Domingo Terán de los Ríos served as the first

governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

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 ...

from 1691 to 1692. He also governed Coahuila, in the modern-day Mexico.

Previous service

Terán served the Spanish crown in

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = Seal (emblem), National seal , national_motto = "Fi ...

for two decades. He came to

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

in 1681 as a deputy of the consulado of Sevilla. He was appointed governor of the province of

Sonora y Sinaloa Estado de Occidente ( en, Western State; also known as Sonora y Sinaloa) was a Mexican state established in 1824. The constitution was drafted in that year and the government was initially established with its capital at El Fuerte, Sinaloa. The ...

in 1686, and served in that position for approximately five years. As governor, he successfully developed a mining industry and pacified the Native Americans in that area.

Coahuila and Tejas

Terán was appointed governor on January 23, 1691, by

Viceroy A viceroy () is an official who reigns over a polity in the name of and as the representative of the monarch of the territory. The term derives from the Latin prefix ''vice-'', meaning "in the place of" and the French word ''roy'', meaning "k ...

Gaspar de la Cerda, 8th Count of Galve Gaspar de la Cerda Silva Sandoval y Mendoza, 8th Count of Galve, Lord of Salcedón and Tortola (in full, es, Don Gaspar Melchor Baltasar de la Cerda Silva Sandoval y Mendoza, Conde de Gelve y Señor de Salcedón y Tortola) (11 January 1653 &ndash ...

. He was appointed to oversee the administration of Coahuila, Texas and adjacent regions. His role as governor was to set up seven missions among the Tejas Indians; to seek and remove any foreigners that may have settled in Spanish territory; and to catalog the land, the natural resources, and the peoples of the area. Terán and his company departed on their trek on May 16, 1691, from

Monclova Monclova (), is a city and the seat of the surrounding municipality of the same name in the northern Mexican state of Coahuila. According to the 2015 census, the city had 231,107 inhabitants. Its metropolitan area has 381,432 inhabitants and a ...

, crossed the

Rio Grande The Rio Grande ( and ), known in Mexico as the Río Bravo del Norte or simply the Río Bravo, is one of the principal rivers (along with the Colorado River) in the southwestern United States and in northern Mexico. The length of the Rio G ...

on May 28, and had reached the Red River by December of that year. When they reached San Francisco de los Tejas, de los Ríos renamed the region Nuevo Reyno de la Montaña de Santander y Santillana. On June 13, 1691, Terán and his company camped at a rancheria on a stream called Yanaguana . They renamed the stream "San Antonio" because it was Saint Anthony's Day. Father Damian Massanet accompanied Terán on his trip. On his journey northward, Terán met with

Gregorio de Salinas Varona Gregorio de Salinas Varona (1647 or 1650 in Tormé, Burgos, Spain – 1720 in Mexico City, New Spain) was a noble and Spanish administrator who served as governor in Texas, Coahuila, Nuevo Leon (the latter two localized in Mexico), Honduras and ...

at the site of the French Fort Saint Louis, which had been abandoned after colonists died from disease and a Karankawa Indian attack. He was given new orders to explore the Tejas settlements in eastern Tejas. When Terán was travelling southward, he met Juan Enríquez Barroto at Matagorda Bay on March 5, 1692, who relayed orders from the

viceroy A viceroy () is an official who reigns over a polity in the name of and as the representative of the monarch of the territory. The term derives from the Latin prefix ''vice-'', meaning "in the place of" and the French word ''roy'', meaning "k ...

to explore the lower

Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the second-longest river and chief river of the second-largest drainage system in North America, second only to the Hudson Bay drainage system. From its traditional source of Lake Itasca in northern Minnesota, it f ...

area. Terán followed orders, but was prevented from completing them by bad weather. He and his company returned to

Veracruz Veracruz (), formally Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave (), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave), is one of the 31 states which, along with Me ...

on April 15. Terán's expedition failed to establish any missions among the Tejas. In his report, he defended his actions and explained the negative situation which he saw in East Texas.

References

External links

"Domingo Terán de los Ríos," ''Sons of DeWitt Colony, Texas''.

Texas State Historical Association
Governors of Coahuila Governors of Spanish Texas Governors of Sinaloa Governors of Sonora Year of birth missing Year of death missing Spanish colonial governors and administrators 1680s in Mexico 1690s in Mexico 1690s in Texas {{explorer-stub