2017-12-27: Surprise Road Trip Killeen, Texas to Baltimore, Maryland Day 1

My Wife has a Big Heart and I Love Her Very Much! She's always willing to put others needs before her own. Being a therapist in a nursing home facility is almost like being in the medical profession. Wait, it is a medical profession. What I mean is that the only holidays she gets off is when it falls on the weekend. Fortunately this year, she is between facilities. The new Director has taken over where she was in West Texas but the new facility in Killeen hasn't opened yet. That's why her company has been using her to train others.

My job has shut down for a week and a half for the Christmas / New Years holidays. So we had the entire time off together. NOT SO FAST! She got a call begging her to help at a facility in Midland to cover on Monday, Christmas Day as well as Tuesday the 26th. Her big heart and willingness to help says OK. We'll still have a whole week at the house in Killeen for a vacation.

So yesterday we decided I would take her to work in Midland and drop her off before going back to the apartment in Monahans. There I would finish packing, load up the dogs, pick her back up after a few hours, and continue east towards Killeen. NOT SO FAST!! Just before I picked her up, her boss called to say they're sending her to Baltimore for two weeks to train some more directors there. Oh, and her flight leaves in a few hours! So back to Monahans, repack with scrubs for work, and back to the airport in Midland. I guess it's just me and the dogs for the next week.

Well on the remaining four hour drive to Killeen, I was feeling sad and depressed about our vacation vanishing. But then it hit me! I got a whole week! I'll stay the night in Killeen, but continue driving to Baltimore and surprise my Sweet Wife! I can get there and back in a week easy. So last night I called the hotel she was staying at to see if they allow small dogs but they said no. There was one nearby that did though. But I'll deal with that when I get there.

I also started looking at the route to get there and back. Can't do a road trip without getting a few Geocaches. Especially in the counties I still needed. So this morning I woke up early with excitement, grabbed the dogs, and out the door I went!

My first stop was Italy! Well Italy, TX that is. Nearly 2 hours and just over a hundred miles, I figured this virtual cache right off of I-35E would be a good place to walk the dogs too. Unique Italian Architecture (GCC25B) can be viewed from the Interstate while passing by, but then you can't see all the unique buildings. This is a warehouse made to look like a caterpillar, but the company makes dome shaped houses. There's a whole domed house neighborhood right here too. After a few pics and the dogs taking care of business, back on the road again!

Another two hours and another 120 miles later, I stopped for another quick cache (GC26HV9) right off the exit on I-30 in Sulphur Springs, Texas. This got me a new county, Hopkins County, and the dogs got to do their business as well.

Just 40 miles east on I-30 was Morris County and another quick highway exit cache (GC384YY).

My last Texas stop for today was just 24 miles later in Bowie County at the New Boston Cemetery (GC15NGJ). New Boston was established in 1877 as the result of the railroad being built just four miles to the north of Old Boston in 1876. Didn't spend a lot of time here. Gotta keep moving.

Welcome to Arkansas! Thirty miles later I pull into the Arkansas Welcome Center to grab a cache for Miller County (GC27RNF).

Ten miles later a quick exit park and grab cache (GC4KKN3) near a roadside memorial for three accident fatalities and one for Hempstead County.

Twenty-seven miles after that and I arrive in Nevada County, Arkansas for my next needed county. I chose this cache called The Battle of Gum Grove (GC18ZWR) because it was close to the exit and it had a Civil War history. Officially known as the Battle of Prairie D'Ane (French for Donkey Meadow), it was an open prairie 20 square miles surrounded by dense forest. Having taken place April 9-13, 1864, it was part of the Camden Expedition launched by Union Forces to drive the Confederates down into Texas, which it was unsuccessful in doing so. The cache was placed near an abandoned railroad overpass of I-30 which overlooked the battlefield prairie. Not really much to see related to the battle.

But what I did take a liking to and another reason why I like Geocaching, is finding the old abandoned railroad overpass. I took several different photos and I think I liked these two best and couldn't decide which one to share with you. So I decided to share them both.

