Cibolo Creek

Cibolo Creek. . , The Creek of Many Names , Cibolo Creek has had many names. The Coahuiltecan Indians called it Xolofon while other Native Americans called it Bata Coniquivoqul. On a Spanish expedition, one explorer called it Santa Crecencia while another on the same expedition called it San Ygnacio de Loyola. Domingo Ramon gave the name San Xavier in 1716, but the word Cibolo was being used for the whole region. By 1721, when a French explorer traveled across the creek, it had its nearly final name of Rio Cibolo, which was later converted to Cibolo Creek. The Spanish word cibolo means bison and according to F.W. Hodges it probably originated from the Native American word for a native hunter of bison, cibola., Flash Floods , In 1964, the Cibolo Creek flooded and damaged part of downtown. Buddy’s Market was completely destroyed and later rebuilt as Riverside Market. Sachs Garage was also damaged, with a truck deep inside the garage being pushed through the garage door by the rushing water. Fragments of the door pinned the truck down so that it was not swept into the creek. After all this, thoughtful citizens worked hard to have a dam built outside the city to capture and reduce incoming floodwaters., Another flood occurred in 1997. Below is the story of a resident who lived on River Road:, “Janie Trevino awakened about 3:30 a.m. Sunday in her River Rd. home, looked out the window and saw water up to the mailbox. She called her son Johnny Jimeriez, who lives about three blocks away on Short St., and he called 9-1-1., By then, Trevino had awaken [sic] her daughter-in-law Mary and the two of them wondered whether they were going to be able to escape the rising water from the Cibolo Creek that was now seeping inside the house. Both said they were scared and began to pray. Their prayers were answered in the form of Boerne Police Officer James Gonzales, who waded to the house and led the women out one by one., Trevino, a diminutive woman who said the water was almost hip high when she stepped off her porch, credits Gonzales with saving her and her daughter-in-law’s lives.”, – Hill Country Recorder, June 25, 1997, Captions: , Winter on Cibolo Creek, 1940s , Summer on Cibolo Creek , Cibolo Creek Bridge, 1912. Notice the Horse and Buggy on the Right , Flood Damage at Sachs, 1964