Laredo in Webb County, Texas — The American South (West South Central)
Santos Benavides
Photographed By James Hulse, July 29, 2022
1. Santos Benavides Marker
Benavides, appointed Procurador (administrative agent) of Laredo in 1843, openly cooperated with the forces of Mirabeau B. Lamar which occupied Laredo during the Mexican War (1846-48) in an effort to pacify the region. He was elected mayor of Laredo in 1856 and 1857 and Chief Justice of Webb County in 1859.
During the Civil War Benavides raised a company of cavalry at Laredo which defeated Juan Cortina in the Battle of Carrizo in 1861. He became a colonel in command of his own regiment known as Benavides Regiment. On March 19, 1864, his regiment successfully defended Laredo with only 42 men against a Union force of more than 200 men.
During the late 1860s and 1870s Benavides engaged in mercantile and ranching activities with his brother Cristobal. He served in the Texas Legislature during the 1880s and in 1884 was appointed Texas Commissioner to the World's Cotton Exposition. Benavides helped found the Guarache Party, a faction of Laredo's Democratic Party, he died in Laredo on November 9, 1891.
Erected
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Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Hispanic Americans • Industry & Commerce • War, Mexican-American • War, US Civil. A significant historical date for this entry is March 19, 1864.
Location. 27° 31.782′ N, 99° 28.95′ W. Marker is in Laredo, Texas, in Webb County. Marker can be reached from the intersection of East Saunders Street (Business U.S. 59) and McPherson Road, on the right when traveling east. The marker is located in the northern section of the Calvary Catholic Cemetery. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 3600 McPherson Road, Laredo TX 78040, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 3 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies. Bishop Peter Verdaguer (within shouting distance of this marker); Refugio Benavides (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); Calvary Catholic Cemetery (about 500 feet away); City Cemetery (approx. 0.2 miles away); San Bernardo Avenue (approx. 1½ miles away); Raymond and Tirza Martin High School (approx. 1.6 miles away); The Texas Mexican Railway (approx. 2.1 miles away); Webb County Courthouse (approx. 2.1 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Laredo.
Also see . . . Benavides, Santos (1823–1891). Texas State Historical Association
Commissioned(Submitted on August 3, 2022, by James Hulse of Medina, Texas.)a captain in the Thirty-third Texas Cavalry (or Benavides' Regiment) and assigned to the Rio Grande Military District, Benavides quickly won accolades as a fighter. He drove Juan Cortina back into Mexico in the battle of Carrizo on May 22, 1861, and quelled other local revolts against Confederate authority. In November 1863 Benavides was promoted to colonel and authorized to raise his own regiment of "Partisan Rangers," for which he used the remnants of the Thirty-third. His greatest military triumph was his defense of Laredo on March 19, 1864, with forty-two troops against 200 soldiers of the Union First Texas Cavalry, commanded by Col. Edmund J. Davis, who had, ironically, offered Benavides a Union generalship earlier. Perhaps Benavides's most significant contribution to the South came when he arranged for safe passage of Texas cotton along the Rio Grande to Matamoros during the Union occupation of Brownsville in 1864.Photographed By James Hulse, July 29, 20222. Santos Benavides Gravestone and Marker
Photographed By James Hulse, July 29, 2022
3. Reverse view of the Santos Benavides Marker from the cemetery road
Public Domain - Latinos in the American Civil Wa, circa 1860s
4. Col. Santos Benavides, CSA
Credits. This page was last revised on August 3, 2022. It was originally submitted on August 3, 2022, by James Hulse of Medina, Texas. This page has been viewed 239 times since then and 77 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4. submitted on August 3, 2022, by James Hulse of Medina, Texas.