OK, after the dogs and I have checked out the bridge enough, I load them back into the car and we hit the road again.

Compared to these previous short drives, this next one was a long 72 miles down the road. I arrived in Saline County in a town called Benton, Arkansas. The cache itself was fairly easy to find, but it was a Challenge Cache. A Challenge Cache is one that has requirements beyond finding it and signing the logsheet. This particular one is called "5 State in a Day Challenge" (GC5FB8A). I think you can guess as to the requirement needed. Well I met that requirement back nearly two years ago on another road trip: "870 Miles, 6 Geocaches, 5 States, 1 Day", when I found a cache in Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and Florida all in the same day.

Twenty miles up the road and I'm now in Pulaski County and Little Rock, Arkansas. There's several good Challenge Caches here that I qualify for, but being pressed for time I had to choose just one. I ended up picking the Arkansas Bakers Dozen Challenge cache (GC395QZ) because I also needed its Difficulty/Terrain rating. It had a D/T rating of 5/2.5 of which I used to have a blank space on my grid. To understand the Bakers Dozen requirements, click on the GC# link and there's a detailed breakdown on the requirements.

Another short 20 miles later and I arrive for a quick exit cache (GC7G6CG) in Lonoke County.

I drove another 50 miles before calling it a night and checking into a hotel in Brinkley, Arkansas. A total of 538 miles today with plenty more to go. My wife still has no clue I'm coming. When we talked on the phone a little while ago, I was somewhere down in South Texas geocaching and picking up the needed caches down there. Gonna be a big surprise in Baltimore! Be sure to check back in tomorrow for more...

2017-12-17: Driving 5 Hours and 300 Miles for 4 First to Find Geocaches!

Hello and welcome back to the AwayWeGo Adventures Blog. Today was one of those "You Might Be A Geocacher If... you drive for 5 hours and 300 miles just to get 4 FTF's!" Yep that was our day today.

Started out this Sunday morning with nothing on the agenda except relaxing. We had decided to stay in Monahans, TX this morning instead of driving over to Killeen for the weekend. My wife had just returned from her trip late Friday, so didn't plan much.

But then I said, "You feel like going for a drive?"

Her: "Where to?"

Me: "To get First to Find on a few Geocaches that have been there almost a week."

Her: "Where are they?"

Me: "To the south about a 150 miles away."

Her: "Sure why not."

So off we went. Taking Hwy 18 south out of Monahans down into Fort Stockton, and then US-67 south from there, we arrive at our first cache (GC79NHA). Just a quick picnic area rest stop cache halfway between Fort Stockton and Alpine.

Just a few miles past that one was our first FTF Geocache (GC7FYYN) at 12:20 PM. A quick park and grab and AwayWeGo!

Another couple of miles further down US-67 and our second FTF Geocache (GC7FYYN) at 12:33 PM. Another quick find and AwayWeGo!

Continuing on and still on US-67 was our 3rd Geocache FTF (GC7G0M1) at 12:46 PM. AwayWeGo again!

Now heading eastbound between Marathon and Sanderson, we arrive at our 4th Geocache FTF (GC7FQ35) and our final cache of the day.

So yeah. We might be those Geocachers who'd drive 300 miles over 5 hours just for a few First-to-Find's! The sad thing is that while it was a nice drive, I only took one photo. Just a sun-bleached carcass of bones laying on the side of the road near one of the caches. Until next time, Go Geocaching for your next adventure!

2017-12-10: Geocaching Cemeteries, a Ghost Town, a Power Run, and More Around West Texas.

Well it started out a sad morning. I had to drop my wife off at the airport this morning in Midland, Texas. She had to take a business trip up to Boston, Massachusetts for a week to train a Director of Therapy at a nursing home there.

