Excavations at the Alamo Shrine [page 11]

the Catholic Church and converted it into a store and warehouse (ibid.). The remains of the other buildings had by this time been demolished.

In 1883, the State of Texas bought the Alamo Shrine from the Catholic Church, and in the same year the Grenet building was sold to the Hugo and Schmeltzer Company and further developed as a department store (Fox, Bass, and Hester, 1976:23). By 1889, with the development of streets and sidewalks, along with more houses, shops, restaurants, and saloons around Alamo Plaza, the character of the area changed. The old street curb uncovered during archaeological excavations was installed at that time.

In 1905, the State of Texas purchased the Hugo and Schmeltzer property and, along with the Alamo Shrine previously bought by the State, designated the Daughters of the Republic of Texas as guardians of the Alamo properties (ibid.). Eventually, through the 1920s and 1930s, the old remaining buildings on Alamo grounds were restored to their present condition. In 1934 the area in front of Alamo Shrine was widened to form the ceremonial square, and in 1940 the Alamo Cenotaph located in the Plaza was dedicated. During the 280-year history of San Antonio de Valero (the Alamo), from its beginning as a small Indian mission in northeastern Mexico to its present status as a national shrine, the Alamo has gone through a remarkable series of locational changes, with nearly as many changes in name; additionally, it has experienced an astonishing variety of manipulated uses far beyond its initially designed purpose as a mission. But in spite of its long, insecure, and troubled past, the Alamo, although not by intent, has gained a notable international recognition based upon a heroic but tragic event which occurred within a few days of its centuries-old existence.