Historical Sites- Are we losing pieces of San Antonio?

Recently, several of San Antonio’s historical sites have been defaced, defiled, and have fallen into general disrepair. Unfortunately, this month we see yet another site fall prey to the ravages of time. The Red Berry Mansion has recently shut its doors, canceling appointments on dozens of weddings, due to issues with its foundation. Late Saturday the 21st of January, the East Wing of the Mansion became detached from the rest of the building when a sink hole opened up beneath it. Apparently, the tunnels that were installed during Prohibition for smuggling illegal contraband have caused structural issues with the building.

Much to the dismay of the residents of San Antonio, the owner is considering leveling the mansion on putting a new building in its place, to save on the money it would take to repair the faulty foundation.

Understandably, the San Antonio Historical Society is outraged and threatening lawsuit against the owner if he does go through with his plans to raise the historic San Antonio landmark. The owner was not available for comment.

In a similar vein, the Black Swan Inn is once against closed to guests. This time, at least, not at the hands of hooligans. The Inn reported has a rat and bed bug infestation.

Bed bugs have been becoming a serious problem in San Antonio, as people do not realize when their belongings are home to the creatures, and unwitting introduce them into apartments, hotel rooms, and apparently haunted historical sites as well. There is no word on how long it will take the owners to clear the vermin from the Inn.

And while both these stories are tragic, the last site just happens to be a bit strange. While not really considered a historical landmark, most residents of San Antonio immediately recognize the old Playland Park Amusement park located on N. Alamo. It has been closed for some time, but recently there have been reports that it may in fact be haunted, adding one more location to the scoreboard which proves San Antonio is in fact the most haunted city in the United States.

Three local teens were caught trespassing there last Thursday. When confronted by police they claimed they climbed the fence because they heard a child crying. When they investigated the park in search of the child, they say that all they could find were swings moving on their own, on a day with no wind. When one of the rides began to move on its own, despite the fact that the park has not had electricity in year, the teens ran from the scene and where then found by the police.

While there is no way to verify their claims, it has stirred up a rash of ghost hunters investigating the site. Police have been called to chase off trespassers almost every night this week.

Places like the Red Berry Mansion, the Black Swan Inn, and now, Playland Park, are unique sites that San Antonio has made its own. It would be a blow to the cultural identify of this city were any of these notable locations removed from our landscape.