So I went geocaching solo today. I didn't go far, just taking the long way and backroads to Monahans. I drove north out of Midland-Odessa on US-385 to grab my first cache at a picnic area (GC2KBRC). It would have been a quick park and grab, but there was this old wind mill there with this hawk or falcon sitting up on it. I probably spent about 15 minutes trying to get a decent picture. But you can only do so much with an old phone camera. I couldn't really get a closeup shot of the bird itself. It just made me miss my old Nikon. Gotta get a new camera one of these days.

Finally I decided enough photos have been attempted and continued north a few more miles. I arrived at a geocache called November 24 (GC3B1RT). It is one of a series of Power Run caches scattered about Midland and Odessa named for each day of the year. Along this stretch of road, I managed to get another 19 of 22 of the calendar dates. There were three along this road that I could not find. 

Looping back around to the south on Farm Road 181 and about 4 miles west of Goldsmith, I came to this intersection. On the one side out in the fields are these old buildings. Couple houses maybe? I'm not sure. I couldn't find any information on them. If you know what they were, please comments below. On the other corner is an active business. The Pioneer Cafe looks to be a combination cafe and convenience store. Though it was closed today so I'm not sure.

 

So I made my way back to Monahans and stopped by the Monahans Cemetery. I hid a cache there last year (GC6X29H). It had gone missing so I made a new one and replaced it today.

Instead of going home, I decided to continue heading west. There was a new cache listed in Pecos and the FTF (First to Find) was still up for grabs. Instead of jumping back onto I-20 so quickly, I decided to take the Old US-80/TX-57 highway westbound for the scenic drive and to see what's there. It goes through Thortonville, then Wickett, and into Pyote. Just before you get into Pyote on the east side of town was this small cemetery. There wasn't a cache here but I checked it out anyway. Hmmm I don't have a cache container with me so I'll have to bring one back and hide it here.

Continuing on into Pecos, I arrived at the roadside picnic area north of town where the cache (GC7FVHA) is supposed to be hidden. Looked and looked where the coordinates lead me to but no luck. Then I spend another 20-30 minutes looking based on the cache name and hint. Nope! Finally after about an hour I give up and log a DNF. Maybe next time.

Well while I'm here, I might as well get a couple others in town. This next cache (GC6XM70) was outside a restaurant. Fortunately small town Texas means closed on a late Sunday afternoon. So no muggles made it easier to find.

Another stop by the cemetery here on the south side of town without a cache. This one was kinda divided into three sections. The main cemetery which was neat, orderly, and lined up like you would expect a cemetery to be. Another section which was also normal. But in between the two was a spare section with a few scattered headstones from the 1800's. Some out in the open and near the dirt drive path that could be easily driven over if you weren't paying attention. Either way, another spot to hide a cache at soon!

Well that's it for now. Back to the lonely apartment without my better half. Well me and the Chihuahuas anyway. Until next time...

2017-12-02: Our Adventure to the Painted Churches in Schulenburg, Texas

WOW! What a day! Have we got a lot to show you today. We took a drive and visited some of the historical Painted Churches from the late 1800's around Schulenburg, Texas. The Painted Churches of Texas were built by the Eastern European pioneers who settled the area in the late 1800's and early 1900. Somewhat ordinary on the outside, but ornate, Gothic and colorful on the inside. But I'm getting ahead of myself.

We had to take a drive down to Schulenburg for business matters, so of course the first thing I do is look up Geocaches along the way to find. That's when I discovered the Painted Church's and knew they were the perfect stops along the way.

Leaving Killeen, we headed south down Hwy 195 into Georgetown. Since we're there and it's close to lunch, we made our first stop to check out Plaka Greek Cafe. We're always in the mood for some good Greek food! And this turned out to be THE place! Candy got her go-to Greek salad with grilled chicken, although they cook the chicken on a rotisserie skewer just like the gyro meat. I ordered the sampler platter to get a taste of everything. It was excellent! The meat was seasoned perfectly and wasn't dry. The dolmades (stuffed grape leaves) was fresh without that bitter store bought taste. The spanakopita (spinach pie) was flaky with just the right amount of spinach and cheese filling. Everything right down to the pita bread was really good. We'll definitely be returning back to this place again. (Just a side note: while I try to write as if these adventures just happened, you can see by the date in the title and the blog post date that I am nearly two years behind. But the Plaka Greek Cafe in Georgetown, TX is so good that I want to mention we actually drive down the 30 miles to it just to eat as often as we can. We highly recommend this place if you ever find yourself in the area.)

