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Survey of Historic Sites and Buildings

	LOS ADAES Louisiana
Natchitoches Parish, just north of La. 6, about 2 miles northeast of Robeline. Los Adaes State Historic Site

Los Adaes was the site of an 18-century Spanish mission and presidio and in 1806 the site of a United States-Spanish boundary agreement. Founded in 1721-22 on the site of an earlier mission, the Presidio of Nuestra Señora del Pilar de los Adaes (Adais) was a Spanish outpost and the capital of the frontier province of Texas, seat of 13 Spanish Governors, until 1773. Long after the presidio had been abandoned, in 1806 at the site Ens. Joseph Maria Gonzales of the Spanish Army and Capt. Edward Turner of the U.S. Army signed a boundary treaty by which Gonzales agreed to retreat to Spanish-owned Texas and to cease sending Spanish patrols across the border into the United States. This treaty led to the formal establishment, a few weeks later, of "neutral ground" between Texas and the United States by Gen. James Wilkinson and Spanish Lt. Comdr. Simon de Herrera. The two nations honored the boundary for 14 years.

Only a few unidentified mounds of earth are visible today on the attractive ridge where the presidio stood. Of the 40 acres or so encompassing the presidio, mission, and village sites, more than 9 acres are owned by Natchitoches Parish and are maintained as a historical park. The National Society of the Daughters of American Colonists and the State of Louisiana have erected markers.

Visitors to this historic site receive guided tours of the archaeology lab and the grounds of the presidio. Historic demonstrations and special programs are offered throughout the year. A walking trail is available to visitors to study the natural and cultural features which are an integral part of the site.

NHL Designation: 06/23/86