SAN ANTONIO – The history of the Oakland Estates neighborhood can be traced back to a land grant awarded to a man who fought in the Battle of Bexar to defend San Antonio and force Mexican forces to retreat.
“Oakland Estates actually is a chunk of land that was granted to Jose Alameda for his participation as a soldier in the Siege of Bexar in 1835,” said Vincent Michael, executive director of the Conservation Society of San Antonio.
Alameda was part of Juan Seguin’s militia in that battle.
The Battle of the Alamo would follow roughly three months later.
The land was sold a few times after Alameda owned it, but eventually, part of it was purchased in 1877 by a man with another last name familiar to most San Antonians: Amos Babcock.
“And of course, it’s defined by Babcock, Huebner and Prue Roads,” Michael said. “Babcock eventually transferred roughly what is now Oakland Estates, about 900 acres, to two developers in 1923.”
In 1926, the area was platted, meaning it was defined as a subdivision in Bexar County.
Despite the official designation, it remained a rural area.
“And they very specifically platted it all with large lots,” Michael said.
“All of this back in here was a big flat meadow with wildflowers, good soil, and not a lot of rocks,” said neighbor Lottie Millsaps, 94, gesturing around the outside of her home.
Oakland Estates was annexed into the City of San Antonio in 1972.
In 1998, the city outlined a plan for the neighborhood that aimed to “preserve the semi-rural setting and country atmosphere.”
All these years later, neighbors are still trying to hold on to that.
Development isn’t happening in Oakland Estates, but all around it.
“You could sit me down here and I wouldn’t know where I was,” Millsaps said. “It’s so much construction and businesses.”
It’s a rural enclave in a bustling part of the city.
“They’ve spent the last 25 years sort of vigorously defending their isolation, if you will,” Michael said. “I think it’s getting harder and harder.”
You can watch the Oakland Estates “Know My Neighborhood” episode on KSAT.com, free on KSAT Plus, KSAT’s YouTube page, and all other KSAT digital platforms.
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