OK, enough about food. Our first Geocache (GC3N74V) was located in an early settlement area a few miles south of Schulenburg at ghost town of Lyonsville, later shortened to just Lyons. An early town on land grant of Keziah Cryer, it was named for settler James Lyons.  By 1860's the town had stores, a school, a church and a Masonic lodge. During the Civil War, property was ruined and stock driven off. Settlers moved away to nearby towns and the town died off.

James Lyons moved his family to Texas from New York in 1820. While working outside his cabin on October 15, 1837, Lyons was killed by Comanches. His was the first grave in what became the Schulenburg City Cemetery (GC74XJB). His 12-year-old son was captured in the attack and held by the Indians for about 10 years before he was able to return home. In 1848 he married Lucy Boatright. They later settled in Johnson County, where he died in 1870. A stone erected here in 1931 states incorrectly that Warren Lyons, rather than his father James, was a victim of the 1937 raid.

Heading back north towards home we found the first of the Painted Churches on our route. The town of High Hill grew out of three smaller German settlements Blum Hill, Oldenburg, and Wursten. Blum Hill in the southern part was named after left-wing political activist Robert B. Blum, who was executed in Vienna in 1848 during Germany's Revolution. Oldenburg in the north was named after a German Province. And Wursten came from the name of a sausage from Anders Butcher Shop. In 1858, they all combined into one community and called it High Hill to remind them of the mountains they left behind. With the immigration of German and Austrian settlers the town began to flourish. But in 1874 fearing the railroad would ruin their tranquility and cultural community, they declined it's request to pass through town. The Galveston, Harrisburg, and San Antonio Railroad built a few miles to the south in Schulenburg. Many of High Hills residents and businesses moved to the south as well causing High Hill to decline. Current population tends to hover around 100.

The main attraction is the St. Mary Catholic Church (GC12EJ3). The Parish played a significant role in the German and Catholic heritage of Texas. The Catholic State League was formed here, and many of the church's clergy and leadership were raised here. The first St Mary Church was built in 1869. A larger building was built in 1876, and the smaller building used a school. This newer building featured stain-glass windows donated by the people of the parish. When the current larger still church was constructed in 1906, the original stain-glass windows were moved into it. The church was painted in 1912. The St Mary Catholic Church of High Hill, Texas is known as the "Queen of the Painted Churches."

Traversing the back country roads to get to our next Painted Church in Dubina, Texas, we came upon this old single lane bridge crossing the East Navidad River. Built in 1885 by the King Bridge Company in Cleveland, Ohio, it has been given the name of Piano Bridge. Some say it's because of its musical sound as you drive over it. But leave it to engineers to ruin that and tell us its technically a "piano-wire" truss. It is one of the few remaining iron bridges in Fayette County. Whatever you want to call it, I call it one cool historical bridge! 

In November 1856 a group of Czech settlers found shelter from a strong north wind and hail under a grove of large oak trees. The community, originally called Navidad and then Bohemian Navidad after the nearby Navidad River, became the first Czech settlement in Texas. Augustine Haidusek, who learned English during the Civil War and became the first Czech lawyer in the United States, renamed the town Dubina which is Czech for "oak grove." The town flourished reaching 600 families around 1900 as favorable reports of Texas reached the old country back home, and new immigrants came through Dubina. Between the railroad bypassing Dubina in 1873, a hurricane in 1909, and a large fire in 1912 that swept through town, many settlers left the area. As of 2000 the population was listed as forty-four.

