2026-09-29T23:28:37+00:00 Zend_Feed_Writer https://rattlersremember.stmupublichistory.org/ Rattlers Remember https://rattlersremember.stmupublichistory.org 2019-12-13T23:21:31+00:00 2019-12-16T18:38:10+00:00 https://rattlersremember.stmupublichistory.org/items/show/33 Erica Esparza The addition of St. Louis College in 1894 and the issue of transportation threatened the prosperity of the college. The ten-mile distance between the downtown campus to the Woodlawn campus, at the time, was an issue due to the availability of only rudimentary mode of transportation. Streetcars in San Antonio were electrified in 1890. This innovative feature provided for faster transportation, as streetcars could not go up to 20 miles per hour, double the speed of the original horse-drawn cars. The cars also doubled in size, now offering 16 to 32 seats in a single streetcar. In 1891, there were only four streetcar lines in San Antonio ran by four different companies -- the Bellknap, the McCrillis, the West End, and Alamo Heights. Riders had to buy separate tickets if they switched cars during a route due to the different ownerships. In the 1890’s, there was only one route that came to St. Louis College, and it was by way of the West End Electric Line. In 1899, the line terminated its straight route to the campus and the new stop ended at San Antonio Female College, located at 2600 W. Woodlawn Ave, presently Assumption Seminary. The West End Electric Line, a blue streetcar, began its route from downtown Houston Street and made its way west onto Ruiz Street, north towards Cincinnati Street traveling south under Woodlawn Lake, turning west onto Ashby PL Road and north towards the intersection of Woodlawn Ave. and Bandera ending at San Antonio Female College. The relocation of the stop forced St. Louis College students to “walk the mile” towards the college. They made their way into a thicket of mesquite and dirt road to get to school. The students walked this mile for one half century until the city extended its bus line to the college in 1949. For more (including 4 images and 1 sound clip), view the original article. 2019-12-12T16:25:51+00:00 2019-12-16T02:51:52+00:00 https://rattlersremember.stmupublichistory.org/items/show/30 Harold Johnson Dickson Stadium was built in 2013 and is home to the St. Mary’s Rattler baseball team. It is an integral part of the same project that developed The Park at St. Mary’s. The Park is host to the St. Mary’s softball team. The newer 2,260-seat stadium is a successor to V.J Keefe Field. Dickson Stadium is built on the steel structure of V.J Keefe Field. The design of the beautiful facility harkens back to the days of V.J Keefe Field, and in that capacity, it is a vital community space. V.J Keefe Field used to host close to 300 events a year ranging from high school and summer youth league baseball games to minor league baseball games. Dickson Stadium was built around the university’s relationship with the community. The seats all provide great views and angles to view the games and the closeness of the seats to the field provide a wonderful intimacy between players and fans. V.J Keefe Field was completed in 1958 and hosted St. Mary’s baseball for 58 years. After a great run, the stadium closed its doors in 2011. One of the best players to play for the school was Fernando Valenzuela. Nicknamed “El Toro”, he played Major League Baseball for 17 seasons and was inducted into the Hispanic Hall of Fame in 2003. The Rattlers also won the Division II National Championship in 2001 defeating Central Missouri State 11-3. The old field was also home to minor league baseball teams such as The San Antonio Dodgers (1977-1987) and the San Antonio Tejanos that played one season there in 1994. St. Mary’s University may be a small Marianist school in San Antonio, known largely for its School of Law but it does have a couple of sports stories that stand out. There was the time that Dwight Eisenhower (yes, the United States president) coached the 1916 Rattler football team. Then, there was the moment in 1909 that an amazing St. Mary’s baseball team steamrolled the competition, beating everyone but a Ty Cobb-led Detroit Tigers team in an exhibition game. It was certainly a cool moment for the university and more incredible for the players that shared the field that day. In 1909, the Detroit Tigers came to San Antonio for spring training. Over the course of training, they played exhibition games with local teams. The best of those local teams in 1909 was the team from St. Mary’s University (known as St. Louis College at the time). During the training the Detroit Tigers played a game that played out like something written for Hollywood; at least according to witnesses of the game. On March 18, 1909, an electrical engineering major named Allys “Bert” Gallia stepped to the mound against arguably the best baseball player in MLB history in Ty Cobbs and struck him out. Gallia had a great game this day. He was not only the pitcher but also the best hitter on the team. He had already hit a double and stolen a base in the first inning to give the students a 2-0 lead. The San Antonio Daily Express mentioned, “Gallia pitched a good ball for St. Louis. He had the pleasure of fanning of the mighty Ty Cobbs and several others just as dangerous.” The Detroit Tigers would win the game, but that was expected. The newspaper noted, “the Collegians arose to the occasion with a spirit that surprised even their most hearty rooters. The game was a credit to the school and the Tigers complimented them on their showing.” When visiting Dickson Stadium, think of the accomplishments and memories of the games played there. Moments like these need to be preserved and hopefully new championships and games will have oral histories to fully conserve epic sports moments in their rightful place in St. University lore. For more (including 5 images and 1 sound clip), view the original article. 