unincorporated community
An unincorporated area is a region that is not governed by a local municipal corporation. Widespread unincorporated communities and areas are a distinguishing feature of the United States and Canada. Most other countries of the world either have ...
, two miles (3 km) southwest of Sandia and twenty miles (32 km) northeast of
Alice
Alice may refer to:
* Alice (name), most often a feminine given name, but also used as a surname
Literature
* Alice (''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland''), a character in books by Lewis Carroll
* ''Alice'' series, children's and teen books by ...
in extreme northeastern
Jim Wells County
Jim Wells County is a County (United States), county in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, its population was 38,891. The county was founded in 1911 and is named for James B. Wells, Jr. (1850-1923), for t ...
,
Texas
Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...
, United States.
History
The ''Casa Blanca'', or ''White House'' was part of a settlement established at the site ''circa'' 1754 by Tomás Sánchez de la Barrera y Gallardo, captain of Laredo, who was ordered to find a suitable site for a new settlement. After surveying the country, Sánchez selected a site on the banks of Peñitas Creek. A settlement was established there, and the White House was constructed of
caliche
Caliche () is a sedimentary rock, a hardened natural cement of calcium carbonate that binds other materials—such as gravel, sand, clay, and silt. It occurs worldwide, in aridisol and mollisol soil orders—generally in arid or semiarid regions, ...
blocks known as ciares. The house was built in the shape of a square with a courtyard in the center; the well in the courtyard also served as the end of a tunnel out of the building. Toward the end of the eighteenth century, the house was used as a mission.
The Spanish crown granted the land to Juan José de la Garza Montemayor and his sons Agustín, Perfecto, and Manuel on April 2, 1807. They used the Casa Blanca as a ranchhouse. According to records, the land was occupied by their heirs until 1852. However, local legend has it that the Montemayor family was driven away by a band of outlaws, who in turn were forced out by hostile Indians. Subsequently, various families occupied the house and the surrounding area, and a post office operated at the site from 1860 to 1866. The area continued to be inhabited by several families. In 1876, the land was purchased by John L. Wade. Because Casa Blanca was already established as a stopping point, Wade established Wade City adjacent to it, platting streets and setting aside land for stores and churches. In 1893, the post office was reactivated. In 1896, Casa Blanca-Wade City had a combined estimated population of 150, a Methodist church, a general store, a gin, and a lumberyard. Wade City did not prosper, however, and by 1914 its population had decreased to thirty-five. The post office ceased operations in 1922.
In roughly 1936, Wade's heirs petitioned for the site of Wade City to revert to them, arguing that the town never developed and showed no promise of doing so and that the land would be more valuable as ranchland. The petition was granted, and Wade City reverted to pastureland; Casa Blanca continued to be an independent community, but by 1945 only ruins remained.
The first dam created was called Las Frutas in 1929. In 1945, the state attempted to use eminent domain to dam more of the Nueces River, an action which was fought until 1955, at which point the state prevailed and was able to dam the river to become the water supply for Corpus Christi, thus flooding and making unusable a little over of the Wade Ranch.
The Wade Ranch was actually in operation from 1898 (Upon John Wade's death in 1898, the land was divided among his family. Wallis inherited the land. Wallis and Lou Ella married in 1894.) until Lou Ella Wade's death (96 years) in 1973. At that point it was broken up and most of the property became owned by numerous heirs through joint tenancy.
The last heirs were bought out ''circa'' 2004, which meant that for the first time since approximately 1864, no Wade heir owned the property.
Records from the ranch are currently held by Texas A&M - Kingsville and access to these is only by appointment.