The first Saints Cyril and Methodius Church (GC12EJ7) here was constructed after the Civil War in 1877. Tom Lee, a freed slave and blacksmith, made an iron cross to mount atop the steeple. The hurricane in 1909 destroyed that church. After raising over $5500, the town rebuilt the church in 1912 which was nearly destroyed by the fire. That same iron cross which was salvaged from the previous church once again stood tall over the new church. There are no surviving records of who or when the walls were faux painted. But believe it or not, sometime in the 1950's the decorative walls and ceilings were whitewashed over. In the 1980's two longtime residents took on the task of painstakingly uncovering and restoring the original paintings. Taking a look inside and I'm glad they did. Truly a beautiful and historic church.

And just like it was back in the day, still no indoor plumbing. If you gotta go, then you gotta go outside!

Just a few miles to the north was our next church and geocache (GC746Z3). Ammannsville, Texas was settled by German and Czech immigrant farmers during the 1870's. Andrew Ammann, an architect and farmer, was the first settler arriving on March 12, 1870. The first business opened in 1876. And by 1879 a post office and school. By 1900 the town had grown to three stores and saloons, two blacksmith shops, one drugstore, one doctor, and two gins. The community had 800 residents at its peak. But the post office closed in 1906, and the school in 1909. The 2000 census had the population down in the forties.

The St John the Baptist Catholic Church first opened in 1890. It was also destroyed by the 1909 hurricane. The community rebuilt and dedicated the new church on November 24, 1910. However it was destroyed a short time later by fire and had to be rebuilt again.

As with the other Painted Churches, this one also had a graveyard which served the community. Trivia fact: a graveyard is a cemetery that's located next to a church.

Out there in the middle of nowhere was our next stop and a rather cute geocache. The Kaase Bubble Gum Post Travel Bug Hotel (GC5A9V2) was a nicely built cache to mimic a hotel large enough to host travel bugs. TB's are items with a trackable number on them. Geocachers place them in caches for other cachers to retrieve and move along from cache to cache. I've release TB's in Florida that have since traveled all over the world. And I've picked up TB's here in the states that began their journeys all over the globe.

Our final stop for the day was for the Wood's Fort Virtual Cache (GC7D5A). Virtual is fitting since there are no remains left of the actual fort. A fortified residence used by colonists of this vicinity as a protection against Indian attacks from 1828-1842. Mr. Woods was a veteran of the War of 1812, one of the old "three hundred" of Stephen F. Austin's colonists, and the oldest man killed in the Dawson Massacre on September 18, 1842.

That's it for today. I hope you have enjoyed our days journey. Hmmm where to next?

2017-11-24: A Quick Visit to the San Antonio Riverwalk, the Alamo, and the San Fernando Cathedral

Welcome back again to AwayWeGo's Adventure Blog. This week we had some relatives in visiting from Florida for Thanksgiving. So today we thought we'd take a drive down to San Antonio, Texas using the Riverwalk to burn off some of those calories we ate yesterday!

The earliest civilian colonists of San Antonio were a group of pioneers from the Canary Islands. They formed the first organized civil government in Texas and founded the village of San Fernando de Bexar in 1731. Following a sea and land voyage of over a year, these weary travelers arrived at the Presidio (Fort) of San Antonio early on March 9, 1731. Totaling 56 persons, they had emigrated to Texas from the Spanish Canary Islands near Africa, by order of King Philip V.

On July 2nd, they began to lay out a villa choosing a site on the west side of the Plaza de Las Yslas (present day Main Plaza) for the church and a site on the east side for the Casa Real (government building). On July 19, the Captain of the Presidio, Juan Antonio de Almazan, read to the islanders the decree of the viceroy naming them and their descendants "Hijos Dalgo" (Persons of Nobility).

