sharkins Wrote:
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> The OSR goes back to 1690, and Spanish explorer
> Alonso de Leon:
>
> [
en.wikipedia.org]
Lots more here, including numerous photographs:
I, like many Texans, have travelled portions of this route, mostly along SH 21. The best answer I can give to Jim is that none of the erected markers I have witnessed, nor any of the written materials included below, give any indication of such things as old cart ruts or subtle vegetational pattern differences that are found along some well used but now abandoned trails. The photos of old dirt trails in the second reference below are of local roads used in historical times. Do they follow closely enough in the path of the Spanish to be recognized as remnants of the OSR? Maybe some archeology would uncover a cross bow bolt, an old gauntlet, or a cart wheel sunk in a swamp, but I am not aware of any reports of such, like exist for Conquistadore artifacts in Garza County that some believe survive from Coronado's expedition.
It does appear that the authors of the second article referenced below believe that some extant streets and roads very closely correspond to the ORS. One example is Chestnut Steet in Bastrop.
[
tshaonline.org]
[
www.texascounties.net]
Dave McNeely
Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 08/30/2015 06:22PM by old man from dallas.