2019 San Antonio Missions National Historical Park Quarter

The San Antonio Missions National Historical Park in San Antonio, Texas along with the Alamo Mission was made a UNESCO World heritage site in 2015. The San Antonio Mission National Historical Park quarter was released on September 5th, 2019 to honor this historical site. This is the 4th quarter of the 5 quarters planned this year by the U.S. mint.

The 2019 America the Beautiful quarters mark the 10th year since the inception of the program in 2010. This year the U.S. mint has come up with some great designs for the next 5 quarters for Lowell National Historical Park in Massachusetts, American Memorial Park in Northern Mariana Islands, War in the Pacific National Historical Park in Guam, San Antonio Missions National Historical Park in Texas and Frank Church River of No Return Wilderness in Idaho.

San Antonio Missions National Historical Park

The San Antonio Missions built along the San Antonio river were intended by the Spanish Friars to educate the Native people in the region about Spanish customs and religion. The missions became the largest concentration of Catholics and it was to be the base for Spanish influence in the land north to Mexico. The Spanish wanted to settle the nomadic Native Americans in these areas to stop the French territorial expansion and later the American influence over the land of Texas. The missions thrived between the 1740s and 80s.

There were 5 missions that were commissioned by the Friars; 4 of which are part of the National Historical Park. The 5th mission is the most well-known called the Alamo, but it isn’t a part of the park. The missions were not just churches. They provided everything within their walls; food, water, clothing, and best of all protection from outsiders.

The four missions were the Mission Concepción, Mission San José, Mission San Juan Capistrano, and Mission Espada. These missions still have active parishes and masses every Sunday. The park also includes Rancho de las Cabras, the ranch associated with Mission Espada, in Floresville, Texas.

Mission Concepción is one of the best-preserved missions of all five. It was originally built in East Texas, but later shifted to San Antonio. The interior of the mission is quite well preserved and has the original dome and wherever possible has been restored to almost the same patterns and colors as the original 1700’s structure. The Battle of Concepción was fought a few hundred yards from the mission between the Mexican army and the Texian insurgents during the Texan revolution in 1835.

Mission San José was the largest mission in North America and is still considered the queen of the missions due to its size; nearly 6 acres of land within the walls. Around 400 natives lived inside the mission apart from the Franciscans and some soldiers in its heydays.

Mission San Juan was a more rustic mission. It was the only mission that had a sacred burial ground for the natives who died mainly due to European diseases that they didn’t have immunity for.

The Spanish constructed aqueducts that carried water from the San Antonio river into the missions for irrigation purposes. The water system consisted of seven irrigation ditches, 5 dams and an aqueduct. It ran for 15 miles and irrigated nearly 3500 acres of land. The Espada aqueduct helped irrigate the lands with Mission Espada and it is the only remaining Spanish aqueduct now.

2019 San Antonio Mission National Historical Park Quarter

The San Antonio Mission National Historical Park quarter was designed by Chris Costello from the Artistic Infusion program and engraved by Joe Menna, the Chief Engraver for the U.S. mint. Chris Costello wanted it to have a rustic Colonial Spanish Real coin look to pay tribute to the missions look.

Within the quadrants are symbols of the missions: wheat symbolizes farming; the arches and bell symbolize community; a lion represents Spanish cultural heritage; and a symbol of the San Antonio River represents irrigation methods and life-sustaining resources.

The obverse of the 2019 quarters will continue to feature the restored 1932 portrait of George Washington by sculptor John Flanagan. Required obverse inscriptions are “UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,” “LIBERTY,” “IN GOD WE TRUST,” and “QUARTER DOLLAR.”