The heads of the 16 families who settled in San Antonio were: Juan Leal Goraz, Juan Curbelo, Juan Leal, Antonio Santos, Jose Padron, Manuel de Nis, Vicente Alvarez Travieso, Salvador Rodriguez, Jose Leal, Juan Delgado, Jose Cabrera, Juan Rodriguez Granadillo, Francisco de Arocha, Antonio Rodriguez, Lorenzo and Martin de Armas, and Felipe and Jose Antonio Perez.

Upon arriving late morning it was pretty busy as you can imagine being a holiday weekend. We found a parking spot a few blocks away from The Alamo. Before we got too far, I spent a few minutes on my phone studying Google maps to get a good sense of where I was so I could find the car again!

Our first stop and my only Geocache for the day was at The Alamo (GC7B6P3). And it was a virtual cache, so all I had to do to claim a find was take a photo of me with the Alamo in the background. Yeah, that's me. Most everyone has heard of the Alamo and that there was a battle there. But probably not much more than that. So, here's a history lesson.

Originally built in 1744, The Alamo Mission in San Antonio commonly called "The Alamo" is one of the early Spanish missions in Texas. Originally built to educate local American Indians after their conversion to Christianity. Later secularized in 1793, then abandoned. Around 10 years later it became a fortress and home to the Second Flying Company of San Carlos de Parras military unit. It's believed they are the ones who named it "The Alamo".

In December of 1835, Mexican General Martin Perfecto de Cos surrendered The Alamo to the Texican Army following the Siege of Bexar. A small number of Texicans held the fort but were eventually "removed" on March 6, 1836. The Battle of the Alamo lasted 13 days from February 23 to March 6, 1836. Many of the buildings surrounding the fortress were torn down in the years to follow. William B Travis and James Bowie shared command of The Alamo during the siege. Over the next five years The Alamo was used to garrison soldiers for Mexican and Texican armies but was eventually abandoned.

After Texas joined the United States the US Army began renting the facility to use as a quartermaster's depot in 1849. Once the nearby Fort Sam Houston was established in 1876 the army left The Alamo. The chapel was sold to the State of Texas which began to conduct tours but did not begin to restore it. Other buildings were sold off to a mercantile company which operated them as a wholesale grocery store. In 1895 restoration projects began under the newly formed "The Daughter of the Republic of Texas". In 1905 the DRT convinced the state legislature to purchase the remaining buildings and to name them the permanent custodians of the site. They were the custodians of the site until 2015 when Texas Land Commissioner George P Bush officially removed control of the Alamo to the Texas General Land Office.

The big controversy of today is the relocating of the Alamo Cenotaph monument pictured here. The city wants to redesign Alamo Plaza to accommodate the huge number of tourists it receives annually. The 60-foot tall monument built to recognize the 100th anniversary of the battle currently sits out in front of the historic mission. The redesign plan is for it to be moved 500 feet to the south, repaired, and correct some errors with the names. Also, the streets will be closed off giving more room for a courtyard representing a more historical configuration. A lot of people are not too happy about the plan though.

Whatever happens, all I know is this is the second time here at the Alamo and I still have yet to go inside due to the LONG lines of tourists! Maybe next time... 

We continued along the Riverwalk enjoying the sights, sounds, and the smell of the many restaurants along the way.  Some of the areas were blocked off as they were in setup mode along the route with chairs and such. Seems as though there was going to be Christmas Parade on the river later that evening. 

While the entire Riverwalk area ventures further off in different areas, it is a river of course, the main downtown section forms an east-west rectangle. The Alamo is on the northeast corner. On the west side is the San Fernando Cathedral. The site for the Church of San Fernando was selected on July 2, 1731, when Juan Antonio Pérez de Almazán, captain of the Presidio of San Antonio, laid out a central square for the villa of San Fernando de Béxar, as San Antonio was then called. He followed the instructions by the Spanish government for the newly arrived Canary Islanders. The church was to be located on the west side of the square, which may still be considered the center of San Antonio. Before and during the construction of the town's parish church, the fifty-five immigrants and the presidial families attended services at the presidial chapel or at San Antonio de Valero Mission.

