January 2002
Editor: Mimi Lozano, mimilozano@aol.com

          Dedicated to Hispanic Heritage and Diversity Issues
          Publication of the Society of Hispanic Historical and Ancestral Research © 2000-2
http://members.aol.com/shhar      714-894-8161

Carlos Olamendi, is one of three businessmen investing in the Santa Ana MimeXca.  Olamendi,  a Mexican native and successful Laguna Niguel restaurateur,  has been active in politics in the United States and Mexico for many years.  MimeXca  was founded in 1999 and lobbied for changes on both sides of the border.   The group, which has more than 300,000 members in California, made headlines for supporting Vicente Fox in his successful bid for Mexico's presidency. Members are also in Arizona, Texas, and Illinois. 
For more information: Main office, Florida: 1-866-212-2240
Santa Ana, Virginia Escamilla, Branch Supervisor: 714-480-0890

Source: Minerva Canto, O.C. Register, 12-1-01 and  phone interview with Carlos Olamendi. Extract of photo by Daniel A. Anderson

Carlos Olamendi

SHHAR Board Members:   Laura Arechabala Shane, Bea Armenta Dever, Diane Burton Godinez,      Peter Carr, Gloria Cortinas Oliver, Mimi Lozano Holtzman, Carlos Olvera

Somos Primos Staff
Mimi Lozano, Editor
John P. Schmal, Historian
Johanna de Soto, Genealogist
Contributors:
Mercy Bautista-Olvera
Bill Carmeno
Peter Carr
Claudio Coello
Mary Anne Curry
Randall Davis
Anthony Garcia
Jackie Garcia-Luna
James E. Garcia

AMERICAN FAMILY reveals the enduring strength of family in America today as it chronicles the lives of the Gonzalez’s, residents of East Los Angeles. Jess Gonzalez (Edward James Olmos), the conservative patriarch, and his daughter Nina Gonzalez (Constance Marie), a feminist attorney, are constantly at odds with each other. Nina has moved back home following a family tragedy. She must make the difficult choice between her dreams of a career in Washington, D.C., or staying home to help raise Pablito, her brother Esteban’s son. Esteban (Esai Morales) struggles to rebuild his life after serving time in prison. Flamboyant Aunt Dora (Raquel Welch) lives next door and adds some spice to everyone’s life. All the while, Cisco Gonzalez (A.J. Lamas), the youngest sibling, secretly videotapes the family’s antics and posts the “family drama” on his Web site.

In addition to reaching out to the mainstream television viewer, the national outreach campaign for American Family will also target the Latino community by fostering relationships between local public television stations and strategic community partnerships. Launch partners include: The National Association of Latino Arts and Culture, League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC), National Council of La Raza (NCLR), MANA, The ASPIRA Association, The National Latino Children’s Institute, National Hispanic Council on Aging, Generations United, Latino Public Broadcasting (LPB), Association of Hispanic Arts (AHA), Asociación de Músicos Latino Americanos, National Association of Latino Arts and Cultures and the National Hispanic Foundation for the Arts (NHFA). The centerpiece of the outreach campaign will encourage viewers to share stories, have fun and celebrate families by developing their own family album.

Wendy Celaya, Publicist  wendycelaya@aol.com
Reyes Entertainment, 6399 Wilshire Blvd., Suite 307
Los Angeles, CA 90048 (323) 852-1525 office  (562) 805-0189 cellular
Sent by  Anthony Garcia, agarcia@wahoo.sjsu.edu

"History isn't just about the past. 
 It's what makes you you."  
Samantha Dorsey, high school student
 Arlington, Virginia  Washington Post, 8-28-01

Retired Command Sergeant Major Roberto S. Rivera 
Written by his son, Robert Rivera of Mesa, Arizona

Críticas is the authoritative one-stop source for identifying the best new adult and children's titles from the entire Spanish-language publishing world.  Written in English, Críticas gives librarians and booksellers the information they need to stock their shelves and build their collections.  Teachers will find it a useful resource for identifying materials for their students.  Rights agents and authors will find Críticas a key source for learning about trends and discovering properties in Spanish-language publishing.

Adriana Lopez  adlopez@cahners.com

Governor Davis has not signed the bill that would allow about 1 million immigrants to obtain a driver's license while they wait out an Immigration and Naturalization Service backlog that is holding up their green cards. Gov. Davis says $8 million is needed for the technology to better secure the licensing system.
OC Register, 12-16-01 

As U.S. Hispanics, collectively, have begun to join the middle class, their political agenda has broadened and their political activism has grown. But Hispanic political biases defy easy characterization.

Many upwardly mobile Hispanics have moved away from their traditional Democratic political base, but they aren’t necessarily flocking to the Republican Party. Many consider themselves Independents, and most say they base their electoral decisions on specific issues.

“They tend to vote along issue lines,” confirms Andy Hernandez, author of a recent study, “The Latino Vote in 2000.” “That’s a point often missed by people who analyze and discuss the Latino vote. [Voters] want to know what the candidates did or didn’t do, not whether they speak Spanish.”

http://www.hispanicbusiness.com/news/newsbyid.asp?id=5830

With the help of Mexican and U.S. academics and foundations, 41 village families in El Trapiche, Mexico have tried for two years to earn at least part of their living.  The association of El Trapiche Migrants in San Diego gave a portion of the $5,000 initial investment in the greenhouse.  In the past, few of these club have tried to build profit-driven enterprises back home.

Raul Hinojosa, who runs UCLA's North American Integration and Development Center monitors 30 such projects in the states of Zacatecas, Jalisco and Oaxaca.  He is trying to identify pitfalls and develop workable models.  Members of the cooperatives tend to be older than 50, nearly all are women whose husbands are working in the United States.  Part of the financing for the greenhouse projects comes from the Mexican government's community development fund.  The vision is to create varied industries, with jobs so that the men will not migrate to the United States. 

Extract from article by James F. Smith, L.A. Times, 12-3-01

Davis Halts Release of Birth and Death Data

Access: Two Web sites posted personal details on California natives for all to see. One has since removed the information.

Genealogy Web site removes California birth records 
by Jennifer Coleman, Associated Press Writer extracts. . .
Published 3:45 p.m. PST Friday, Nov. 30, 2001

he list. In addition to the California index, www.RootsWeb.com  also removed a similar list of Texas births, said Craig Sherman, spokesman for the company.

Sent by Johanna de Soto

The Vitalsearch Company Worldwide, Inc.  http://www.vitalsearch-worldwide.com/

Collections: The Manuscript Division holds approximately 10,000 collections ranging in size from a single item to thousands of containers. More than forty million individual items are in the division's custody. Although holdings of original manuscripts relating to the Spanish colonial empire in America are limited, the division's resources include a large number of reproductions of documents in Spain's repositories. Most of these reproductions were obtained through the Library of Congress' Foreign Copying Program started in 1905.

In the early years of the program, documents were transcribed primarily by hand, but these transcripts are not included in this entry. In 1927, under a grant from Mr. John D. Rockefeller, Jr., a more comprehensive project of copying was undertaken. During the years 1927 to 1938, under the Rockefeller grant, and subsequently supported from the Wilbur Fund and the Library of Congress appropriations, 330,836 pages were received from Spain and 66,671 from México. At the commencement of the Rockefeller project, or Project A, a change in the form of copying was made: transcripts were discontinued and photostats or photofilm enlargements were substituted. Since 1935, virtually all reproductions have been made on 35mm microfilm.

Overall, approximately 350,000 reproductions have been obtained from Spain's repositories. These holdings do not represent an entire Spanish archival series but are simply documents selected from legajos from various secciones. In addition to archival reproductions obtained under the auspices of the Foreign Copying Program, the Manuscript Division also received photographic reproductions of Spanish archival material through the acquisition of the personal papers of individuals engaged in various scholarly pursuits. Such collections include, among others, the papers of:

On December 4, 2001 a fire of undetermined origin broke out in stack 12 at the Washington National Records Center, a National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) storage facility located in Suitland, Maryland. A sprinkler system contained the fire which was brought under control within a few minutes but not before damaging some 500 boxes of State Department and
other records.

National Archives staff is still assessing the extent of the damage. What is currently known is that the State Department passport files appear to have been hardest hit, though Coast Guard and Navy records also appear to have suffered some water damage. A team of National Archives
conservators are on the scene and are evaluating what conservation measures need to be taken to preserve the affected records.

Sent by Peter Carr   Source: H-DEMOG List

The politically powerful Echeandia was able to keep the young couple from getting married in California.  However with the help of her cousin, Pio Pico (who would eventually become governor)
Josefa and Henry fled to Chile where they were married on July 3, 1829. California could talk of nothing else; some people were scandalized, others cheered the lovers.  Josefa's mother shut herself in her room for weeks. 

Almost a year later, the couple returned to California, carrying their infant son. The governor attempted to prove that the marriage was illegal, and arrested Fitch in Monterey for abduction and other "heinous crimes."   Eventually the young couple were pardoned.  The couple were ordered to attend high Mass for three feast days while holding lighted candles, and to recite part of the rosary for 30 consecutive days.  Fitch was also ordered to donate a 50-pound bell to the plaza church in Los Angeles.

In 1840 Fitch was granted 48,000 acres of Rancho Sotoyome, at the center of what would become the town of Healdsburg in Northern California wine country.  However, the couple settled in San Diego and had 10 more children.   President Roosevelt was the great-great grandson of one of those children.  

Abstract from "A Love That Even the Governor Couldn't Crush" by Cecilia Rasmussen
Los Angeles Times, 3-12-01

Sent by Ophelia Marquez 
Editor's note: Somos Primos is seeking information to substantiate or negate this information.

Cold War: http://www.dtic.mil/dpmo/pmcold/
Vietnam War: http://www.dtic.mil/dpmo/pmsea/
Korean War: http://www.dtic.mil/dpmo/pmkor/

http://www.army.mil/cmh-pg/moh1.htm
U.S. Army Center of Military History: 
Listings of Medal of Honor Citations

Fisher-Price Making Several of Its Toys Bilingual

Because Hispanics are the fastest growing ethnic group in America, East Aurora toy maker Fisher-Price is permanently making several of its toys bilingual and plans to make more bilingual toys, such as its Sesame Street characters and Elmo.

"Given the growing size of the Hispanic market, it makes sense to us to do this group of toys automatically in both languages," said Laurie Oravec, Fisher-Price spokeswoman. "What differentiates this line is that these aren't Spanish-language versions of existing toys. The toys are permanently going to be bilingual."

The Hispanic population skyrocketed between 1990 and 2000 by 57.9 percent to 35.3 million, compared with an increase of 13.2 percent for the entire population. An increasing diverse pool of consumers was also why Fisher-Price made its Web site, www.fisher-price.com, bilingual last year.

 lhaarlander@buffnews.com

Peter Carr, Ethnic Chairman for the California State Genealogical Alliance is concerned with the lack of Hispanic presence in the national conference of the National Genealogical Society, particularly because of their size and influence.  tcigen@worldnet.att.net

The National Genealogical Society, headquartered in Arlington, Virginia had its beginning in 1903. With a membership over 20,000, they hold a yearly national conference at different places throughout the United States. Attendance is anywhere from 1,000 to 2,000 genealogists and family history
researchers. NGS publishes the National Genealogical Society Quarterly, as well as a bimonthly Newsmagazine. The Quarterly is a professionally edited journal publishing quality articles of various kinds. Their address is 4527 17th Street North, Arlington, VA 22207-2399.

Peter has itemized the presentations being offered for ethnic groups based on their mention in program titles for the 2002 NGS Conference in the States to be held in Milwaukee, Wisconsin:

SHHAR Quarterly Meeting, Jan 26

Alfredo Pavon

Bernard Lewin, known worldwide for donating the biggest collection of Latino paintings to the Los Angeles Museum of Art, commenting on one of Alfredo Pavon's mural stated,  it was "a master work in color, texture, and definitely one of the most beautiful paintings I have seen during my period of an art dealer. 

Alfredo Pavon favors oil pastels, and has experimented using particles of sand, volcanic sand and water-oil paints with the pastels.  Flowers are his favorite subject, and although the compositions have a loose, airy quality, they reflect a solid underpinning based on Pavon's degree in Civil Engineering from the National University of Mexico in Mexico city.

Editor's note:  
I particularly enjoy the soft, mysterious quality, and appearance of light emitting in each piece. 
Studio location:  207 North Broadway, Suite "D", Santa Ana, CA 92701 : 714-540-4776

SOCIETY OF HISPANIC HISTORICAL AND ANCESTRAL RESEARCH
QUARTERLY MEETING, FREE , Saturday, Jan. 26, 2001, 9 a.m. - noon 
ORANGE FAMILY HISTORY CENTER, 674 S. YORBA, ORANGE, CA       

According to S. Raymond Mireles, professor of zoology and director of  Project Usted, whoever is at fault, it is the students who suffers.  Mireles, through the use of federal funds issued under Title III of the Higher Education Act, Public Law 89-329, 1965, initiated an innovative student-help program for Spanish-speaking Barrio student. The project begun in 1968.

According to Mireles, Project Usted was  the only program of its kind in the United States, and was designed not only to cure learning difficulties, but to find their causes, especially among Chicano students. 

Project Usted  had a two-part focus: Learning styles, Culture attitudes related to the learning situation

Specifically, a tape-reinforcement program was developed. The tapes included actual class lectures on one side as given by the instructor, and an outline of the lecture in English and Spanish, with emphasis on the Spanish, on the other side.  Accompanying each tape was a film strip, usually in cartoon-type drawings, visually illustrating the lecture on the tape cassettes. Students were able to check the tapes out of the library and share them with their family.

Although the tape-reinforcement system was an important tool in helping Spanish-speaking Barrio students, attitude was considered of equal importance. "Some Chicano students lack confidence in themselves in a learning situation.  They have been involved in too many failures to be easily convinced that they are going to succeed now," explained Mireles. Psychology 24 (Mexican-American Studies) was offered as a self-confidence and self-image developing course.  "Before we can accomplish anything in life we must learn to like ourselves and each other," Mireles emphasized. 

Extract from January 1974 article written by Diane Lucero in the Evening Elan, the official publication of the East Los Angeles College associated student body.  Shared by S. Raymond Mireles.

Editor's Note:  It is interesting to read that almost 35 years ago, some educators recognized cultural learning styles differ and that a positive self-image is important to success learning. 

Two years ago the Oxnard Union High School District what has become a thriving mariachi program, joining a growing list of school-based ensembles that have sprung up around the state in recent years.  More than 100 students are enrolled in mariachi classes available at Hueneme, Channel Islands and Oxnard high schools. 

They say youngsters learn more than a collection of Mexican folk songs.  They learn who they are and where they come from.  And Often where they are going. "I didn't know much about my culture and I wanted to find out more about my roots," said Oxford-born teenager, Jasmine Andrade.  "Every time I hear the music, it's like it's calling me," she said.  

