'The First Inhabitant'

A century-old sculpture named The First Inhabitant stands on the south railing of San Antonio’s historic Commerce Street Bridge. Commissioned by the San Antonio Express newspaper in 1914 for $1,000, a significant sum in the pre-World War I economy, sculptor Waldine Tauch created this cast concrete monument featuring a Native American Chief in a feathered headdress, standing amidst a backdrop of corn. The chief’s hands each hold a small bowl that once served as a public drinking fountain, though it was disconnected many decades ago.

The seven-foot-tall statue serves as a reminder that Native Americans were the first inhabitants of what is now San Antonio. Unfortunately, years of exposure and limited upkeep have caused erosion and cracks in the sculpture. As with many priceless landmarks nationwide, restoration funding is needed to preserve it.

The Commerce Street Bridge itself is steeped in history. The first bridge across the San Antonio River was built here in 1736, making it the earliest bridge in south-central Texas under New Spain. During the Battle of the Alamo in 1836, Mexican soldiers on the bridge were fired upon from inside the Alamo. The bridge is also nicknamed the “Literary Bridge” for the numerous poems and stories written about it, including works by Sydney Lanier and O. Henry.

Over the past two and a half centuries, the Commerce Street Bridge has been rebuilt using various materials: six long beams across the river’s horseshoe bend in 1736, upgraded to planks, then iron trusses, and finally concrete slabs in 1914, the year The First Inhabitant was added.