Although information is contradictory, the cornerstone for the first attempt to build a stone church was laid most likely on May 11, 1738. In 1748 the viceroy approved a donation of 12,000 pesos to complete the church. With funds secured, two artisans from San Luis Potosí, Gerónimo de Ibarra (a master stonemason) and Felipe de Santiago (a stonecutter), were hired to continue the project. Ibarra razed the earlier construction and enlarged the dimensions of the building. He completed the church in 1755. Joining Old World and New World saints, the congregation chose Our Lady of Candlemas and Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe as patrons in addition to the town's official patron, San Fernando, or King Fernando III of Spain, who was canonized in 1671. By the end of the eighteenth century the parish served by the church had grown considerably, to a population of over 1,000. The church acquired vessels, mission records, and parishioners after the nearby San Antonio de Valero Mission was secularized in 1793 and the four downriver missions in 1824.

The church suffered setbacks in the early nineteenth century, however; it was damaged by a flood in 1819 and a fire in 1828. Significant rebuilding was carried out in 1829–30, and the church continued to serve as an important religious and social center. In 1831 James Bowie married Ursula de Veramendi there. Several times during the Texas Revolution the church served secular purposes. Mexican cannons stood on its roof during the siege of Bexar. After that battle the Texans flew a flag of victory from it. Antonio López de Santa Anna not only used the church as a lookout but ordered a red flag flown there to signal that the Texans at the Alamo would be shown no mercy. In 1889 Juan N. Seguín said the Alamo heroes were buried there, but they are almost certainly not.

Caught in tumult, by 1840 the church of San Fernando had fallen into a terrible state of disrepair. One observer noted that half of its roof was gone and that swallows and bats flew about inside. Essential repairs were carried out by the new church administration that took over that year. Extensive renovation was planned in 1851 but not begun until 1868. Under the direction of architect François P. Giraud, the original bell tower and part of the nave were razed. Giraud's new design included a Gothic Revival nave, triple entrance portals, a gable roof, and twin bell towers and buttresses. In 1872 the original dome fell. By 1873 the old dirt floor and most of the limestone rubble walls mortared with goat milk were gone. Although the second bell tower was not completed until 1902, the new church was consecrated in October 1873. With the formation of the Diocese of San Antonio in 1874, the church was designated a cathedral.

The cathedral underwent another major restoration in the mid-1970s. Repairs were also made in preparation for Pope John Paul II's visit of September 13, 1987. The cathedral is a large and busy parish church and episcopal see, where about 400 baptisms, seventy funerals, and sixty marriages are performed annually. Many services are in Spanish. In 1993 Archbishop Patrick F. Flores was pastor of San Fernando.

Just inside and to the left of the cathedral entrance, is a marble sarcophagus and plaque with these words: "Here lie the remains of Travis, Crockett, Bowie, and other Alamo Heroes. The Archdiocese of San Antonio erected this memorial May 11 A. D. 1938. R.I.P. Formally buried in the sanctuary of the old San Fernando Church. Exhumed July 28, 1936, exposed to public view for a year, entombed May 11, 1938.

Still a mystery nearly 200 years later, as to if these are indeed the remains of those Texas Heroes. After the fall of the Alamo in 1836, Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna ordered that the bodies of the Texans be burned in outdoor crematories. So there were three separate funeral pyres for somewhere between 189 and 250 Alamo Defenders. The bodies were layered between, cut wood, tree branches and kindling, in 10 feet by 70 feet stacks, and set on fire. Texas leader Juan Seguin took ashes from two of the pyres, put them in urns and buried them under the old cathedral floor.

Finishing our loop around the Riverwalk, some of the younger of the group who weren't all that interested in the historic aspects of San Antonio got to be getting a little cranky. So we made our way back to the car and started the long drive back home. So that was our day around San Antonio. I hope to come back soon as there is much more to see.