San Pedro Springs
Some might say that the history of San Antonio does not begin at the San Antonio springs, but rather at the San Pedro Springs. As early as 9,000 years ago, Native Americans gathered at the San Pedro Springs and a small natural lake just below the Springs which have made the San Pedro Park a focal point for human settlement. Bones of mastodons, giant tigers, wolves and extinct horses have been found in the same area, in addition to stone projectile points and tools of the Paleo-Indians who hunted here.
After European settlement, the site was the social and recreational center of San Antonio for many decades. On April 13, 1709, Fathers Olivares and Espinosa, on an expedition to Spanish Texas, named the site "Agua de San Pedro." Even today, the various pools of the San Pedro springs are distinctly different shades of emerald green to aquamarine, the color that characterizes most groundwater from limestone aquifers, such as the Edwards.