Copano

COPANO, TEXAS . The long-abandoned port, and later town, of Copano was at what is now called Copano Point on the northwestern shore of Copano Bay, thirty miles north of Corpus Christi in southeastern Refugio County. The townsite is practically inaccessible by land, but can be reached by boat from Bayside, the nearest town, five miles to the south. Copano was named for the Copane Indians who frequented the area and during the Spanish and Mexican eras was known as El Cópano. The town is believed to have served as a port and rendezvous for pirates and smugglers and may have been in use as a port as early as 1722. Copano was used as a port of entry by Spanish governor Bernardo de Gálvez during the 1780s, but from the time of Spanish and Mexican Texas qqv through revolutionary times, there was little more at Copano than a customhouse or warehouse and a fresh-water tank. Nevertheless, the port played an important role during the colonial and revolutionary periods. In 1834 Gen. Juan N. Almonte , on an inspection tour for Mexican president Antonio López de Santa Anna , reported Copano to have the deepest port in Texas.