San Antonio Missions National Historical Park preserves four of the five Spanish frontier missions in San Antonio, Texas, USA. These outposts were established by Catholic religious orders to spread Christianity among the local natives. These missions formed part of a colonization system that stretched across the Spanish Southwest in the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries.
 
In geographic order from north (upstream of the San Antonio River) to south (downstream) the missions are located as follows: Mission Concepcion, Mission San Jose, Mission San Juan, and Mission Espada. The Espada Aqueduct, also part of the Park, is due east of Mission San Juan, across the river. The fifth (and best known) mission in San Antonio, the Alamo, is not part of the Park, rather it is owned by the State of Texas, and operated by the Daughters of the Republic of Texas; it is upstream from Mission Concepcion in Downtown San Antonio.
 
Administrative history
 
The park was originally established in 1975 as the Mission Parkway on the National Register of Historic Places encompassing 84 separate historical sites along the San Antonio River on the southern side of the city of San Antonio.[3] Within his listing, the National Historical Park was authorized on November 10, 1978. It was established on April 1, 1983, containing many cultural sites along with some natural areas. Portions of the four missions are owned by the Archdiocese of San Antonio and are still run as active parishes.
 
Additional locations
 
The Park includes two other locations listed on the National Register of Historic Places: the Espada Aqueduct, which was listed as a National Historic Landmark in 1964, and the Ethel Wilson Harris House, listed in 2001.