School board trustee Bob Valles proposed the school mariachi program after watching groups from other areas perform at a school conference.  "I think mariachi is a way of cultivating some of the talent we have on campus."  . . "The program helps connect Spanish-speaking  students to school and helps English-Speaking Latinos find their roots."
L.A. Times, 12-16-01
 

LOS ANGELES (AP) - A federal grand jury indicted the brother of the Cabazon Band of Mission Indians chief executive officer Friday for allegedly embezzling more than $500,000 from the Coachella Valley tribe. Although reservations are considered sovereign nations, the United States. government may prosecute crimes on reservation property, said U.S. attorney spokesman Thom Mrozek.

http://www.sacbee.com/state_wire/story/1247013p-1315495c.html  The Sacramento Bee
Sent by Johanna de Soto

Tía Chucha will be a combination bookstore, art gallery, performance space, computer center and café (where patrons can drink coffees and refreshments with a Latin twist.
L.A. Times, 12-18-01

Knowledge itself is power. - Francis Bacon, Of Heresies

Stilled Voices in America's Education System by Clara Mercedes Piloto

http://www-mcnair.berkeley.edu/uga/osl/mcnair/93BerkeleyMcNairJournal/ClaraMercedesPiloto.htm

Editor's Note:The following is only one paragraph of an essay on the historical educational experience of the Mexican Spanish-speaking students in California.  Includes a bibliography and information on Californio, Jose Maria Estudillo y Gomez.

"The one-time California governor Juan Bautista Alvarado reflects on higher education in the 1800s, as it relates to Latinos, "In my opinion," he wrote "the improvements of public instruction introduced by the North Americans are of themselves great enough to celebrate enthusiastically the anniversary of the day on which Mexican domination was done away with forever in this state."[1] This statement reveals Alvarado's experiences in a California that was never able to produce a quality primary educational system. This opinion was also written without the historical hindsight of today's Latino scholars, many of whom would question the validity of his assertion. Not only does Alvarado's statement overlook the significance of the many negative implications of annexation, it presupposes that the American educational system actually benefited Californios. McKevitt in 1991 noted that the Spanish speaking Californio population, which made up one-fourth of the school aged population at the time, "did not enjoy immediate and universal access to public instruction."[2] As he points out, the treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo made no guarantee that the Spanish language would be preserved, nor did it explicitly promise a quality education for the conquered population. For example, instead of attempting to preserve the language, the Bureau of Public Instruction in 1855 expressly prohibited Spanish in the classroom, despite the fact that many children knew only Spanish.[3] This policy exposed American reluctance to meet the needs of the acquired Mexican population."
Sent by Johanna de Soto

For more information please contact, zekeher@juno.com  or LULAC147InfoNet@yahoogroups.com

epherbeck@juno.com

Source Information:
Bancroft, Hubert Howe, California Pioneer Register and Index 1542-1848, Including Inhabitants of California, 1769-1800 and List of Pioneers, extracted from Bancroft, Hubert Howe. History of California. San Francisco, CA: History Company, 1884-1890. 
Sent by Johanna de Soto

This work makes available fort the first time the complete journals of Juan Crespi, the Franciscan friar who accompanied the first expeditions that esta blished Spanish presence in Alta California.  Beginning at the northern edge of the mission frontier of Baja California, the 12769 expedition trekked overland some three hundred miles to establish San Diego.  From there, Crespi and the contingent of military personnel and Indian auxiliaries traveled northward on to Monterey and back again.  Crespi's journals provide the first detailed observations about the new land of Alta California and its peoples.  This book is an essential source for the history of Spanish occupation of Alta California and the native American inhabiting the land.

Institute for Regional Studies of the Californias
San Diego State University, 5500 Compantile Drive,  
San Diego, CA  92182-4403   irsc@mail.sdsu.edu
Sent by Bertha Hernández  bhernand@mail.sdsu.edu 

• Sunday, December 02, 2001: A 1929 Redlands City Directory.
• Friday, November 30, 2001: Two Sonoma County City Directories.
• Wednesday, October 17, 2001: A 1943 Santa Barbara City Directory.
• Sunday, October 14, 2001: A 1933 Bakersfield City Directory.
• Saturday, September 22, 2001: A 1901 & 1915 San Francisco City Directories pages missing are added.
• Thursday, September 13, 2001: A 1901 Los Angeles City Directory.
• Monday, September 10, 2001: A 1949-1959 Bride Indexed Marriages.

http://www.vitalsearch-ca.com/   Sent by Johanna de Soto

Women and Power in Alta California: 1790-1835 By Kathy Hughart

http://history.acusd.edu/gen/projects/women/1Title.html

Apolinaria Lorenzana, Josefa Carrillo, Concepcion Arguello, Eulalia Callis...names from the past, names of women...women we can begin to visualize through testimonies, interviews, birth, marriage and death records, even through burnt pottery sherds, abalone shell pendants and tiny Indian beads found in ruins like those of the San Diego Presidio (Figure 1 at right) We begin to identify their ancestries -- criollas (Spaniards born in New Spain); mestizas (mixed-bloods, dark-skinned Indian-Spaniards); and mulatas (curly-haired African-Indians or Afro-Spaniards). Each in her own way, these women strengthened colonial life; without them Spanish settlement would not have endured. Men like Father Junipero Serra, Lt. Pedro Fajes and Viceroy Bucareli, recognized women's ability to work and produce, to shape the course of events during the Spanish Colonial and early Mexican Republic years. Lots of information. . . 
Sent by Johanna de Soto

Hispanic Soldiers in California

http://freepages.history.rootsweb.com/~havnar/ca-hispanic.html

We know the names of nearly all the soldiers, and a few of the sailors, who were under arms from 1779 until 1783 while Spain, along with the American Colonies, was at war with England.  For convenience, these can be presented in seven parts, with the first four the garrisons of the Presidios of San Diego, Monterey, San Francisco, and Santa Barbara.   The fifth group includes those who served in the two mission settlements among the Yuma Indians on the Colorado River, or who were there with Captain Rivera at the time of the Massacre by the Yumas in July, 1781. Some soldiers from Presidios in Arizona and Sonora later took part in Expeditions against the Yumas.  The sixth group includes the soldiers who served with the missions and pueblos in Coastal Alta California.  It also includes others who appeared in mission records without explanation.  They may have been couriers or visitor escorts from other parts of Mexico.  The seventh group includes the sailors of the armed frigates the "Princesa" and the "Favorita" who were sent to capture Captain James Cook.

This is a great resource, the names of the soldiers and the source of the information.  Having lived in California most of my life , it is fun to read through the surnames and recall people that are carrying those names, descendants of the Hispanic families in California as early as the 1770.
Sent by Johanna de Soto

NORTHWESTERN UNITED STATES

San Ysidro, California, the working-class community of  30,000 is home to more than two dozen private mailbox services.  About 26,000 postal boxes cater almost exclusively to Mexican customers. Besides the San Ysidro services, five Mexican-based firms collect mail north of the border for delivery in Baja California. 

Extract from an article by Ken Ellingwood, L.A. Times, 12-10-01

Henry F. Dobyns

http://www.library.arizona.edu/images/dobyns/welcome.html

This is a very comprehensive site.  Includes a detailed table of contents, with easy links.  
Excellent source for research in epidemics.  There are 29 epidemics identified.
Sent by Johanna de Soto

History of the Los Cerrillos Mining Area by Homer E. Milford

Cristóbal de Oñate is not on the lists of New Mexico governors published by the State of New Mexico agencies. However, for a long time there has been little doubt about his being governor from the time of his election by the Cabildo in 1608 until Governor Peralta arrived in 1610, and he has been recognized by some historians. He is entitled to a number of distinctions besides being our second governor.

He was the first New Mexico governor of Native American decent. Though all colonial governors are referred to as "Royal Governors", Cristóbal was our only truly "Royal Governor". Cristóbal de Oñate is the only one that was of Royal decent and in a truly American way. He was the great-grandson of Montezuma, the last ruler of the Aztec Empire, and thus of "Royal American" decent. He was also the great-great-grandson of Cortéz. He also was New Mexico's first elected governor. Thus, if one does not consider Popé (1680-168?, 1688-168?) and Luís Tupatu (168?-1688, 168?-1693) as elected governors, then Cristóbal beats his closest rival for the title of "First Elected Governor of New Mexico" by 304 years.

An argument can be made that the Viceroy did not have the right to appoint a governor to New Mexico in 1608 when Juan resigned as even the amended colonization agreement gave the governorship to the Oñates for two generations. The Cabildo, citizens of New Mexico, and even the governor the Viceroy appointed, Juan Martínez de Montoya, recognized Cristóbal de Oñate as governor and thus he deserves to be recognized as such by the State of New Mexico.

Sent by Johanna de Soto

San Felipe de Neri Church in Albuquerque Deaths-  1726 TO 1776

http://home.earthlink.net/%7Ecarnuel/deathrec.html   Taken from LDS reel number 0016645

Extracted by Jackie Garcia-Luna. Only  the name of  the person who is buried or died, identifying information such as age, whether child or adult, residency, ethnicity, and spouse or parents were extracted verbatim as the information appeared in the record. These are not complete records, however, but rather a combination of the information written in the margin and within each record entry. What was excluded in most entries was information such as the cause of death (unless at the hands of enemy Indians, these were included) and whether and which sacraments were received, e.g. penance, extreme unction, beatification, etc. If place of death and/or burial was in Albuquerque, this was not noted, (so assume Albuquerque if not noted) but if it took place elsewhere, e.g. Tome or la Alameda, this was noted. Please verify record by checking original entry on microfilm reel.

1726, 1727, 1728, 1729, 1730, 1731, 1732, 1733, 1734, 1735, 1736, 1737, 1738, 1739, 1740, 1741, 1742, 1743, 1744, 1745, 1746, 1747, 1748, 1749,1750, 1751, 1752, 1753, 1754, 1755, 1756, 1757, 1758, 1759, 1760, 1761, 1762, 1763, 1764, 1765, 1766, 1767, 1768, 1769, 1770, 1771, 1772, 1773, 1774, 1775, 1776

For records beyond those listed on this page, look up the name in the index of death records on LDS microfilm reel 016634 before consulting LDS 016645. The LDS microfilm reel 016645 contains death records from 1726 to 1854. The LDS microfilm reel 016634 contains an Index of Baptisms, Marriages, and Death records at the San Felipe de Neri Church in Albuquerque, but the index for the death records only covers the dates 1776 to 1854.

Sent by Johanna de Soto

This process is basically filling out the genealogical data and submitting proof.  The CCGS is currently working to try and  issue as many of  as possible.  The process for this application also applies for the Pioneer License Plate, so if you will one out you can also use the same paperwork for the other.  Those interested in applying should contact Henrietta M. Christmas, 303-499-7146

Territorial Daughters of Colorado, if your are a female direct descendant of a pioneer who established residency in Colorado before August 1, 1876, consider joining the Territorial Daughters of Colorado.  For an application and more information, contact Jacque emery at 303-470-5454.

NSHS Newsletter, November 2001
Shared by Jo Pacheco

The Papers of the Society of American Indians  
http://etext.lib.virginia.edu/ade/nhprc/s.html

Editor: John W. Larner, Jr.  Publisher: Scholarly Resources, Inc.

This comprehensive edition of approximately 5,600 items from 45 collections records the work of the Society, the first pan-Indian reform organization in the U.S. During the Progressive Era, the Society publicized Native Americans' aspirations and urged their assimilation into society. This publication includes correspondence, organizational papers, articles, newspaper accounts, and government documents.

(Microfilm Edition): S 1879, 10 reels, 74-page guide (1987), ISBN 0-8420-4005-6

by  George R. Gause, Jr., and Maricela Shayegan
Special Collection, The University of Texas - Pan American Library

This is a basic bibliography of materials held by the Lower Rio Grande Valley Historical Collection,The University of Texas - Pan American Library which are felt will be useful to researchers doing Hispanic genealogical research on families connected with South Texas (from Laredo to Corpus Christi south to Brownsville, Texas) and Northeast Mexico (the Mexican states of Tamaulipas, Nuevo León and Coahuila). It is NOT, however, intended to be a comprehensive listing of all materials owned which pertain to and would be useful to those doing research on this geographic area! Call numbers (unique numbers used to retrieve these materials) are indicated in brackets [ ]. Questions may be addressed to Special Collections, The University of Texas - Pan American Library, 1201 West University Drive, Edinburg, TX 78539-2999 or by calling (956) 381-2726 or e-mail "GGAUSE@panam.edu".

http://www.onr.com/user/cat/

http://users.ev1.net/~gpmoran/ch1.htm 

Are you aware the first large scale invasion of Texas to make it independent was led by an Irishman under an emerald green flag? After several victories, declaring Texas independent, and adopting a constitution, his army controlled Texas for more than a year. But for his untimely death, the history of Texas would echo his name more vibrantly. Did you know an Irishman received an empresario land grant to settle a part of Texas before Stephen F. Austin?

Would you be surprised to learn it was an Irishman who signed the document that ended the Spanish reign over Texas in 1821?

The contribution the Irish and other Celts made to Texas is little known and under appreciated. The purpose of this book is to correct that, to tell you a story deserving to be told, known and appreciated. For those of you with a Celtic heritage, it will give you a sense of pride; for those of you from a different ancestry, it will give you an aspect of Texas history not generally realized, but worth appreciating.

Though there were probably earlier Celts in Texas, unrecorded in history, we do know the first, on record, was an Irishman in Spanish service. He was a military man sent to Texas on a mission. Within months this Irishman was Governor of Texas.

It is appropriate that Washington Street becomes Lamar Road named after Mirabeau B. Lamar, President of the Republic of Texas. After the Mexican War, Lamar warned of the precarious, but also important, position the city of Laredo was in and conveyed the urgency of insuring protection for citizens and territory. Accordingly, on March 3, 1849, Camp Crawford, named after George W. Crawford, Secretary of War under President Zachary Taylor, was established on the orders of Captain George Dias, Assistant Adjutant General requested by Major-General William Worth. Lieutenant Egbert L Viele, the fort’s first commander, had been commander of Company G of the 1st Infantry at Ringgold Barracks located near the town of Rio Grande City about 100 miles down river from Laredo.

Viele holds the distinction of being the first commander of Fort McIntosh. By 1850, the fort was renamed in honor of Lieutenant Colonel James Simmons McIntosh a hero in the Battle of Molino del Rey on September 26, 1847. Forts Worth, Graham, Gates, Croghan, Scott, Lincoln, Duncan and McIntosh were established around this time to guard the frontier. These outposts were named in honor of fallen officers in the Mexican-American War. 

Today, Fort McIntosh is marked by four distinct architectural eras: 
Early Fort McIntosh Period 1849-1861, 
Civil to Spanish-American War period 1861-1898, 
Modern Fort McIntosh Period 1900-1945, 
and Laredo Community College Period 1946-present. 

The street names honor fallen heroes, presidents, fort commanders, officers, and soldiers. 1849-1861 Early Days Construction on the early fort included frame structures and two stone structures, the guardhouse, and magazine. The soldiers lived in tents. Major Richard Delafield of the Corps of Engineers is credited with seeing the need to officially secure land for the fort from the city. Spanish is part of the archives for that era. The original star fort was constructed by the troops from the original design by Delafield. On July 22, 1853, Captain W. G. Freeman who toured the western forts described the post as having two infantry companies housed in two officers’ buildings and two barracks for the troops, a post hospital, a storehouse, a carpenter shop, and a bakery. At this time,
travelers were escorted by soldiers due to Indian depredation and general banditry. 

