San Antonio Missions National Historical Park in San Antonio, Texas, preserves four of the five Spanish colonial missions established along the San Antonio River in the 18th century: Mission Concepción, Mission San José, Mission San Juan, and Mission Espada. Together with the Alamo (Mission San Antonio de Valero), these missions represent the largest concentration of Spanish colonial missions in North America. Founded between 1718 and 1731 by Franciscan friars, the missions served as centers for converting and acculturating Native American peoples into Spanish colonial society. The park was established in 1978 and the missions were inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2015 — the first World Heritage Site in Texas — recognized for their outstanding example of the interchange of Spanish and Coahuiltecan cultures.
📚 Learn More at NPSHistory.com →San Antonio Missions NHP in TX is one of hundreds of National Park Service sites where interpretive content has been flagged under Secretary's Order 3431. This directive requires parks to review materials that could be considered negative about past or living Americans — a standard that threatens the factual historical record these sites were created to preserve.
Why this matters: San Antonio Missions NHP is one of 466+ National Park Service sites where historically accurate interpretive content has been flagged under Secretary's Order 3431. Over 300 million people visit national parks each year. For many — especially schoolchildren — these visits are their first and deepest encounter with American history.
Long before San Antonio Missions NHP became a national park, this land was home to Indigenous peoples whose connection to it spans thousands of years. The interpretive materials now being reviewed tell their story — often developed through years of formal tribal consultation, as required by federal law.
The administration has flagged for review content that includes the language: “Coahuiltecans”, “Imperfect conversion of Indians”, “pacified native people”, and “The Church sought converts who understood and observed Chistianity and who accepted Spanish culture and language.”. Officials deemed this language potentially “disparaging to certain visitors.”
Why this matters: The Indigenous history presented at San Antonio Missions NHP was developed through formal tribal consultation — a legal requirement under federal law. The language being reviewed was often specifically requested by tribal nations whose ancestors lived on this land for thousands of years. Revising it without renewed consultation would violate both the spirit and the letter of that process.
The photos attached are from indoor exhibits at Mission Concepcion. Each contains language that may have been or is disparaging to Americans living in colonial times. Specifically, language that may imply less agency or autonomy of indigenous peoples facing Spanish culture in 1700s. Examples include:
Long before San Antonio Missions NHP became a national park, this land was home to Indigenous peoples whose connection to it spans thousands of years. The interpretive materials now being reviewed tell their story — often developed through years of formal tribal consultation, as required by federal law.
The administration has flagged for review content that includes the language: “Warriors harassed the missions...”, “may not be balanced portrayal. 2) One exhibit (From Mission Espada) reads as if the indigenous people whould have learned how to ride a horse without Spanish instruction, when indigenous people clearly mastered the horse. 3) Language that uses the term”, and “mixed-blood mestizo”. Officials deemed this language potentially “disparaging to certain visitors.”
Why this matters: The Indigenous history presented at San Antonio Missions NHP was developed through formal tribal consultation — a legal requirement under federal law. The language being reviewed was often specifically requested by tribal nations whose ancestors lived on this land for thousands of years. Revising it without renewed consultation would violate both the spirit and the letter of that process.
The photos below are from indoor exhibits at Mission San Jose's visitor center. They may contain language that could be interpreted as disparaging to Americans past or present including those living in Spanish colonial times. Examples of language for review include:
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