Antonio de Bexar (modern-day San Antonio, Texas, USA) in the 19th century. From 1807 until 1835, Seguin served as head postmaster of San Antonio, Texas. After Mexico achieved independence from Spain, Seguín was named the sole representative from Texas to the constitutional convention. He helped to draft the Constitution of 1824 and was a major influence in the addition of a general colonization provision. Seguín assisted Stephen F. Austin in choosing land for the first colony of American settlers to immigrate to Texas. He later supported the Texas Revolution, providing political as well as material support.
Juan Jose Maria Erasmo Seguin was born on May 26, 1782, to a family of French descent in San Antonio de Bexar (now San Antonio, Texas, USA). His paternal grandfather, Bartolomé Seguin, had moved to Spanish Texas from the Mexican interior soon after the founding of the town in 1718. Seguin's parents, Santiago Seguin and Maria Guadalupe Fuentes, had seven children; Erasmo was the third.
Seguin married María Josefa Becerra, daughter of a non-commissioned officer from Presidio La Bahía (Goliad, Texas), stationed at Bexar. Unusually for the times, Becerra could read and write. The couple had three children; two, including Juan Seguin, survived to adulthood. Erasmo Seguin helped to create the first public school in Bexar, which his son attended.
Although the Seguin family lived in Bexar, on the south side of Main Plaza facing Nueva (between current Main and Dwyer), they also owned a ranch of 22,000 acres (8,900 ha) located 30 miles (48 km) from Bexar in present Karnes County. The land had been purchased from the Missión San Antonio de Valero after its secularization. The ranch was named La Mora, and by 1810 Seguin employed five vaqueros to work it.
After 1824, he added a 9,000 acres (3,600 ha) ranch located on present-day River Bend Golf Club near Floresville. On this estate he made a home, on a rise overlooking the San Antonio River; [1] it would become known as Casa Blanca. Here, Seguin raised animals and farmed cotton and corn. It would become an important source of supply for the Texan army. Seguín received additional income from his appointment as postmaster; he served in this capacity from 1807 until 1835, with two brief breaks.