Colonel Robert E. Lee came to the fort on two occasions, once in 1856 on his way to a court martial at Ringgold Barracks at Rio Grande City and once again in 1860 while giving chase to Juan Nepomuceno (Cheno) Cortina, a Mexican revolutionary who later became governor of the Mexican
state of Tamaulipas. Cortina is also credited with having created enough disturbance in the region to warrant maintaining the fort. 1861 – 1865 Civil War The post was abandoned on March 12, 8161, due to the Civil War.

When this occurred, Mexican raiding along the border increased. In response to these events, Santos Benavides, a resident of Laredo, joined the Confederacy in order to restore order to the area. Famous for his role in the Battle of Laredo, Major and then Colonel Benavides was the highest ranked Mexican-American in the army of the Confederacy. The Battle of Laredo took place on March 19, 1864, when seventy-two men repelled three attacks from a combined force of two hundred Federal soldiers sent from Brownsville. The Federal troops had orders to capture the town and the cotton stored there. The orders Colonel Benavides gave from his sickbed were to defend the cotton and, if need be, to set it on fire together with his home rather than to let it be captured. The Battle
of Laredo was a victory for the Confederacy. With the end of the Civil War, a new era began for Fort McIntosh. 1865 – 1898 Reconstruction On October 23, 1865, the post was occupied by a company of the 2nd Texas Cavalry and a few weeks later by a company of 62nd U.S. Colored Infantry under the leadership of Captain Henry R. Parsons. 

At their arrival, the soldiers found Fort McIntosh devoid of structures. Through 1896, many renovation and construction projects were undertaken. Many of these structures remain on the fort today. Among these buildings were a new hospital, a storehouse, a guardhouse, and a bakery. During this time, the African –American soldiers were still living in tents, guarding the city, and giving chase to Indians and bandits. The city was a bustling one with saloons, gambling, cockfighting, and dances. Colonel Nathan Prime (Prime Road) tried to bring order to the town by curtailing those activities.
Several African-American units among them the Tenth Cavalry, the famous Buffalo Soldiers, were stationed at Fort McIntosh. 

By the turn of the century, the newest buildings of brick construction were built: a large barracks, the post exchange, the commander’s home. One of the four two-story brick barracks, now renamed Arechiga Hall, has become a centerpiece of the college campus. The Commander’s Home which today has been renovated to serve as the private home of the college president gives an elegant flavor to the property. The Chapel is currently being used as a museum. 

Special Event: March 3, 1911, At the turn of the century, Laredo was a bustling city with many of the latest technologies. Several railroads served the city. The first streetcars west of the Mississippi,
and the first automobile dealership in Texas came to the city. In aviation, Lieutenant Benjamin D. Foulois and Phil Parmalee, a Wright brothers pilot, took off from Fort McIntosh on March 3, 1911, on the first official military reconnaissance flight in history. As part of the maneuvers, they had orders to reconnoiter along the Rio Grande from Laredo to Fort Duncan in Eagle Pass to gather important military information on troop movements in Mexico. 

The pair in a Wright-B borrowed from the owner of Collier’s Weekly took off from the fort and in record time reached Eagle Pass. Flying for two hours and ten minutes at an altitude of 1,200 feet and carrying 1,400 pounds, they established an American record. During test flights a few days before, James H. Hare, a photographer with Colliers, shot the first aerial photos in history. Unfortunately, the plane crashed on the return flight, but this episode marked the beginning of the era of military aviation in the United 

States. Phil Parmalle died the next year in an airplane crash; Foulois went on to become a Major General and one of the Army’s leaders in aviation that same day Congress approved the purchase of additional flyers for the Army. World War I Many soldiers came to the fort for training during this time with the biggest build-up as a result of the Mexican Revolution. As many as 30,000 troops were trained and the fort had 1500 regular troops. During this time, many wooden structures were built. Some of these remain as a reminder of these times. 

Work Progess Administration:
In 1936 funds were made available through the WPA for building and repair work at the fort. During the intervening years, the fort had taken on a rather shabby look. Many men came to work then to repair the roads, to lay new sidewalks, to build a grandstand, and to build a wall. There is a marker in place on Hudson Road next to the Campus Police Building which marks that episode in the fort’s history. World War II The main unit in place at the fort during this time was the 8th Service Command together with the 56th Cavalry Brigade, Southern Land Frontier, Civil Air Patrol, and battalion of military police. 

Under the provisions of the Surplus Property Act of 1944, the Fort McIntosh Military Reservation was deeded to the Laredo Independent School District for use as a junior college. The remains of those interred in the cemetery were transferred to San Antonio’s Fort Sam Houston. Fort McIntosh is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The Star Fort, which is still on the campus, has the added protection of being listed as a State Archaeological  Landmark. 

More stories and adventures are worthy of more time and space than can be given here, but several books by Dr. Jerry Thompson, Dr.Stanley Green, Martin Binkin and Marvin M. Smith, Major General Benjamin Foulois, and others can provide additional information and insights into the history of Fort McIntosh and other forts that literally guarded the safety of this region. Other buildings on the site were built during the days of Fort McIntosh. Walk, softly, remember, and Cherish. They are a
legacy of which we can be proud. 1946 – 1997 Modern Times Since 1947, the fort has served as the home of Laredo Community College. Like so many community colleges in this country, the college was founded as the need for post-secondary education increased after World War II. Through the
years, many modern buildings, designed to incorporate the latest in technology and design, have been added. The latest addition, the De la Garza Building with its sunburst windows, offers us a look at the site’s past as a fort looking out toward the river. Much as the Indians and
Spaniards did, we do not see a boundary, but a bridge to the future.

Typed by: Erasmo “Doc” Riojas from Laredo Visitors Handout 

Sent by Walter Herbeck Jr. wherbeck@juno.com

DESCRIPTION OF THE COLLECTION

The Béxar Archives consists of more than 250,000 pages of manuscripts and some 4,000 pages of printed material produced during Spanish and Mexican domination of Texas from 1717 (the year prior to the establishment of the Spanish presidio at San Antonio) to 1836 (the first year of the Republic of Texas).² The collection constitutes, in effect, the single largest portion of the surviving Spanish colonial and Mexican provincial archives of Texas. Although a large part of the collection deals with governmental activities that took place at San Antonio, it contains many documents dealing with La Bahía, Nacogdoches, and other settlements. Also found in the collection are documents dealing with individuals and families entering Texas from neighboring regions, including Mexican states. Documents in the collection range over a wide variety of different types, including legal proceedings, procurations, writs, affidavits, summonses, administrative correspondence, dispatches, military reports and troop lists, censuses, election announcements, brand licenses, edicts, appointments, proclamations, regulations, receipts, registers, passports, invoices, wills, property inventories, ledger books, contracts, diaries, itineraries, appointments, oaths of allegiance, treaties, slave sales, property conveyances, arrest warrants, and many others too numerous to mention. Because of the breadth of this collection, the likelihood is good that any family living in Texas during the period 1717–1837 will be mentioned somewhere among the component documents.³

Resources for Genealogical Research During the Texas Colonial Period, 1585-1836
The Center for American History, 512-495-4515, The University of Texas at Austin

http://www.cah.utexas.edu/guides/texascolonial.html

The Center for American History houses numerous materials useful in the study of genealogy during the Texas colonial period. Most of the information beneficial for genealogy during this time period is located in the manuscript collections. Those collections include a wide range of materials, such as censuses, birth records, marriage records, baptismal records, death records, title and land grant information, correspondence, printed materials, mission reports, and reports of colonial officials. Much of the information is in Spanish, although some collections include English translations.

Archivo General de las Indias - Audiencia de Guadalajara, 1592-1821, Audiencia de México, 1590-1819

The Center owns copies of large sections of the Archivo General de las Indias (AGI), the archives that contain all official information pertaining to Spanish colonial rule in the Americas. During the colonial period, Texas fell under the jurisdiction of the Audiencia de Guadalajara. The Audiencia de Guadalajara and Audiencia de México collections contain official reports, decrees, orders, correspondence, and inspection results associated with civil, military, economic, political, and religious life in Texas and Coahuila. They are particularly rich resources for the study of missions, early settlements, and relations with Indians. Among the documents found in the collection are partial censuses and lists of citizens of communities in the area. Most documents are photostat copies of the original manuscripts. These collections do include detailed calendars that briefly describe most documents in the collection.

Archivo General de México - Archivo General de la Nación, 1560-1844

Along with portions of the Spanish Archivo General de las Indias, the Center also owns copies of portions of México's Archivo General de México, or Archivo General de la Nación (AGM or AGN). This collection contains a wide variety of material dating from the early colonial period through the Texas independence and annexation periods. Early material includes mission and Inquisition reports from the area. Later material deals much more specifically with the Spanish and Mexican attempts to settle Texas, reports on conditions in the area, reports on military operations during the Mexican and Texas Independence wars, and relations between Mexican and United States officials during the annexation period. The collection contains a combination of photostat copies of original documents and transcriptions of original documents in Spanish.

Austin Papers, 1676-1889

The Austin papers consist of primarily the personal and official records of Moses Austin (1761-1821) and his son Stephen F. Austin (1793-1836) who carried out his father's plan for the Anglo-Saxon colonization of Mexican Texas. Documents pertaining to the establishment and management of the colony in Texas comprise a significant portion of the collection. Items in the collection also describe the Texas Revolution and the early Republic period. The collection also includes Stephen F. Austin's original plat maps of Mexican Texas, showing land granted to Anglo colonizers.

Bexar Archives, 1717-1836

Comprising 41 feet of documents, this collection is particularly useful for the investigation of the San Antonio, Nacogdoches, and La Bahia areas. Although documents date back to 1717, much of the archive is dedicated to the post 1800 time period. All aspects of Spanish and Mexican colonial life (military, civil, and ecclesiastical) receive attention in this collection. Documents discuss the foundation and maintenance of missions, presidios, San Antonio and Espiritu Santo, the settlement of Canary Islanders in the area, relationships with Native Americans, slavery, commerce, agriculture, Anglo-American settlement, the Mexican empire, the Texas Revolution, and the Republic of Texas. The collection includes various types of official reports, correspondence, diaries, legal proceedings, powers of attorney, contracts, depositions, affidavits, writs, wills, censuses, briefs, registers, summonses, testimonies, passports, and questionnaires. To aid research, there is a calendar available in the CAH reading room on the reference shelves. The archive is also available on microfilm. A three volume guide titled Guide to the Microfilm Edition of the Bexar Archives aids researchers using the archives in this form. The Bexar Archives (1717-1836): A Name Guide compiled by Adán Benavides Jr. is a valuable tool for locating individuals mentioned in the collection. The guides to the microfilm and the Benavides guide are located on the reference shelves.

Camargo Archives, 1764-1909

The Camargo Archives includes genealogical resources particularly useful for patrons interested in the Camargo area. The collection includes birth registers that date from 1764 through 1888, marriage registers dating from 1764 to 1913, and death registers dating from 1798 to 1831. All records are associated with the San Agustín Mission and Convent and St. Anne's Parish Church and Vicarage in Camargo. The collection also includes monthly reports of the mission and parish as well as account books. Documentation associated with land title and land claim legal proceedings for the area surrounding Camargo date from the late 19th and early 20th century. Most records are photostat copies of the original Spanish manuscripts and have not been translated.

Carlos Eduardo Castañeda Papers, 1600-1843

The collection includes records transcribed by historian Carlos Castañeda, called "Documents for the Early History of Coahuila and Texas and the Approaches Thereto." The papers relate to "The Corregidor in Spanish Colonial Administration," and include information on the assessment and collection of tithes, Maria de Jesus de Agreda, Indians, missions, early expeditions to Texas, Reales Cédulas, and other documents concerned with the population of Coahuila and the opening of Texas. Places associated with the collection include Coahuila, Jalisco, Nueva Viscaya, Nuevo Reyno de Galicia, Nuevo Reyno de Leon, and Nuevo Santander, México.

Adina De Zavala Papers, 1766, 1831-1955

The majority of the papers in this collection relate to Adina De Zavala's activities as founder of the De Zavala chapter of the Daughters of the Republic of Texas, founder of the Texas Historical and Landmarks Association, and charter member of the Texas State Historical Association. Also included are papers relating to the De Zavala family land holdings and family history. The collection contains several photo albums in which most of the individuals and places are identified.

Lorenzo De Zavala Papers, 1818-1936

This collection consists of the papers of Lorenzo De Zavala, a public person influential in Mexican and Texan independence movements. The collection includes correspondence with various famous figures such as Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna and Jose Antonio Mexia.

Carlos Maria de Bustamante, Vicente Guerrero, and Guadalupe Victoria are also mentioned in the papers. Specifically of interest for family history researchers are papers relating to the Galveston Bay and Texas Land Company, Zavala's colony, and genealogical information on the Zavala family.

Eberstadt Collection, 1699-1959

This is perhaps the most diverse collection in the archives, including documents associated with colonial mission and presidio records, Texas Revolution and Republic period records, documents associated with the Civil War and Reconstruction, as well as oil industry records. The collection includes a wide variety of civil, ecclesiastical, military, and legal documents. Of particular use to the researcher is an extensive name index in the finding aid that lists all of the people, places, and subjects mentioned in the collection.

Juan B. Elguezabal Papers, 1799-1805

Items in this collection date from 1799 to 1805 and are official reports of Juan Bautista de Flguezabal, interim governor of Texas. These are photostat copies of the original Spanish manuscripts that are a part of the Bexar Archives. Census material is in both archives. The Flguezabal papers describe activities in what is now Bexar county and also the Nacogdoches area. They contain much information on early Anglo-American activity in the area.

Laredo (Texas) Records, 1749-1866

Material in this collection dates from 1749 to 1866. It includes records, business and legal documents concerning the official, municipal, church and social affairs of Laredo during the Spanish and Mexican periods. Land allotments, boundary surveys, tax renditions, wills, estate records, post office records, criminal litigation, decrees, laws, ordinances, census reports, statistics, and official correspondence are all included in the collection.

Mier Archives, 1767-1864

This collection contains records from Mier, México dating from 1767 to 1864. Included are marriage registers, baptism registers, and death registers. All items in this collection are photostat typescript copies of the original Spanish manuscripts.

Natchez Trace Collection, 1759-1865

This important collection details all facets of civil, social, cultural, and economic life in the Natchez areas of Mississippi, Louisiana, and Texas under U.S., Mexican, French, and Spanish rule. The collection contains numerous plantation records and family records. It is an excellent resource for the study of slavery. The collection also includes wills, lawsuits, estate inventories, property transfers, marriage records, and contracts. Because of its size and complexity, the collection is broken down into smaller collections, including the "Natchez Trace Civil War Collection", "Natchez Trace Collection Provincial and Territorial Records", "Natchez Trace Collection Sheet Music", "Natchez Trace Crime and Punishment Collection",

"Natchez Trace Railroad Collection", "Natchez Trace Slaves and Slavery Collection", and "Natchez Trace Steamboat Collection". Plantation records are found in the "Natchez Trace Collection" inventories by individual family or plantation name.

Stephen F. Powers Papers, 1777-1885

The Powers Papers consist primarily of legal documents associated with land sales and grants in Reynosa, México, and Hidalgo and Laredo counties, Texas.

