Historical Texas river names is a very confusing mess!!!!! Especially when you try to differentiate between the Spanish, French ,and later Anglo names.
Good example is the Present names for the Rio Brazos de Dios and Rio Colorado. These two rivers the Brazos and the Colorado names were switched on a later map, by mistake, and the names stuck ever since!!!!
Spanish coundn't decide on what they wanted to call a river either. Original name for the Rio San Gabriel was the San Xavier!
French called the present Colorado the Rivere Maligne.
Additional trivial stuff of interest.
I also suggest the official Mexican report on the influx of eastern Natives composed by Jean Louis Berlandier in 1835.
Another interesting note is a Mexican Colonel Mier e Teran, who recorded the Bedia as being the first tribe to be inoculated for smallpox in the 1830's!
Recommend the book by Bob Weddle on the San Saba Mission and Presidio. Speaks of the punitive expedition against the "Nortenos" in 1758 on the Red River. Nortenos = Witchitas, Taovayas, Caddoan groups, and the relative new kids on the block, the Comanches. Spanish got thier butts kicked.
While you are at it, look up the Villasur massacre of 1721 in Nebraska. Spanish from Santa Fe wiped out by Otoes and Pawnees!
