Arthur Casanovas was a lawman in Bexar County, Texas where he kept the peace in the village of St. Hedwig. He was born March of 1846 in New Orleans, Louisiana, the son of Pierre Casanovas, a deputy U.S. surveyor, and his wife, Louise Beaulieu.
Arthur or “A.” as he was known, came to Texas in the early 1870s. By the spring of 1876, he was working as desk clerk at the Central Hotel on Main Plaza in San Antonio.
In 1880, Casanovas was living with the family of James H. and E. R. Glass in St. Hedwig. He was constable of Bexar County Precinct #4 known for its violent gang activity. Casanovas served in this position for more than a decade. A November 23, 1882 San Antonio newspaper article referred to Casanovas as a “U.S. officer” from St. Hedwig. He was a popular and effective law enforcement officer.
In 1883, Casanovas and J.H. Glass were members of a group from St. Hedwig petitioning the Bexar County Commissioner’s Court for a change in the track of the Sulphur Springs Road.
On March 11, 1884, Constable Casanovas of Precinct 4 became an eyewitness to the events at the Vaudeville Theater in San Antonio in which King Fisher and Ben Thompson were killed. His role as law enforcement at the event was attested to in the coroner’s inquest. Casanovas became a celebrity from his association with this widely publicized event.
In 1893, Mrs. E. R. Glass, who was then residing in Monterrey, Mexico, bought the Internationally known “Marble” Hotel in Topo Chico, Mexico. She remodeled the structure and attached a new fascade.
Casanovas went to Topo Chico to serve as Mrs. Glass’s hotel manager. He returned to San Antonio periodically to visit friends.
In December of 1914, Mrs. Glass died.
When the revolution began in Mexico the hotel lost it prominence. Arthur Casanovas died August 11, 1908 in Monterrey, Mexico.