Reynosa Archives, 1820-1892

Material in this collection is especially useful for research relating to the Camargo, Reynosa, and Brownsville areas between 1820 and 1892. The collection contains birth registers that date from 1820 through 1892 and marriage registers from 1829 through 1837. Family records include information on parents and place of birth. These are available in Spanish. However, the material in the English translations is easier to access. The translations include family information for people with last names starting with the letters B, C, F, G, L, M, 0, P, R, S, and V.

Francis William Seabury Papers, 1714-1956

This collection includes material that dates from 1714 to 1956. Along with a great deal of information on the Seabury family business affairs, the collection contains correspondence, wills, funeral notices, power of attorney notices, marriage licenses, surveys, and family trees. An index for the family trees is located in the manuscript portion of the collection. The trees themselves are available on microfilm. Places associated with the collection include Camargo, Mier, and Reynosa, México; Brownsville, Duval County, Rio Grande City, the Rio Grande Valley, Starr County and Zapata County, Texas. Two guides to the Seabury family tree and genealogical records, Family Tree Book and Index to Family Tree Book, are located in the Reading Room.

Spanish Material from Various Source Collections, 1600-1890

This is a large collection that encompasses a wide variety of material that dates from the 17th through the 19th century. Materials are in English and Spanish. Some records are typescript copies, others are photostat copies of the original manuscripts. There are numerous documents associated with legal transactions involving land, including deeds, titles, claims, and wills. Surveys and distribution plans associated with royal visitations are also found in the collection. Most volumes in the collection are preceded by calendars that list documents found in each volume.

Of interest to researchers interested in mission history are the records of numerous missions in Texas, New México, and California. While some of these records describe mundane details of daily mission life and interactions with mission Indians, other records report violent conflicts with Indians that remained hostile to the Spanish presence. The collection includes archival records associated with several sites in Texas and México. Subcollections of the Spanish Materials from Various Sources Collection include:

San Antonio Archives, 1805-1890

This material dates from 1805 through 1890 and is associated with the governance of the city of San Antonio. Records from 1805 to 1837 are photostat copies of the original Spanish manuscripts. Included are city council election results, the minutes of city council meetings, rosters of mayors and aldermen, and summaries of ordinances implemented.

San Francisco el Grande Archives , 1673-1800

These are photostat copies of original manuscripts in Spanish pertaining to the early settlement and mission process in Texas and Coahuila. Volumes that cover the 17th and 18th century describe the establishment and maintenance of presidios in the area. Some of these documents include lists of soldiers stationed in the presidios during this period. Reports relating to the settlement of the San Antonio area bear the signatures of the principal settlers in San Antonio dating from 1745. These archives also contain numerous descriptions of mission life through correspondence, official reports, and diary entries. The evolution of the relationship between missionaries and local Indians and between mission Indians and non-mission settlers figures prominently in these papers. Some mission reports include brief baptismal records for Indian converts. This subcollection includes a calendar that lists all items in the collection.

Documents for the Early History of Coahuila and Texas and the Approaches Thereto, 1600-1843

These are photostat copies of original manuscripts associated with the early colonial history of Texas. Many of the volumes of documents describe early missions and the process of Spanish colonization in Texas and Coahuila. The documents also discuss the establishment and maintenance of presidios in the area. This subcollection includes a calendar that lists all items in the collection.

Matamoros Archives, 1811-1859

Documents dating from 1811 to 1822 relate to royal administration of México during the Independence period. Included are decrees and orders from viceroys and other officials in México and Spain. Documents dating from 1823 deal with administrative issues in México. Refugio, Matamoros, and Ciudad Victoria figure prominently in these papers. Included are numerous types of lists of citizens of each of these locations. These archives also contain incomplete runs of several different newspapers, including El Mercurio de Matamoros (1836), Atalaya (1836), El Restaurador de Tamaulipas (1833), La Columna de la Constitucion (1833), El Argos (1833), El Telegrafo (1833), and La Democrata (1833). This subcollection includes a calendar that lists all items in the collection.

Laredo Archives, 1749-1836

Documents in this archive provide useful information for the study of the Laredo area in the late colonial period. Documents include official correspondence between secular and religious officials in Laredo and other colonial officials, wills of residents of the area, reports on relations with Indians, and reports on economic issues. This collection does not have a calendar.

Nacogdoches Archives, 1731-1836

This large archive contains a great deal of useful genealogical information on the Nacogdoches area. The collection contains much correspondence directed to Mexican political officials in the Nacogdoches area. It also contains various types of legal documents as well as official decrees. Numerous lists are provided, including lists of eligible voters and election results for Nacogdoches, as well as the names of individuals serving on juries, and muster rolls of the Texas Revolution.

Vital statistics reporting the number of births, marriages, and deaths are particularly interesting. These lists do not provide the names of individuals, but they do report whether the individual was free (white) or slave, the month that the birth, death, or marriage occurred, and the age at which the event occurred. Statistical census information is broken down according to marital status (single, married, widowed), gender, and age. Included are the number of individuals engaged in different occupations, the number of schools in the area, and the number of students. These documents also provide lists of prisons and prisoners (by gender), hospitals and patients (by gender), cemeteries, factories, public areas, springs, ranches, plantations, and farms. Censuses of this type are included for several towns in the State of Coahuila and Texas. Complete censuses, including names, civil status, occupation, religion, and age are available for a number of years for several communities in the Nacogdoches area. Some of these censuses include the number of slaves owned by an individual, although they do not list the slaves' names, civil status, or ages. Finally, this collection includes the certificates of admission giving non-Mexican citizens permission to settle in Texas. The calendar for the collection only covers the 1729 to 1819 time period. Most documents are transcribed, typewritten copies of the original manuscripts. English translations are available for the 1825 to 1833 time period.

Saltillo Archives, 1689-1876

These documents provide much useful information on the early mission and presidio history of Texas and Coahuila. They report relationships with civil, military, and religious officials, Native Americans and Hispanic settlers. Nineteenth century documents detail early non-Hispanic settlement in Texas. This subcollection includes a calendar that lists all documents in the collection dating from 1689 to 1876. It also includes translations of documents dating from 1824 to 1832.

James B. Wells Papers, 1837-1926

This extensive collection contains papers pertaining to the career of James B. Wells, attorney and administrator of the King Ranch. Places associated with the collection include Matamoros, México, Austin, Beeville, Brownsville, Cameron County, Corpus Christi, Edinburg, Fort Brown, Galveston, Hidalgo, Laredo, Ringgold Barracks, Rio Grande City, Rockport, and San Diego. The papers address commercial, cultural, governmental, military, industrial, political, and social issues in the areas discussed. Of particular use to the genealogist are the numerous wills, abstracts, and other legal documents included in the collection. Although the material in this collection details events and transactions after the colonial period, land transaction records do contain information pertinent to researchers focusing on the earlier time periods.

Selected Resources Available at the Center for American History

Alessio Robles, Vito. Coahuila y Texas en la epoca colonial. México City: Editorial Cultura,

1938.

Almaraz, Felix D. Crossroad of Empire: The Church and State on the Rio Grande Frontier of Coahuila and Texas, 1700-1821. San Antonio: University of Texas at San Antonio, Center for Archaeological Research, 1979.

Ashford, Gerald. Spanish Texas: Yesterday and Today. Austin: Jenkins Publishing Co., 1971.

Bancroft, Hubert H.. History of North Mexican States and Texas. 2 vols. San Francisco: History Co., 1886-1889.

Bannon, John Francis. The Spanish Borderlands Frontier, 1513-1821. New York: Holt, Rinehart, and Winston, 1970.

Barker, Eugene Campbell. Notes on the Colonization of Texas. Austin: Texas State Historical Quarterly, 1924.

Beers, Henry Putney. Spanish and Mexican Records of the American Southwest. Tuscon: University of Arizona Press, 1979.

Bolton, Herbert F. Athanase de Mezieres and the Louisiana-Texas Frontier, 1768-1780. Cleveland: The Arthur H. Clark Co., 1914.

_____. Bolton and the Spanish Borderlands. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 1964.

_____. The Colonization of North America, 1492-1783. New York: Mac Millan, 1923.

_____. Coronado, Knight of the Pueblos and Plains. Albuquerque: University of New México Press, 1949.

_____. The Spanish Abandonment and Reoccupation of East Texas, 1773-1779. Austin: s.n., 1906.

_____. Spanish Exploration in the Southwest, 1542-1706. New York: Barnes and Noble, 1959.

_____. Guide to Materials for the History of the United States in the Principal Archives of México. New York: Kraus Reprint Corp., 1965.

_____. Texas in the Middle Eighteenth Century: Studies in Spanish Colonial History and Administration. Austin: University of Texas Press, 1970.

Bowden, Jocelyn J. Spanish and Mexican Land Grants in the Chihuahuan Acquisition. El Paso,

TX: Texas Western Press, University of Texas at El Paso, 1971.

Bugbee, Lester Gladstone. Some Difficulties of a Texas Empresario. Harrisburg, PA: Harrisburg Publishing Co., 1899.

_____. The Texas Frontier., 1820-1825. Harrisburg, PA: Harrisburg Publishing Co, 1900.

Castaneda, Carlos E. Our Catholic Heritage in Texas, 1519-1936. 7 vols. Austin: Von Boeckmann-Jones Co., 1936

_____. A Report on the Spanish Archives in San Antonio, Texas. San Antonio: Yanaguana Society, 1937.

Céliz, Fray Francisco. Diary of the Alarcón Expedition into Texas, 1718-1719. Translated by Fritz L. Hoffman. 2 vols. Los Angeles: Quivera Society, 1935.

Chapa, Juan Bautista. Texas and Northeastern México, 1630-1690. Austin: University of Texas Press, 1997.

Chipman, Donald F. Spanish Texas, 1519-1821. Austin: University of Texas Press, 1992.

Clark, Robert Carlton. The Beginnings of Texas, 1684-1718. Philadelphia: Porcupine Press, 1976.

De La Teja, Jesús F. San Antonio de Béxar: A Community on New Spain's Northern Frontier. University of Texas at Austin, 1988.

De Leon, Arnoldo. Apuntes tejanos. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press, 1978.

_____. Mexican Americans in Texas: A Brief History. Arlington Heights, IL: H. Davidson, 1993.

_____. They Called them Greasers: Anglo Attitudes towards Mexicans in Texas, 1821-1900. Austin: University of Texas Press, 1981.

Edwards, Charles. Texas and Coahuila. New York: Osborn and Buckingham Printers, 1834.

Ericson, Carolyn Reeves. Citizens and Foreigners of the Nacogdoches District, 1809-1836. Nacogdoches, Texas, 1981.

_____. Nacogdoches County Cemetery Records Collected by Joel Barham Burk. Nacogdoches, Texas, 1974.

_____. Nacogdoches - Gateway to Texas: a Biographical Directory, 1773-1849. Fort Worth: Arrow-Curtis Printing Co., 1974.

Gomez Canedo, Lino. Primeras exploraciones y poblaciones de Texas, 1686-1694. Monterrey,

México: Publicaciones del Instituto Technol6gico y de Estudios Superiores, 1968.

Habig, Marion Alphonse. Spanish Texas Pilgrimage: The Old Franciscan Missions and other Spanish Settlements of Texas, 1632-1821. Chicago: Franciscan Herald Press, 1990.

Hatcher, Mattie Austin. Captain Francisco Amangual Diary, 1808 Expedition from San Antonio to Santa Fe. S.l.: s.n., 1934.

_____. The Expedition of Don Domingo Teran de los Rios into Texas. Austin, 1934.

_____. Letters of an Early American Traveler, Mary Austin Holley; Her Life and Her Works, 1784-1846. Dallas: Southwest Press, 1933.

_____. The Opening of Texas to Foreign Settlement, 1801-1821. Austin: University of Texas Press, 1927.

Hinojosa, Gilberto Miguel. A Borderlands Town in Transition: Laredo, 1755-1870. College Station, TX: Texas A&M Press, 1983.

Hughes, Arin E. The Beginnings of Spanish Settlement in the El Paso District. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1914.

Jones, Oakah L. Los Paisanos, Spanish Settlers on the Northern Frontier of New Spain. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 1979.

Institute of Texan Cultures. The Spanish Texans. San Antonio: Institute of Texan Cultures, 1972.

Martinez, Antonio. The Letters of Antonio Martinez, Last Spanish Governor of Texas. Austin: Texas State Library, 1957.

Matovina, Timothy M. Tejano Religion and Ethnicity: San Antonio, 1821-1860. Austin: University of Texas Press, 1995.

McWilliams, Carey. North from México: The Spanish Speaking People of the United States. Philadelphia: J.B. Lippincott Co., 1949.

Montejano, David. Anglos and Mexicans in the Making of Texas, 1836-1986. Austin: University of Texas Press, 1987.

Morfi, Juan Agustin. History of Texas, 1673-1779. Albuquerque: The Quivira Society, 1935.

Morrison, Richard. Eyewitness Texana: A Bibliography of Firsthand Accounts of Texas Before 1860. Austin: W. M. Morrison Books, 1992.

Mullins, Marion D. The First Census of Texas, 1829-1836. Washington, D.C.: National Genealogical Society, 1962.

Mundo Lo, Sara de. Bibliography of Hispanic American Collective Biography. Boston: G.K. Hall and Co., 1980.

Nine Grants in Fee Simple of Eleven Leagues ... Located on the Rio Nueces. Texas: n.p., 1935.

O'Rourke, Thomas P. The Franciscan Missions in Texas, 1690-1793. Washington, D.C.: Catholic University of America, 1927.

Poyo, Gerald F., ed. Tejano Journey, 1770-1850. Austin: University of Texas Press, 1996.

Richardson, Rupert N. Texas: The Lone Star State. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall, 1988.

Rosenbaum, Robert J. The History of Mexican Americans in Texas: A Preliminary Survey. Boston: American Press, 1980.

Rubio, Abel G. Stolen Heritage: A Mexican American's Rediscovery of his Family's Lost Land Grant. Austin: Eakin Press, 1986.

Sanchez, Ramiro. Frontier Odyssey: Early Life in a Texas Spanish Town. Austin: Jenkins Publishing Co., 1981.

Scott, Florence, J. Historical Heritage of the Lower Rio Grande. 3rd ed. Rio Grande City, Texas: La Retama Press, 1972.

Sonnichsen, C.L. Pass of the North: Four Centuries on the Rio Grande. El Paso, Texas: Texas Western Press, 1968.

Syers, William Edward. Texas, the Beginning, 1519-1834. Waco, TX: Texian Press, 1978.

Texas General Land Office. An Abstract of the Original Titles of Records in the General Land Office of Texas. Austin: Pemberton Press, 1964.

_____. Guide to Spanish and Mexican Land Grants in South Texas. Austin: General Land Office, 1988.

Timmons, Wilbert H. The Anglo-Americans Advance into Texas, 1810-1830. Boston: American Press, 1981.

_____. "The El Paso Area in the Mexican Period, 1821-1848." Southwestern Historical Quarterly 84 (July,1980).

_____. "The Population of the El Paso Area - A Census of 1784." New México Historical Review 52 (October, 1977).

Tinch, Helen Pearl. Days of Colonial Texas. Houston: American Museum Society of Houston Baptist College, n.d.

