11. The lost Los Almagres Mine was the subject of several Texas legends
The presence of a silver-rich vein of ore was the subject of discussion in San Antonio and the other Texas settlements as early as 1753. Eventually, the stories had the mine at several locations, including on the San Saba River. The site was a presidio and mission established by the Spanish and destroyed by hostile Indians in 1758. One version of the tale claimed the veins were so rich that all of the Spanish settlers of San Antonio at the time could have their own mines, extracting wondrous wealth. Bowie heard the tales of wealth to be had for the digging and was intrigued. He solicited permission to lead a party of men to the site.
He was granted permission, but the government refused to fund the expedition. To pay for the necessary supplies and equipment, Bowie turned to his obliging father-in-law. In November 1831, James and Rezin Bowie led a party of nine other men to the Indian country to the west. On November 19 they camped about six miles east of the San Saba River, where war parties attacked them. Bowie’s party drove off the Indians after an all-day fight in an oak grove, though one of the men was killed and several others wounded. Unable to adequately care for the wounded men, Bowie’s party returned to San Antonio. He made another attempt to find the mine in January.