2019-12-09T08:06:32+00:00 2019-12-17T02:09:45+00:00 https://rattlersremember.stmupublichistory.org/items/show/26 Erica Esparza St. Mary’s College, located downtown, was looking to purchase a 75-acre property for the extension of their campus . It was purchased for a $1 from the West End Town Co. On August 23, 1893, plowing and excavation began as they broke ground. St. Mary’s College referred to the new campus as “Woodlawn.” It opened in 1884 and was named St. Louis College. This property was farmland when bought and was a sea of mesquite brushes, rattle snakes, and an existing cow barn with stables on the property. The original barn, stables, and pens were referred to as “the old barn.” This area included a hennery, dairy, stables, orchards, and vegetable gardens. The Marianists at the downtown campus were known to have harvested their own food through farming and agriculture in the 1850-1860s. The Marianists produced and managed their own resources using the land around the original campus property. When they moved to the Woodlawn campus, the Marianists continued their harvesting work on site, and they assigned brothers to the farm and dairy department. Brother Joseph F. Miller S.M. was heading the dairy and farm department at St. Louis College, by this time renamed, St. Mary’s College. He spent a twenty-year tenure at St. Mary’s making many contributions to the College. In 1916, Brother Joseph Miller supervised and financed the erection of a new barn building and other structural improvements. He was also the cow barn architect; he designed and oversaw the creation of the new structures. The new farm structures included a cow barn (using concrete for the interior structure), a storm shed on the northside of the barn, hay barn, cow stables, a chicken yard, a calf pen, cow pen, pig yard, and a hog house. The farm animals on the property included chickens, turkey, horses, mules, a 1700 pound bull, calves, cows (including one cow named Nora), hens, and pigs. Nightly, coyotes prowled through the stables, stealing chickens. Furthermore, Brother Joseph Miller S.M. would later be appointed to the office of provincial treasurer with the headquarters at Maryhurst Normal, Kirkwood Missouri. In April of 1929, Bro. Joseph Miller would return to the newly named St. Mary’s University for a visit. He was noted as giving high interest in the new improvements on campus such as the gymnasium, the track, and improvements to the dairy and farming section. By the 1940s through the 1950s, the animals and farm would be long gone. The barn would then be used as an armory, housing ROTC equipment, including M-1’s, 105’s, uniforms, and other equipment. The area outside the barn, which used to be stables and pens, became a rifle range. The farming land that surrounded the old barn became drill fields for the ROTC department. The old chicken yard became a pecan grove used for parties, picnics, and other festivities hosted by campus organizations. The pecan grove still hosts many festivities today, such as the oyster bake. The farm provided many necessary resources for the Marianists and their pupils at the turn of the century and should be remembered as a significant part of St. Mary’s history. For more (including 9 images and 1 sound clip), view the original article. 2019-12-08T03:19:48+00:00 2019-12-15T16:32:35+00:00 https://rattlersremember.stmupublichistory.org/items/show/24 Edgar Velázquez Reynald As San Antonio grew, so did St. Mary’s University. After opening the school in 1852 with twelve students, the Marianist Brothers moved from a temporary schoolhouse to a permanent building constructed near the San Antonio River. The first building functioned well for the Brothers’ mission to serve the Mexican poor despite its small space. The construction of St. Mary’s Catholic Church to the west of the school shortly followed. Paved roads intersecting the school and church became College Street and St. Mary’s, linking the school to the development of San Antonio’s downtown core. Additions to the building made it grow as enrollment increased. With this heritage, St. Mary’s University School of Law opened in 1934, becoming one of the last vestiges that linked St. Mary’s to downtown San Antonio. The opening of the law school coincided with St. Mary’s growth and move to the St. Louis College campus on the westside of San Antonio. In 1894, St. Louis College opened on the land where St. Mary’s University currently stands. First opening as a boarding school, St. Louis College slowly became the focal point of St. Mary’s, with all the departments moving away from downtown. The downtown campus became St. Mary’s Academy and provided high school education. By 1927, St. Mary’s University attained senior college status, the same year the San Antonio Bar Association decided to open a law school. Seeking the best resources for students, the Bar Association selected St. Mary’s University for its administration. High school education moved to Central High School and downtown once again became a college level school. On October 1, 1934, St. Mary’s University School of Law officially opened as part of the downtown campus. The rest of the downtown campus became a co-educational night and summer school. For the first time in the history of the university, women were accepted into programs. With the end of World War II, attendance for the university rose exponentially. The growth benefited the law school as it became accredited by the American Bar Association and the Association of American Law Schools. Around the same time, the Riverwalk project reshaped the function of the San Antonio River. Becoming a WPA project in 1939, the Riverwalk development influenced how downtown San Antonio grew over the following decades. The School of Law moved to the main campus in 1968, closing the chapter of St. Mary’s downtown influence. That same year, San Antonio hosted Hemisfair ‘68, the official World’s Fair of 1968. Hemisfair reshaped the look and structure of downtown, making the closing of the downtown campus part of a larger change in the San Antonio landscape. The university sold the downtown campus, and it became a hotel. The Omni La Mansión del Rio Hotel renovated the building and added Spanish Revival flourishes to the facade. At the riverwalk, one can find a plaque detailing the history of the building and the impact St. Mary’s had in the formation of downtown San Antonio. For more (including 3 images and 1 sound clip), view the original article.