Twitchell, Ralph F. The Spanish Archives of New México. Cedar Rapids, IA: Torch Press, 1914.

Weber, David J. The Mexican Frontier, 1821-1846: The American Southwest under México. Albuquerque: University of New México Press, 1982.

_____. New Spain's Northern Frontier: Essays on Spain in the American West, 1540-1821. Albuquerque: University of New México Press, 1979.

_____. The Spanish Frontier in North America. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1992.

Weber, David J., ed. Troubles in Texas, 1832: A Tejano Viewpoint from San Antonio. Dallas: Wind River Press, 1983,

Weddle, Robert S. San Juan Bautista: Gateway to Spanish Texas. Austin: University of Texas Press, 1968.

Rubjo, Abel G. Stolen Heritage: A Mexican American's Rediscovery of his Family's Lost Land Grant. Austin: Eakin Press, 1986.

Sanchez, Ramiro. Frontier Odyssey: Early Life in a Texas Spanish Town. Austin: Jenkins Publishing Co., 1981.

Scott, Florence, J. Historical Heritage of the Lower Rio Grande. 3rd ed. Rio Grande City, Texas: La Retama Press, 1972.

Sonnichsen, C.L. Pass of the North: Four Centuries on the Rio Grande. El Paso, Texas: Texas Western Press, 1968.

Syers, William Edward. Texas, the Beginning, 1519-1834. Waco, TX: Texian Press, 1978.

Texas General Land Office. An Abstract of the Original Titles of Records in the General Land Office of Texas. Austin: Pemberton Press, 1964.

_____. Guide to Spanish and Mexican Land Grants in South Texas. Austin: General Land Office, 1988.

Timmons, Wilbert H. The Anglo-Americans Advance into Texas, 1810-1830. Boston: American Press, 1981.

_____. "The El Paso Area in the Mexican Period, 1821-1848." Southwestern Historical Quarterly 84 (July,1980).

_____. "The Population of the El Paso Area - A Census of 1784." New México Historical Review 52 (October, 1977).

Tinch, Helen Pearl. Days of Colonial Texas. Houston: American Museum Society of Houston Baptist College, n.d.

Twitchell, Ralph F. The Spanish Archives of New México. Cedar Rapids, IA: Torch Press, 1914.

Weber, David J. The Mexican Frontier, 1821-1846: The American Southwest under México. Albuquerque: University of New México Press, 1982.

_____. New Spain's Northern Frontier: Essays on Spain in the American West, 1540-1821. Albuquerque: University of New México Press, 1979.

_____. The Spanish Frontier in North America. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1992.

Weber, David J., ed. Troubles in Texas, 1832: A Tejano Viewpoint from San Antonio. Dallas: Wind River Press, 1983,

Weddle, Robert S. San Juan Bautista: Gateway to Spanish Texas. Austin: University of Texas Press, 1968.

_____. The San Saba Mission: Spanish Pivot in Texas. Austin: University of Texas Press, 1964.

Welsh, Agatha Maverick. The First Explorers of Texas: 1527-1537. S.1.: s.n., n.d.

White, Gifford E. The 1840 Census of the Republic of Texas. Austin: Pemberton Press, 1966.

Yoakum, Henderson K. History of Texas from its First Settlement in 1685 to its Annexation to the United States in 1846. Austin: Steck, 1953.

Other Resources Available at the Benson Latin American Center

Almaraz, Felix D. Empty Echoes in a Howling Wind: Myths and Realities in the Tejano Community, from Cabeza de Vaca to Santa Anna. El Paso, TX: University of Texas El Paso Press, 1986.

Benson, Nettie Lee. Texas as Viewed from México, 1820-1834. S.l.: s.n., 1987.

Bolton, Herbert E. The Beginnings of Mission Nuestra Senora del Refugio. S.1.: s.n., n.d.

Christian, Jane MacNab. Spanish in the Southwest: An Historical Survey. 1963.

De La Garza, Rodolfo 0. Texas Land Grants and Chicano Mexican Relations: A Case Study. Austin: University of Texas Press, 1986.

De Leon, Arnoldo. La cominidad tejana. México City: Fondo de Cultura Econ6mica, 1988.

Gamio, Manuel. The Mexican Immigrant. New York: New York Times/ Arno Press, 1969.

Garcia, Genero, ed. Historia de Nuevo Leon: Con noticias sobre Coahuila, Texas, y Nuevo México. México City: Libreria de la Vda. de Ch. Bouret, 1909.

Garcia, Richard A., comp. and ed. The Chicanos in America, 1540-1974: A Chronology and Fact Book. Dobbs Ferry, NY: Oceana Publications, 1977.

Gomez, Mardonio. Compendio de historia antigua completa de Coahuila y Texas. Saltillo:

n.p., 1990, 1927. (microfilm of original edition)

Gutierrez Ibarra, Celia. Como México perdió Texas: analisis y transcripción del informe secreto de Juan Nepomuceno Almonte. México City: Instituto Nacional de Antropologia e Historia, 1987.

Knowlton, Clark S. Spanish and Mexican Land Grants in the Southwest: A Symposium. Fort Collins, CO: The Social Science Journal, 1976.

The Los Bexareños Genealogical Newsletter. San Antonio: The Society, 1986.

Los Bexareños Genealogical Register. San Antonio: Los Bexareños Genealogical Society, 1987.

Lund, Harry. Harry Lund Collection, 1594-1967. (manuscripts)

Mechan, J.L. "Northern Expansion of New Spain, 1522-1822: A Selective Descriptive Bibliographical List." Hispanic American Historical Review 1 (1927).

Meier, Matt S. and Feliciano Ribera. Mexican Americans, American Mexicans: From Conquistadors to Chicanos. New York: Hill and Wang, 1993.

Mundo Lo, Sara de. Index to Spanish American Collective Biography. Boston: G.K. Hall, 1981.

Nogales, Luis G. The Mexican Americans: A Selected and Annotated Bibliography. Stanford: Stanford University Press, k1971.

O'Gorman, Edmundo. Historia de las divisiones territoriales de México. 4th ed. México City: Editorial Porrua, 1968.

Platt, Lyman De. Genealogical-Historical Guide to Latin America. Detroit: Gale Publishing Co., 1978.

_____. Hispanic Surnames and Family History. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., 1996.

_____. Latin American Census Records. Salt Lake City: Instituto Genealogico e Historico Latinoamericano, 1989.

Robles, Vito Alessio. Acapulco, Saltillo, y Monterrey en la historia y en la leyenda. México City: Editoral Porida, 1978.

______. Coahuila y Texas, desde la consumación de la independencia hasta el trato de paz de Guadalupe Hidalgo. México: n.p., 1945-1946.

Secretaria de Gobernacion Indice del ramo de provincias internas. 2 vols. México City: Archivo General de la Nación, 1967.

Weber, David J. Foreigners in their Native Land: Historical Roots of the Mexican Americans. Albuquerque: University of New México, 1973.

Woods, Richard D. Reference Materials on Mexican Americans: An Annotated Bibliography. Metuchen, NJ: Scarecrow Press, 1976.

_____, and Grace Alvarez-Altman. Spanish Surnames in Southwestern United States: A Dictionary. Boston: G.K. Hall and Co., 1978.

The Index to Texas Probate Records

A W.P.A. project of the 1940's generated indexes for probate records housed in at least 30 Texas counties.  The purpose of this project is to bring the data from all 30 county indexes together into one alphabetical listing.  Over 26,000 probate cases from eleven Texas counties  are now available at this web site; these records represent about 45% of the total project.  I expect the entire project to be online by  May 2002.
 

http://three-legged-willie.org/texas.htm

The addresses and telephones for each of the county offices are included.

Robert Bruce Blake Collection 1528-1941  at the Stephen F. Austin State University

Typed transcripts and translations made by Blake, Nacogdoches County Clerk, of official records and personal papers found in the Office of the County Clerk in Nacogdoches, in the Nacogdoches Archives, in the General Land Office of Texas, and in the University of Texas Archives (including the Bexar Archives). Included in the collection are legal papers, census records, jury verdicts, promissory notes, summonses, election returns, bills of sale for slaves, civil and criminal proceedings, and genealogical and historical material on East Texas subjects.

INVENTORY with Summary of Contents

http://libweb.sfasu.edu/etrc/COLLECT/MANSCRPT/PERSONAL/BlakeRobertB/blakmain.htm

Example of VOLUME I out of  LXXIV VOLUMES

NACOGDOCHES COUNTY CLERK RECORDS - EXAMPLE OF THE DESCRIPTION OF VOLUME 1

Dates: 10 July 1806-23 December 1836 (Book A, p. 1-196).

10 September 1772-12 January 1837 (Book B, p. 197-396).

Table of Contents

Subject Matter:

LAND titles, grants, transfers, certificates, sales and resales, survey notes, mortgages.

MARRIAGES, contracts, celebrations, dissolving.

BONDS for good behavior, job performance, titles.

LOCAL GOVERNMENT, creation of board of health, petition for fire control, of nuisance control; call for elections; call for jurors; petitions to Alcalde and answers; indebtness of Corporation of Nacogdoches; creation of militia for defense against the Indians; Cherokee incident.

REVOLUTION, Tennessee Volunteers, New Orleans Greys, request for funds, etc.

INDIVIDUAL WILLS, power-of-attorney grants, business letters.

SLAVES,selling and freedom granted.

BEXAR Archives also compiled with a full description 

VOLUME VIII (SUPPL.)

BEXAR ARCHIVES Dates: 1 July 1812-7 Sept, 1824.
Subject matter: Activities concerning defense of Spanish territory against Texas revolutionaries and U.S. aggression.

Lists of individuals attached to the Post, armaments, defense plans, Trinidad.

Nacogdoches, conditions, commandants, plots, revolutions in village.

Lists of troops, Bexar Company, Parras, New Kingdom of Leon, New Santander.

Outline of plans for the defense of The Frontier.

List of officers of Coahuila and Texas, (p. 117-120).

List of individuals coming from interior to Bahia.

Galveston, revolt planned.

Trinity, Neches, Sabine rivers, investigations of mouth of.

Joseph Daily, declaration to Gov. Pardo on revolutionary plans in the Neutral Ground, (p. 154+).

Jose Ignacio Flores, diary of events, Bahia (1817).

Corpus Christi Island, scouting and reprots from Galveston (under LaFitte), (p. 183-193).

Jose Salinas, diary of operations, Atascosito to Key of Gallardo (1819).

Declarations taken from foreigners & Spaniards coming from the interior.

Chrsition Hesser, land at Three Plains.

Tresplacios, proposal of national bank; journal for Bank of Texas (1822).

Treaty between Richard Fields of Cherokee Nation and the Governor, (p. 320).

James Dill, petition in his favor signed by Nacogdoches citizens, (p. 349-353).

Alcaldes, election returns for Ayish Bayou and Nacogdoches.

Nacogdoches, names of citizens swearing allegiance to Mexican Government, (p. 394-395).

Names of citizens who will shed last drop of blood for independence, (p. 266-267).

Sent by Johanna de Soto

Extracts from article by Marla Donato in the Chicago Tribune,  11-12-01

As early as 1654, English and French explorers in the southern Appalachians reported seeing dark-skinned, brown- and blue-eyed, and European-featured people speaking broken Elizabethan English, living in cabins, tilling the land, smelting silver, practicing Christianity, and most perplexing of  all claiming to be "Portyghee."

Declared "free persons of color" in the late 1700s by the English and Scotch-Irish immigrants, the Melungeons, as they were known, were driven off their lands and denied voting rights, education, and the right to judicial process.  The law was was enforced mercilessly and sometimes violently in the resoundingly successful effort to totally disenfranchise these earliest American settlers.

Melungeons  genealogy and ethnicity links to the Mediterranean, Spanish, Turks, Portuguese, Croatians, African, and Native American.  
For more  information: http://www.rootsweb.com/~jfuller/gem_mail_natam.html

Recommended books:
The Melungeons, the Resurrection of a Proud People by N. Brent Kennedy with Robyn Vaughan Kennedy was recently revised.  http://www.mupress.org

North from the Mountains, A Folk History of the Carmel Melungeons Settlement, Highland County, Ohio, by John S. Kessler and Donald B. Ball, N. Brent Kennedy.

The Melungeons: History, Culture, Ethnicity, and Literature, Kessler and Ball

The Family Tree, October/November 2001

Minimally, the Archdiocese of Milwaukee - Catholic Cemetery Website Database is updated once a month. For information not provided by this search engine, please email search criteria to genealogy@cemeteries.org, or send search requests to Archdiocese of Milwaukee - Catholic Cemeteries, 7301 West Nash Street, Milwaukee, WI 53216.   A research fee may apply. 
You may also reach us at:   genealogy@cemeteries.org
Sent by Johanna de Soto
  

Editor's Note:  Three paragraphs from an article "Feeling a Chill Wind in N.C." by Anne Hull, which discusses the post September 11th changes experienced by both Arabs and Mexicans.  Washington Post Staff Writer, 11-24-01

No state in the country has gone through a faster Hispanic immersion than North Carolina, with a 655 percent increase in the past decade. Half of the state's quarter-million Hispanics are undocumented, a distinction that mattered little in the low-wage, labor-guzzling economy of the 1990s.
But after Sept. 11, a resume built on sweat was no longer good enough.

Of Guilford County's 420,000 residents, between 30,000 and 40,000 are first-generation immigrants or their children, according to the UNCG Center for New North Carolinians. A flourishing economy and Greensboro's progressive streak – with five colleges in the area and a Quaker mayor – helped light a fire under the melting pot. 

But beneath the Andy Griffith Americana is a mini-Ellis Island with more than 120 nations and 75 languages represented in the Guilford County schools. If any place was vulnerable to the aftershocks of September's terrorism, this was it. Porous borders, student visas and refugee resettlement programs had brought the whole world here.

Sent  by Howard Shorr,  Howardshor@aol.com

In 1996, the authors became aware that neither the NSDAR (National Society for the Daughters of the American Revolution) nor the NSSAR (National Society for the Sons of the American Revolution would accept descendants of Spanish citizens of California who contributed funds to defray expenses of the 1770-1783 war with England.  As the patriots being turned down as suitable ancestors were also soldiers, the obvious question became:  "Why base your membership application on a monetary contribution when the ancestor soldier had put his life a stake?"  This led to a study of how the Spanish Army and Navy had worked during the war to defeat a the English and thereby support the fledgling English colonies in their War for Independence.  After a year of that study, the results were presented to the NSSAR: and that organization in March, 1998, began accepting descendants of Spanish soldiers who had served in California.  The acceptance was based simply on service during the time period of 1779-1783 while Spain was at war with England.  Because of the growing recognition of the role Spain played in our Revolutionary War, SAR at Washington, DC.  His son, the Prince of Asturias, became a member at Albuquerque, NM, in August 2000.  Their cousin, the Duke of Seville, Francisco Enrique de Boron y Escasny, joined in Chicago, IL, in May, 2001.

