Sanchez y Tapia, Jose Maria, fl. 1828.

In 1828, Mexican President Guadalupe Victoria sent a Boundary Commission (Comisión de Límites) to demarcate the border between the United States and Mexico, which had been established by the Adams-Onís Treaty in 1819. The Commission was headed by General Manuel de Mier y Terán (1789-1832) and composed of mineralogist Rafael Chovell, botanist Jean-Louis Berlandier, and draftsman José María Sánchez y Tapia. The group reached San Antonio in March, San Felipe de Austin in April, and Nacogdoches in June, the same month that Terán made a report to the government concerning the native tribes they had encountered. The expedition concluded in January 1829.

From the guide to the Noticia de las Tribus de Salvages Conocidos que Habitan en el Departamento de Tejas… (copy), Undated, (William L. Clements Library, University of Michigan)