About the Webb County Heritage Foundation
Preserving Laredo's Rich Border Heritage
The Webb County Heritage Foundation operates several historic sites in Laredo, including the San Agustin de Laredo Historic District, the Villa Antigua Border Heritage Museum, the Republic of the Rio Grande Museum, and the Laredo Center for the Arts. Founded in 1980, the foundation preserves and interprets the unique history of this border region where Spanish, Mexican, Texan, and American cultures have intertwined since Laredo's founding on May 15, 1755, when Captain Tomás Sánchez and several families settled 15 leagues of land near an Indian ford on the Rio Grande.
Republic of the Rio Grande Museum
Founded in 1957 by the Laredo Historical Society, the Republic of the Rio Grande Museum is housed in an original sandstone and adobe building built in the 1830s that was once home to prominent rancher and Laredo mayor Bartolomé García. Located in the downtown San Agustín Historic District, this building served as the capitol of the short-lived Republic of the Río Grande—an independent nation that existed between the Republic of Mexico and the Republic of Texas for less than one calendar year in 1840. The museum opened to the public in February 1962 and on May 15, 1962, became the first building in Laredo to receive a Texas State Historical Survey Committee Historical Building Medallion.
Villa Antigua Border Heritage Museum
Above the banks of the Rio Grande in the heart of Laredo's San Agustín Historic District, the Villa Antigua Border Heritage Museum occupies a restored two-story brick Italianate residence built in the early 20th century. The home was abandoned for many years and survived numerous fires and demolition initiatives before Webb County and its Heritage Foundation acquired the property in 2002 and undertook its historic rehabilitation. Today, the museum showcases the cultural heritage of the Texas-Mexico border region and Laredo's distinction as one of the oldest continuously inhabited settlements in Texas.
Plan Your Visit
The Webb County Heritage Foundation operates multiple historic sites in the San Agustin Historic District in downtown Laredo. The Republic of the Rio Grande Museum commemorates the short existence of an independent republic and local Laredo history. For hours, admission, and information about the foundation's programs and preservation efforts, visit webbheritage.org.
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