We had not by March, 1998, studied the organization of the Spanish Army in Northwestern New Spain, but we have since learned how the forces were deployed to unify the frontier and counter the influence of English or any other foreign forces.  We know that orders going to California also went to Texas, new Mexico, Sonora, Nueva Vizcaya, Coahuila, Nuevo Leon, and Nuevo Santander.  The Northwestern realm, with its unmarked border with English colonies, was a continuing concern to the highest Spanish authorities, particularly to José de Gálvez, Minister of the Interior.  During 1776 while the English Colonies were declaring Independence, he reorganized the border provinces into the military structure of the Provincias Internas, reporting directly to him.  He authorized his nephew, Governor Bernardo de Gálvez of Louisiana, to begin clandestine help to the English Colonies.  He supervised the Anza Expedition to settle San Francisco Bay.  He visualized that he could regain the Floridas, lost to Britain in 1763; unify the whole northern frontier from the Mississippi River to the Pacific, and counter the British wherever they appeared.

Indeed, José de Gálvez' aims were partly accomplished.  He did establish California and wipe out any historical English claims from the time of Sir Francis Drake.  He did recover Florida.  He made unifying the northern outposts, but there were not enough resources to do what he visualized.  Indian tribes who were already on the vast land could not be incorporated into the Spanish way of life fast enough.  Events in Europe intervened and took higher priority.  So, in due course of time, the land from the Mississippi River to the Pacific became American rather than Spanish.

Therefore, we have Americans and Mexicans who descend from Spanish soldiers who fought to more the frontier forward in Northwest New Spain.  They were part of Spanish forces which held land in trust for future expansion of the United States.  Since 1925, both the NSDAR and NSSAR have accepted descendants of soldiers and sailors who served under Governor Bernardo de Gálvez of Louisiana.  The NSSAR also accepts descendants of soldiers and sailors who served in California, through Texas.  Why not accept descendants of other Spanish soldiers who served the same King, received the same orders, and fought and died trying to carry out the common strategy?  That they or some of their ancestors were born sought of the current border is an accident of history.

What have been missing for any prospective member are listings of soldier ancestors.  We undertook to provide those listings.  Our first two books covered California and the third Arizona, or at least the southern frontier.  It was also the oldest and most self-sufficient of the Spanish frontier provinces.  Our fifth book covered Texas, including the territory along the Rio Grande from El Paso to the Gulf of Mexico.  Out sixth book covered Louisiana and West Florida.  Our seventh book covered the West Indies, along with the shore areas of New Spain and New Grendada.

We now present our eighth book, covering some of the patriots of Northwestern New Spain- South of the Border - the two states of Baja California, Sinaloa, Sonora, Nueva Vizcaya (Chihuahua and Durango), Nueva Estremadura (Coahuila), Nuevo Leon, and Nuevo Santander, (Tamaulipas).  We also include naval units and other supporting units and institutions from other parts of New Spain.  Our effort is to identify four groups of 1779-1783 patriots: soldiers and sailors in Spanish service; members of militia called up fro service; citizens who contributed funds to defray war expenses; and priests who led public prayers for Spain's success in war.

In our listings we have designated with an asterisk those patriots who definitely served in some suitable capacity during Spain's 1779-1783 War with England.  In a few cases, we have also designated with an asterisk patriots who helped provide clandestine support to the fledgling United States before Spain declared war on England.  Those in our listings who have no asterisk were old enough to serve or contribute and lived in an area affected by the war; however, the documentation we found does not include any specific patriotic activity by those individuals.  We consider them to be "near patriots."  Descendants of these persons may be able to find and provide suitable proof from their ancestor's patriotic service.

Our presentation outline includes an introduction, summary time line, units we could identify in each area or activity, individuals involved, epilogue comments, then references we actually used plus others which may be helpful to other researchers.

In addition to the listing of patriots and near patriots, information is also given on:
Reinforcing California - the Anza Expeditions
Provincias Internas Established
Clandestine Aid to Americans
Great Southwestern Drought
Spain Declares War on England, 21 June 1779
Naval Support Shifted to Manila
King Carlos' Request for Donativo
Trouble at the Yuma Mission Settlements, 1779-81
War with Seri Indians, 1780-81
Yuma Massacre of July 1781
Yuma Campaigns
Trade Routes for New Mexico, 1780-81
Smallpox Epidemic
Apache Attacks, 1779-1784
Comanche Attacks, 1779-1783
Establishing Flying Companies
Reinforcing Militia Units
End of War with England
Subsequent Activities of soldier and Sailor Veterans

To order the 180-page softbound book:
Send $16, plus $2.50 postage/shipping for first book
 Postage for additional copies is 75¢ per book.    
   To: SHHAR, PO Box 490, Midway City, CA 92655      

On December 12, 1531 Juan Diego saw a vision of an olive-skinned Virgin Mary.  Miraculously, the vision of a woman in a blue mantle trimmed with gold became emblazoned on his clock. The vision took place on a hill that was the site of an old Aztec shrine. 

Juan Diego's Virgin of Guadalupe, is Mexico's patroness and likely the country's most beloved symbol.  By the 18th century, Guadalupe had become so important to the church that she was declared patron saint of Mexico.  She was declared patroness of the Philippines in 1935, and in 1946, Pope Pius XII declared her patron saint of all the Americas.

O.C. Register, 12-21-01

December 1, 2001

There is a major project in Mexico City that promises to benefit many genealogists who are researching their early lines.  My understanding of the work in progress is that we will be able to purchase a CD-Rom with transcribed marriages and baptisms of three churches on Mexico City: Sta. Catarina, Vera Cruz, and the Cathedral.  The entries will be complete, including padrinos, and the work will have 3,200 pages (780 for the index of 50,000 people).

Dará información sobre los diferentes oficios como alarifews, pintores, plateros, zurradores, silleros, freneros, comerciantes y escribano entre otros.  Se podrá conocer los diferentes estratos sociales, sus relaciones de parentesco y compadrazgo, tanto de españoles, como de indios, mestizos, negros, mulatos, etc.

I and others have heard of this through Leon Hernandez, a fellow genealogist who is persistently pursuing his Hernandez Gamiño line.  Leon lives in Puerto Vallarta and we generally communicate via e-mail.  

Leon would like to present to the project director, Lic. Augusto Vallejo de Villa, e-mail from all of us who would like to see this project completed and made available to the public.  As always, funding is a problem and if strong support for the work is shown, perhaps we can soon buy the CD.

Leon asked that we please send an e-mail addressed to Lic. Vallejo, expressing our enthusiasm for the anticipated work.  The e-mail can be sent to Leon at: cobrapv@usa.net .You can write in English or Spanish.  Leon will see that the messages get delivered.

Sent by Mary Lou Montagna   Nandin@att.net

Con mucho gusto . . 
Ancestros.com.mx anuncia la nueva publicación del Profr. Roberto Martínez García "Indios, Mineros, Peones y Maestros" de la Colección Papeles de Familia de la Universidad Iberoamericana - Campus Laguna
a.. El Indio Rafael - Ensayo ganador del concurso Magdalena Mondragón convocado por la Universidad Autónoma de Coahuila. 
b.. La matanza de mineros en Velardeña 1909- narración de la versión periodística.
c.. Zacatecanos - Narraciones amenas y sencillas de campesinos mexicanos que se establecieron en la Laguna a principios del s. xx 
d.. Profesores: 
e.. Don Jose Santos Valdés
f.. Amelia Casas
g.. Josefina Giammattei
h.. Don Abel Valadez Mesta
El libro se adquiere directamente con el autor o bien mediante la dirección de Papeles de Familia de la Universisdad Iberoamericana - Campus Laguna


Benicio Samuel Sánchez García, Presidente de la Sociedad Genealógica del Norte de México y de http:// www.ancestros.com.mx

The Mexican program to register vendors in Mexico is a small victory in the battle against poverty.
"Now I don't have to pay mordidas," or bribes, said Candelaria Vuicob, 71 a street vendor since her youth. So far more than 3,700 vendors have been brought into the mainstream economy.  Most pay no taxes because their annual sales are too small, but their observance of the rules makes it easier for the government to keep track.  

L.A. Times, 11-28-01
 

luzmontejano@hilton.com.mx   luzmontejano@hotmail.com

Nuevo CD con el titulo de LIBANESES EN MEXICO, contiene digitalizadas las formas migratorias de los emigrantes a México del actual territorio de Líbano. Son mas de 5000 formas y en su mayoría hay fotografías.

Se los recomiendo a todos los interesados o descendientes de familias libanesas.

Su costo es de $250.00 pesos (doscientos cincuenta pesos) comprándolo personalmente y entra como recuperación, no dan factura. Se vende en el Archivo General de la Nación en la Ciudad de México, directamente con el Lic. Jorge Nacif Mina, actual Director del Archivo del Gobierno Federal y lo pueden pedir directamente a su dirección de correo electrónico jnacif@segob.gob.mx o a los teléfonos del Archivo que son el (55) 51-33-99-71 y 51-33-99-00 Los requisitos del sistema son: Procesador Pentium o superior, 32 MB RAM (64 MB deseables), Windows 95, 98 ME y 2000, Monitor VGA, Resolución 800 X 600 a 16 bits de color.

The Money of the Mexican Revolution 
Money Before the Revolution
The Revolution - A Brief History
1913 - The Money Crisis
1914  -  The Money Explosion
1915  -  Civil War
The Secessionist State of Oaxaca
1916 - 1917  -  Monetary Collapse
Over-prints and Validation Stamps
References for MexRev Collectors
Links for MexRev Collectors

J. D. "DAVE" WATSON     e-mail  dave@jdwjme.com
P.O. BOX 8471, GOLETA, CA  93118  U.S.A.
MEMBER:  USMexNA # R-162   Soc. Num. De Mexico # C-2449

http://www.jdwjme.com/mexrev/index.html

Sent by Johanna de Soto

As Catholic missions and military presidios advanced the frontier of Spanish dominion in North America, Spanish military officers, missionaries, and cartographers developed a spatial vision of the provinces that would become northwestern Mexico. The following maps dating from the eighteenth century show major topographic features like rivers and mountain ranges as well as the communities that were forged by Indians and Spaniards on the northern frontier of the Spanish American Empire.

http://www.history.uiuc.edu/Collecta/Radding/radding01.html

This is a great site.  The assortment of 17 antique maps are artistic treasures. 
Sent by Johanna de Soto

Tlaxcala indians in Mexico

University of California, in Santa Barbara 
History Home Page || Faculty Directory || Faculty Office Hours || Schedule || Documents and Slides

Editor's Note:  This is whole different perspective on the relationship between the Spanish and the Tlaxcala indians in Mexico.  This is only one paragraph from one page, but fascinating. Please look at this site.  The dates go back to1545.

http://www.history.ucsb.edu/syllabi/cline/3-11.html

Records from the Town Council of Tlaxcala
Spaniards transformed Nahua city-states to Spanish-style town, with a town council (cabildo) run by elected Nahua noblemen. Record in Nahuatl of the Tlaxcala town council survive. The following are summaries of business it conducted. (Selections from The Tlaxcalan Actas: A Compendium of the Records of the Cabildo of Tlaxcala (1545-1627) , edited by James Lockhart, Frances Berdan, and Arthur J.O. Anderson.University of Utah Press, 1986). 

Sent by Johanna de Soto

Primary Sources for Researching, Latin American Women's History
Special Collections, University of Texas, El Paso

http://libraryweb.utep.edu/speccoll/lawomenmf.html

Editor's Note: Although this website is titled Primary Sources for Researching Latin American Women's History, it is much, much more than that.  
There are 922 reels on Chihuahua and 486 on Durango, plus much more. 

Sent by Johanna de Soto

• people directly related to this family who want to know more;
• those interested in reading about Mexican families whose lives, in many ways, typified the lifestyles of that generation;
• people wanting to research their own family genealogy by locating valuable links where they can learn how to start right now.

http://www.esl-lab.com/history/intro.html  Randell Davis

 José León Robles de la Torre                          
                     Escrito por Mercy Bautista-Olvera

José León Robles de la Torre nacíó el once de abril de 1925 en Juanchorrey, del municipio de Tepetongo, Zacatecas. Sus padres fueron Francisco Robles Correa (1897-1990) y Francisca de la Torre Sánchez (1900-1932). Sus padres contrajeron matrimonio en Gómez Palacio, Dgo., el 4 de febrero de 1920. Procrearon seis hijos; Enrique, José, y Teodicio (murieron niños), Agustina,
José León y Juan sobrevivieron. Francisco Robles Correa enviudo a la edad de 35 años, después contrajo segundas nupcias con María Zúñiga y procrearon doce hijos.

A la edad de siete años José León quedó huérfano, pues su madrecita murió en el año 1932. El estudió hasta el cuarto grado en Juanchorrey, Tepetongo, Zacatecas donde escribió sus primeros versos infantiles y un drama que título: “El Huérfano,” parodiando al hijo pródigo bíblico que
fue un éxito. 

José León Robles de la Torre
Escritor, Periodismo, Historia y Poesía

En este tiempo ayudaba a su padre en la agricultura, sembrando frijol y maíz. A los doce años ya labraba la tierra. En el año de 1939, al visitar la ciudad de Zacatecas con su familia, con sus ahorros de ocho pesos se compró un método de mecanografía. Tenía muchos deseos de escribir en máquina, pero como no la tenía, ni con que adquirirla, en una tablita bien cepillada, pintó las letras del teclado y ahí realizaba los ejercicios señalados en su método adquirido. El quería aprender tantas cosas más, cómo historia, ciencia, de las artes y la literatura y con los consejos del profesor Don Juan Carlos Rodríguez se fue a estudiar a Jerez, Zacatecas. En 1940 continuo sus estudios en la ciudad de Jerez, Zacatecas y en 1942-1943 en la escuela particular, siendo su maestro Don Vicente Biramontes quien lo preparó para las aulas del Seminario de Zacatecas estudiando gramáticas latina, griega, española, historia patria, historia sagrada, música, matemáticas y otras materias.

De 1943, a 1944 estudió en el seminario “El Silvestre.” en Totachiche, Jalisco, las gramáticas
(sintaxis, prosodia y otografía), griega y latina, así cómo historia universal, religión, literatura, etc.
En un concurso literario obtuvo el primer premio en literatura con su poesía “Totatiche Ante María,” y “El Huérfano.” En 1944 se edito el primer numero de la revista Lux, que co-editaron los estudiantes del seminario incluyendo José León en Totaltiche, Jalisco. En junio del año 1944 abandonó los estudios del Seminario de Totatiche regresando a Juanchorrey donde fue maestro de la escuela particular.

En los últimos meses de 1944 mientras su padre planeaba un viaje de negocios a Torreón, Coahuila, José León, entonces de díez y nueve años y estando de vacaciones, decidió acompañar
a su padre a Torreón. Su padre regresó a Zacatecas, José León se quedó en Torreón. El vio sus
muchas aspiraciones y una ciudad de oportunidad en Torreón. En 1945 José León mientras
trabajaba , ingresó, por las noches a la Escuela Comercial Hidalgo, donde estudió
taquimecanografía. En 1946, como empleado de la Oficina Federal de Hacienda, ingresó al
Colegio Elliot para estudiar Inglés, por las noches. Allí es donde conoció a su futura esposa.

José León Robles de la Torre contrajo matrimonio con la Srita. Ana Rodríguez Gámez el día 6
de diciembre de 1948 y procrearon tres hijos: José Armando Robles Rodríguez que falleció el 26
de octubre de 1989 y que estuvo casado con la Srita. Ana Ávalos Tallero y tuvieron un hijo: José
Armando Robles Ávalos. El Licenciado Alejandro Robles Rodríguez que contrajo matrimonio con
la Srita. Maria Luisa Prieto Villegas y procrearon dos hijos: Rodolfo Alejandro y León David
Robles Prieto. Y Licenciada Ana Laura Robles Rodríguez, que contrajo matrimonio con el Sr.
Rodrigo García Casas y procrearon dos hijos: Jazel Asbay y Israim León García Robles.

José León estudió leyes y trabajo como jefe de juicios de la aduana de Torreón durante 25
años. Entonces en 1954 empezó a escribir artículos para “La Opinión de Torreón Coahuila,” y
escribío, “La Cultura en Torreón,’ “Monedas Mexicanas,” “Hombres Ilustres de Coahuila,” “Marco Poetico,” y “Marco Cultural.” José León Robles de la Torre ha escrito más de 800 artículos, muchos de ellos dedicados al estado de Zacatecas y Zacatecanos. Él ha recibido más de 19 premios en literatura. En 1956 fue presentado su libro, “Torreón en Las Letras Nacionales” recibío reconocimiento por los periodistas locales y de la nación y recibió un premio por este libro, se lo presentó D. Francisco Fernández Torres, Jefe de Arte y Cultura en el Teatro Isauro Martínez. El 24 de abril 1968 recibío reconocimiento de “The American Numismatic Society of New York” por el libro que escribió “Monedas Mexicanas.” En 1983 le obsequiaron otro premio por sus escrituras, fue presentado por Constancia-Pergamino del Insituto Nacional de Bellas Artes-Sep y Consejo Municipal de Arte y Cultura. Este evento fue celebrado en el Téatro Mayran en Torreón, Coahuila. 

Otro premio especial fue la Develación de su busto en bronce en La Calzada de los Escritores
Laguneros en la Alameda Zaragoza de Toreón, Coahuila el 6 de junio de 1987, presentado por la
Presidencia Municipal presidida por el Lic. Manlio Favio Gómez Uranga estando presentes los
Lic. de Zacatecas Don Raúl Rodríguez Santoyo, y Don Jesús Manuel Díaz Casas, representante
del gobernador: Lic. Genaro Borrego Estrada. El padre de José León Robles de la Torre estaba
tan orgulloso de su hijo que al abrazar a su hijo rodaron lagrimas por sus mejillas. También
presente estaba el Sr. Pedro Núñez Robles, mi tío, y muchos más. Otro premio especial fue en la
Plaza Cultural Ateneo Lagunero dedicada a los pioneros de la cultura en esa región, que fueron:
Magdalena Briones Navarro, José León Robles de la Torre, Emilio Herrera Muñoz, Mercedes
Shade Zavala, Joaquín Sánchez Matamoros y muchos otros pioneros ilustres que ya han muerto.

Uno de sus últimos premios fue por Mérito Académico, reconociendo a José León Robles de
la Torre por la Universidad Autónoma de la Laguna el 29 de junio de 2001. Se la presentó el
Director de la Universidad Javier Yañes Castruita. La celebración fue en La Plaza de los
Fundadores en Torreón, Coahuila. El sigue escribiendo para el periódico “El Siglo de Torreón” y
escribiendo libros.

José León de la Torre tiene tres conceptos importantes que son una verdad en la vida:
1. - El dinero se acaba.
2. - El hombre muere
3. - Sus obras quedan

Punto 1 - EL DINERO SE ACABA: José León trabajaba en una joyería donde era dueño, y
trabajaba por las tardes manejaba algún negocio propio y a principio de los años 60 tenía una
joyería “Regalos Murano” donde por mala suerte fue robada, pero él simpre optimista, decidió
cerrar la joyería para terminar de escribir su obra de 10 tomos inéditos de la “Independencia y Los
Presidentes de México. 

El punto 2. - LOS HOMBRES SE MUEREN: “Vemos cómo nos van dejando los seres queridos:
padres, abuelos, hermanos, hijos y pronto nos iremos.”

El punto 3. - LAS OBRAS QUEDAN: “Yo he dedicado a dejar una huella de mi paso por la
tierra, escribiendo libros de poesía, de biografía, de historia, de genealogía, de numismática, etc., y
artículos periodísticos que voy numerando y coleccionando.” es lo que dice José León Robles de
la Torre.

José León de la Torre, ha escrito bastantes libros, cómo: “Mis Cantares,” “Particulas de la
Patria - Poesías,” “La Poesía y su Estudio,” “Algunas Rimas,” “Historia de la Aduana de
Torreón,” “Aniversario de Poesías,” “Algo Recogí del Viento,” “Peldaños - Poémas - Inéditos,”-
25 años de su primer libro, 35 años de su primer Artículo,” “Ecos Poéticos Zacatecanos,”
“Jornadas del Camino,” “Poémas Íntimos,” “Bodas de Oro del Escritor,” “Cien Años de
Presidentes Municipales en Torreón, Coahuila,” “La Alegría de Vivir,” “Cinco Coahuilenses,
Presidentes de México,” “Filántropos de la Laguna,’ y muchos más. Y uno de mis favoritos que
es, “Filigranas, Fundaciones, Y Genealogías Tepetongo, Zacatecas,” donde el autor explica
cuando vinieron los primeros fundadores a Tepetongo, Zacatecas, 

Me encanta Genealogía, donde he encontrado mis antepasados, y ultimamente decidí comprar
libros escritos por José León Robles de la Torre. Uno de sus libros es “Filigranas, Fundaciones y
Genealogías de Tepetongo, Zacatecas., 1596-1999.” Al recíbir el libro, lo primero que vi, fue una
foto de mi tío Pedro Núñez Robles, hermano de mi madre Anastacia Núñez Robles (1908-1978),
casada que fue con Marcelino Bautista Ramírez (1906-1989). Los padres de Anastacia y Pedro
Núñez Robles fueron Juan Núñez y Guadalupe Robles. Los nombres de mis abuelitos, padres,
hermanos, primos etc., están en el libro. Una foto de mi bisabuelita Refugio Nava Acevedo
encontré, que fue esposa de Antonio Robles. Decídi escribír a José León Robles de la Torre, y el
me informó que él es mi tío. Mi bisabuelito, Antonio Robles (abuelito de mi mamá Anastacia) y el
abuelito de José León de la Torre, Alejandro Robles eran medios hermanos. Tenían el mismo
padre, pero diferente madre. José Severo de Jesús Robles Arellano, nacido en La Tinaja
(Zacatecas), el 6 de noviembre de 1812 contrajo primeras nupcias con María Petra Casas
Fernández, madre de Antonio Robles, al quedar viudo José Severo de Jesús contrajo segundas
nupcias con María Teodicia De Jesús Nava Silva, madre de Alejandro Robles Nava, abuelito de
José León Robles de la Torre, También se encuentran otros apellidos como, Correa, Sánchez,
Nava, González, Murillo, Carlos, Rodríguez, Mejía, Zúñiga, Salazar, García y muchos más.

Familia de Marcelino Bautista Ramírez y Anastacia Núñez Robles quienes contrajeron nupcias
el 7 de junio de 1930 en Zacatecas., Zac. Procrearon a Victoria, Enrique, Andrea Petra, Modesta,
Guadalupe, Esther, Maria Mercedes, Carlos y Jesús, todos Bautista Núñez.

El libro es excelente para personas que son interesadas en buscar genealogía, tiene bastante
información de familias de Tepetongo, y Jerez, Zacatecas, Se encuentra información de familias
que han venido a Estados Unidos de Norteamérica. También tiene bastantes árboles de familias
escritas en mano por el autor. Es un libro bien escrito y organizado.

Decidí escribir un artículo de José León Robles de la Torre, un hombre humilde nacido en un
ranchito de Zacatecas, un hombre que con la ayuda del espíritu de su madrecita, le dio valor para
progresar y con la ayuda y cariño de su padre le dio fuerza para seguir adelanate. José León
Robles de la Torre, un hombre querido y admirado por su familia y amigos. Una señora parienta
del autor dice que José León Robles de la Torre es un “Hijo Favorito,” Yo diría que es “Un Hijo
Favorito de México” y de “ Los Estados Unidos de Norteamérica.” José León tiene familia en

muchas partes de California, Kansas, Texas, etc., Que vida tan ilustre ha vivido este gran hombre,
es un honor para mi ser parte de su familia.

Mercy Bautista-Olvera  mjo1122@earthlink.net 

New Area Codes in Mexico

http://www.hispaniconline.com/pop-sub.html
http://www.hispaniconline.com/index_articles/mexican_area_codes.htm

Under new government regulations, area codes changed throughout Mexico as of Saturday, Nov. 17.According to Mexican authorities and Teléfonos de México (Telmex), this change will allow the country to increase its numeric capacity to meet the demand for telecommunications services over the next 40 years.

For information about this change, consult the company's web page, http://www.telmex.com, or call Telmex's information line at 011 (52) 55-56-57-58-59. This is a regular toll call.

As of Nov. 17, all international calls to Mexico that lack the new area codes and enter the country on Telmex's network will be routed to allow the caller to hear a message in Spanish and English advising of the changes. The recorded message will also suggest that clients consult those they are calling about the new area codes. Callers to Mexico will not incur additional charges during the recording. Once the message is over, the call will automatically go through.

AT&T has produced a brochure.  A complete list of the new dialing formats for regions in Mexico have been compiled and can be found at the AT&T website at www.att.com/global 

Sent by Johanna de Soto

A History of Lower California (the only complete and reliable one)
Authors:  Martinez, Pablo L. (Main Author)  Turner, Ethel Duffy (Added Author)  972.2 H2

Sent by Johanna de Soto

Santa Gertrudis (established 1752)

In 1728, the Jesuits established San Ignacio mission at an oasis on the southern edge of the Central Desert of Baja California. It would be more than another two decades before the Jesuits established a mission north of San Ignacio. Attention shifted to the southern part of the Peninsula, where the  a mission north of San Ignacio. Attention shifted to the southern part of the Peninsula, where the  Jesuits established three missions in the 1730s: San Jose del Cabo (1730); Santa Rosa de las  Palmas (1733); and San Luis Gonzaga (1737). One of the difficulties encountered in establishing a mission north of San Ignacio was finding a site with adequate water and land for agriculture.

http://www.timsbaja.com/rjackson/santagertrudis.htm

Sent by Johanna de Soto

CATÁLOGO DEL ARCHIVO GENERAL DE LA NACION REFERENTE 
A LA JURISDICCIÓN DE LA VILLA DE LEON
POR : 
GUILLERMO PADILLA ORIGEL, guillermopadillao@prodigy.net.mx

1585.-Reg. 4348.-Vol.13.-Fojas 185 V. Una venta , recibe : Juan Gordillo

1591.-Reg.5446.-V.16-F.202 Una estancia , recibe: Alvaro Sánchez

1592.-Reg.6092.-V. 18.-F.117 Una estancia, recibe: Diego Frausto

1597.-Reg.7254.-V.21.-F.298 Una estancia y dos caballerias, recibe: Andrés Fernández

1602.-Reg. 8079.-V.24.-F. 99 Un solar y tierras, recibe : Diego González

1602.-Reg. 8080.-V.24.-F.100 Un solar y tierra, recibe : Diego Adame

1606.-Reg.8309.-V.25.-F. 128 Tres caballerias, solar y huerta, recibe: Juan Alonso

1607.-Reg.8485.-V.25.-F.425 Una estancia y caballeria. recibe: Juan Velásquez

1608.-Reg.8617.-V.26.-F.82 Dos y media caballerias, recibe : Francisco Fuentes

1609.-Reg. 8713.-V.26.-F.163 Un solar y huerta, recibe : Juan Xeréz

1613.-Reg.9102.-V.28.-F.166 Dos estancias y una caballeria, recibe: Diego de la Rosa

1613.-Reg.9134.-V.28.-F.213 Tres caballerias, recibe : Juan Bustos

1614.-Reg.9336.-V.29.-F.74 Cinco estancias, recibe : Francisco Salgado

1614.-Reg.9372.-V.29.-F.-127 Tres estancias, recibe : Tomás Castro

1615.-Reg.9484.-V.30.-F.74 Un solar, recibe : Alonso Belmonte

1615.-Reg.9485.-V.30.-F.75 Tres caballerias, recibe : Juan Muñoz

1617.-Reg. 9870.-V.31.-F.225 Tierras, solar y huertas, recibe : Pedro Medel

1617.-Reg.10303.-V.32.-F.280 Tres caballerias, recibe : Diego Juarez

1618.-Reg.10547.-V.34.-F.11 Tierras, solar y huerta, recibe : Juan Quiróz

1619.-Reg.10659.-V.34.-F.126 Tierras, solar y huerta, recibe: Juan Toledo

1633.-Reg.11038.-V.39.-F.18 Tierras, solar y huerta, recibe : Juan Gallegos

1644.-Reg.11399.-V.47.-F.73 Tierras, solar y huerta, recibe : Alonso Aguilar

1646.-Reg.11432.-V. 47.-F.214 Tres caballerias y un solar, recibe : Alonso Bustos

1655.-Reg.11574.-V.50.-F.32 Medida de tierras, recibe : Manuel Guzmán

1671.-Reg.11711.-V.55.-F.112 Deslinde de tierras, recibe : Juan Moreno

1684.-Reg.12317.-V.60.-F.85 Un Molino, recibe : Francisco Bernal

1715.-Reg.12927.-V.70.-F.32 Composiciones de tierras, recibe : Antonio Arias

1720.-Reg.-12962.-V.-70.-F.76 Remate de Tierras, recibe : Cristóbal Moreno

1720.-Reg.12973.-V.70.-F.89 Composicion de tierras, recibe : Antonio Guardado

1743.-Reg.13579.-V.-75.-F.7 Un sitio , recibe : Manuel Sardaneta

1744.-Reg.13593.-V.75.-F.23 Un solar, recibe : José Pro

1746.-Reg.13619.-V.75.-F.54 Amparo de posesión, recibe : Agustin de Urquieta

1746.-Reg.13620.-V.75.-F.-55 Composicion de tierras, recibe ; Pedro Ponce

1748.-Reg.13642.-V.75.-F.78 Caballeria y media , recibe : Antonio de la Fuente

1752.-Reg.13680.-V.75.-F. 142 Composición de tierras, recibe : Agustín Septién

1753.-Reg.13686.-V.-75.-F.146 Una presa , recibe : Marquéz de Altamira

1759.-Reg.13742.-V.75.-F.213 Un portal , recibe : Pedro de Obregón

1768.-Reg.14229.-V.-81.-F.15 Acordado sobre construir un Molino, recibe : Diego Marín

1772.-Reg.14272.-V.81.-F.57  Restitución de tierras, recibe : Luis Carmona

1686.-Reg.724.-V.174-E.1.-F.91 
Autos sobre la fundación del pueblo de Jalpa, y contradicción del dueño de " Cañada Honda ".

1700.-Reg.847.-V.192.-E.1.-F.-198 
Doña Isabel Caballero,contra Don Juan Antonio Marmolejo y Don Lorenzo de Zúñiga, sobre restitución de las aguas del ojo de San Francisco, y arroyo del ejido.

1704.-Reg.906.-V.217.-E.3.-F.97
Don Juan Garcia de la Madrid, contra Don Juan Ponce de León y los naturales del pueblo de San Francisco del Rincón, por propiedad nombrada " San Roque ".

1703.-Reg.907.-V.217.-E.1.-F.56 
Don Gaspar Fernández de la Concha, dueño de la hacienda de " San Cristóbal ", contra los naturales de la villa de León, sobre propiedad y un sitio y dos caballerias de tierra.

1704.-Reg.994.-V.241.-E.4.-F.33
Don Marcos de Aguilar y Ventosillo, sobre posesión de la hacienda de " San Nicolás de Matanzas".

1712.-Reg.1014.-V.245.-E.V.-F.41
Don Rafael López de Lara, contra Doña Nicolasa Echeverría, sobre propiedad del sitio denominado " El Laurel ".

1710.-Reg.1039.-V.249.-E.5.-F.28
Don Juan Antonio Marmolejo, dueño de las haciendas de " La Concepción" y " Santa Rosa ", contra Francisco de Herrera, sobre propiedad de aguas.

1711.-Reg.1118.-V.285.-E.3.-F.42 
Don José Nicolás Ramírez, contra Don Francisco del Barrio Lorenzot, sobre tierrras.

1712.-Reg. 1128.-V.289.-E.291.-F.1 
Concurso de Acreedores, a bienes pertenecientes a Don Alvaro y Don Joseph Camacho de Morales , entre los que se encuentran ls haciendas de " San Francisco de Cuerámaro ", " La Sauceda " y " El Saucillo".

1714.-Reg.1155.-V.302-304.-E.1.-F.-1
Inventario de los bienes pertenecientes a Don Miguel de Elizondo, dueño de la hacienda de "San Nicolás de Frías ".

1697.-Reg.1248.-V.346.-E.3.-F.58 
Don Miguel González del Pinal , dueño de la labor denominada " Los Tanques ",sobre posesión de los sitios de " San Bernardo", " Los Capulines" y " San Nicolás del Palenque ", cista la hacienda de " Cañada de Negros" en San Francisco del Rincón, Gto.

1717.-Reg.1260.-V.349.-E.5.-F.79
Don Juan Antonio Romero, contra Petrona Ramírez, sobre tierras nombradas " la Estanzuela ", en términos del pueblo de San Francisco del Cuizillo, jur. De esta Villa.

1719.-Reg.1315.-V.369.-E.-2.-F.166
Doña Maria Josefa y Doña Francisca de Solís, en contra de Francisco Matias, Sebastián de la Cruz, y Pedro de Luna Gorraez, sobre propiedades de los sitios denominados: " San Isidro", " San Lorenzo" y el " Lobo ", de esta jur.

1714.-Reg.1358.-V.387.-E.3.-F.19 
Doña Francisca de Solís y Valdés contra Sebastiana de la Cruz, dueña de la hacienda del " Sauz de Armenta ",sobre tierras del sitio llamado : " San Lorenzo ".

1695.-Reg.1434.-V.409 y 410.-E.1.-F.899
Don Carlos Antonio de Luna y Arellano, dueño de la hacienda de la " Concepción", contra Don Andres Patiño Daval y Don Luis de Monterde y Antillón, dueño de las haciendas de "Jalpa", " Cañada Honda" y " el Ojo de Agua ", sobre cuatro sitios y dos caballerias en la estancia de " La Sauceda " y varias mas.

1728.-Reg.1575.-V.471.-E.4.-F.233
Inventarios y aprecio de los bienes pertenecientes a Don Juan de Herrera Quintana, dueño de la hacienda del " Pedregal ",.

1723.-Reg.1604.-V.486.-E.2.-F.148
Inventario de los bienes pertenecientes a María Fernández del Toro, dueña de la hacienda de " San Miguel del Sáuz".

1731.-Reg.1684.-V.511.-E.1.-F.173
Inventario de los bienes pertenecientes a Don Francisco del Herrera Calderón, Don Jose de Austri, contra Manuel de Herrera Calderón, por adjudicación de una hacienda de nombre " Las Fuentes ".

1719.-Reg. 1704.-V.517.-E.6.-F.51
Miguel y José de Pro y Guerrero, herederos de Don Juan Antonio de Pro y Guerrero, contra Don Pedro del Campillo y Francisco Antonio de Eguía , su albacea, sobre propiedades de unas casas, ubicadas en la plazuela de San Francisco.

1733.-Reg.1768.-V.537.-1ª y 2ª parte, E.1.-F.690
Doña Francisca de Solís, dueña de la haacienda de " Santa Teresa del Terrero", contra Pedro Carranza y Pablo des la Fuente, dueños de la de "San Jose de los Sapos". Sobre propiedad llamada el " Vallecillo".

1735.-Reg.1787.-V.544.-E.3.-F.29
Don Domingo de la cruz, contra Isabel de Zúñiga Caballero, dueño de la labor de " San Antonio del Carrizo ", sobre propiedad de las aguas del arroyo del ejido.

1734.-Reg.1807.-V.553 1ª parte.-E.1.-F.-103 
Don Antonio de Quijas, dueño de la hacienda de " Los Otates", contra José Mateo de Herrera, dueño de la de "San Martín", en jur. De San Miguel el Grande, sobre propiedad de tierras.

1735.-Reg.1810.-V.553 2ª parte.-E.1.-F.198
Don Antonio de Busto y Xeréz, dueño de la hacienda de la " Asunción", o " Cañada de Busto", contra Don Sebastián de Herrera y Arcocha, dueño de la de " San Nicolás de Cerro Gordo", sobre propiedad del rancho denominado " Chichiguas"; Don Joseph Santiago de Herrera y Arcocha, heredero del anterior, contra Salvador Gómez, sobre propiedad del mismo rancho.

1738.-Reg.1893.-V.587.-E.-1.-F.95 
Don Andrés Sánchez de Aparicio, dueño de la hacienda de " Santa Inés de Piedra Gorda", contra Margarita Guajardo, dueña de la hacienda de " Santa Lugarda", juicio sobre otras tierras.

1743.-Reg. 1965.-V.619.-E4.-F.144
Don Eugenio de Aguirre, dueño de la hacienda " San Lorenzo del Lobo", contra Don Joseph Hurtado de Mendoza, sobre dinero y nulidad del remate de dicha Hacienda.

1718.-Reg.2019.-V.638.-E.6.-F.95 
Doña Josefa Ignacia Carracholi y Carranza, dueña de la hacilenda de " Corralejo" contra los naturales del pueblo de Pénjamo, sobre tierras.

1745.-Reg.2096.-V.671.-E.5.-F.128 
Los herederos de Don Rodrigo de Solís y María Antonia de Zayas, dueña de la hacienda de "Santa Teresa del Terrero", contra María y Francisca de Solís, sobre partición de bienes, Árbol Genealógico .

1741.-Reg.2136.-V.686.-E.-6.-F.41 
Doña Marcela de la Cruz Hernández, contra José Joaquín Hernández y Francisco Rodríguez , sobre propiedad de nombre " Los Hernández ".

1752.-Reg.2266.-V.761.-E.3.-F.68 
Los herederos de Juan Manuel de la Fuente, poseedores del sitio de "La Concepción", contra Ignacio Pérez de León, dueño del sitio de " Los Sauces ", sobre juicio de propiedad de tierras.

1752.-Reg.2284.-V.771.-E.1.-F.437 
Inventario y concurso de Acreedores a bienes de Francisco de Ibarra y Santiago.

1733.-Reg. 2353.-V.811.-E.1.-F.471 
Doña María Marcela del Río, vda. de Antonio Anselmo de Quijas, contra Joseph Palomino , sobre pesos .

1760.-Reg.2477.-V.863.-E.2.-F.-76 
Don Juan Antonio Frausto y Aponte, contra Don Cristóbal Barrón y Ana María Martínez y Mares, sobre entrega de bienes hereditarios .

1715.-Reg.2564.-V.896.-E.2.-F.151
Los herederos de Antonio de Quijas y Mariana del Río, sobre deslinde y posesión de la hacienda de " San Juan de Otates", contra indicación de Francisco María de Herrera y Ricarda Pereda, dueña de la de " San Martín" y " San Miguel de los Otates", respectivamente.

1765.-Reg.2601.-V.910.-V.910.-E.4.-F.78
Francisco Pedraza, contra Pedro Pedraza, sobre testamentaría de Ma. Nieves Torres, dueña del rancho " los Picachos".

1648.-Reg.2643.-V.925.-E.1.-F.351 
Los naturales del pueblo de la Purísima Concepción del Rincón, contra Fulgencio González de san Román, dueño de la hacienda de " San Bartolomé", sobre tierras.

1770.-Reg.2745.-V.955.-E.9.-F.73 
Juan José Zavala, contra Felipe de Jesús Pérez, sobre tierras arrendadas por el cabildo, a Nicolás Garcia.

1771.-Reg.2750.-V.956.-E.4.-F.41
Simón Arroyo , dueño de la hacienda de " Santa Rosa", contra Andrés de Morales, sobre tierras de " San Germán" y " los Sapos ".

1772.-Reg.2768.-V.963.-E.2.-F.188 
Don Antonio Zeferino Puente, dueño del sitio de " San Roque", en jur. De San Francisco del Rincón, contra Leoncio Cacho Ramírez, sobre perjuicios de tierra y ganado .

1776.-Reg.2896.-V.1001.-E.1.-F-4 
Don Francisco Guerrero, dueño de la hacienda de " Jesús del Monte", contra los poseedores de los del " Sáuz de Armenta", " Peñuelas" y " las Fuentes " , sobre tierras.

1754.-Reg.3061.-V.1081.-E.1.-F.269 
Lucas Guerrero y Diego Emiliano Sarmiento Marmolejo, contra Diego Francisco Guerrero y José Antonio Guerrero, sobre posesión hereditaria de bienes de Francisco Guerrero y Ana Teresa Trejo, dueña de la hacienda " el Talayote" .

1786.-Reg.3385.-V.1206.-E.2.-F.217 
Inventario y concurso de herederos de bienes de Don Pedro de Obregón, dueño de la hacienda dse " san José de los Sapos" .

1693.-Reg.3520.-V.1232.-E.4.-F.111 
Inventario y division de bienes de doña Catalina del Ángel, dueña de la hacienda de " san Nicolás de Frias", " Tanco" y otras.

1802.-Reg.3854.-V.1331.-E.4.-F.75 
José Torres Solares Vilchis, contra Joaquín Hernández, sobre tierras del " Cuicillo".

1806.-Reg.4150.-V.1376.-E.15.-F.17 
Diligencia relativa a la testamentaría, de Don José María Pedraza y remate del rancho del " Rincón Grande".

1743.-Reg.4748.-V.1461.-E.13.-F.1 
Don Pedro de la Fuente y Villanueva, contra Francisco Solís, sobre posesión de tierras.

1688.-Reg.10519.-V.2690.-E.4.-F.87 
Autos ejecutados por el Cap. Juan de Castoreña, como sesionario de Carlos Antonio de Luna y Arellano, mariscal de Castilla y de Doña Juana de Mejía Altamirano Tovar y Chaide, contra Felipe Martínez de Zavala, por adeudo de 600 pesos de réditos por 12,000 pesos de principal de la labor de " Santiago ".

1606.-Reg.11443.-V.2735.-E.6.-F.35 
Diego Frausto , vecino y fundador de la villa de León, pide se nieguen dos caballerias de tierra, que solicitan Juan García y otros , cerca des donde él posee dos sitios dse ganado mayor llamados " San Roque" y " San Germán".

1758.-Reg.13688.-V.2929.-E-2-F.7 
Doña María Josefa Muñoz Ledo, y Don José Antonio Septén, albaceas de la esposa de Don José María Pedraza, sobre remate de tierras del rancho denominado " rincón Grande".

1610.-Reg-14428.-V.2942.-E.54.-F.134-36 
Real provisión cometida al alcalde mayor de la Villa, sobre pleito entre Doña Juana Velázquez, vda. De Alonso Rodríguez Márquez y Don Rodrigo de Villegas, Pedro Infante Samaniego, su cuñado, sobre despojo de una estancia llamada " San Gregorio".

1611.-Reg.14549.-V.2943.-E.15.-F-1 
Don Juan Rodriguez de León, con Doña Mariana Infante Samaniego, sobre pesos.

1653.-Reg.-14638.-V.2943.-E.104.-F.1 
Domingo de Morales , sobre autos que sobre pesos , contra Don Joseph dse Lagunas.

1718.-Reg.14719.-V.2943.-E.183.-F.1 
Real provision, para que la justicia de esta Villa, en pedimento de Don Santiago de Elizondo, promueve sobre la hijuela paterna que le corresponde.

1754.-Reg.15316.-V.2947.-E.120.-F.2 
Real provisión , para que la justicia de esta Villa, se administre a Doña María Gertrudis de Tor, vda. de Don Joseph de Ibarra, en razón de su escrito.

1610.-Reg.16548.-V.2955.-E.-150.-F.-3 
Para qué el Alcalde de esta Villa, no conozca las causas de Juan Alonso de Jeréz, ni de su familia y los remita a los alcaldes ordinarios.

1706.-Reg.16787.-V.2956.-E.202.-F.-2 
Real provision para justicia, que se presentaron, las hagan al capitán Don Marcos de Aguilar y Ventosillo, en esta Villa.

1662.-Reg.17316.-V.2959.-E.-102.-F.-1 
Compulsoria para que se traigan unos autos, de pedimento del D. Pedro de Urgeta, vecino de esta villa.

1662.-Reg.17335.-V.2959.-E.121.-F.1 
Compulsoria de pedimento de Don Martín de Olaes, vecino de esta villa.

1610.-Reg.17604.-V.-2961.-E.-113.-F.1 
Real provisión acordada, a pedimento de Gaspar de Laris, sobre apelación del alcalde Mayor de esta villa, Don Lorenzo de la Peña.

1667.-Reg.17660.-V.-2962.-E.-8.-F.-8 
Real provision de amparo a pedimento de Juan de Solís, dueño de la hacienda de "Santiago", contra Rodrigo Mejía.

1794.-Reg.17957.-V.2963.-E.140.-F.1 
Real provision, emplazando a Don Joseph de Obregón, para que ocurra a esta real Audiencia, a nombrar apoderado que lo represente, sobre el matrimonio que su hijo Don Miguel de Obregón, intenta contraer en esta Villa.

1658.-Reg.-18242.-V.-2965.-E.109.-F.2 
real provision para que se remita a la real audiencia , la causa que se instruye a Joseph de Torres Guzmán.

1788.-Reg.18277.-V.2966.-E.20.-F.2 
Juicio para que pague Fon Joseph de Obregón a Ma. Isabel de Gaona, 200 fanegas de maíz.

1788.-Reg.18344.-V.2966.-E.87.-F.1 
real provision para que se remita a la audiencia, los autos relativos a los bienes de Doña Maria Rafaela de Quijas.

1653.-Reg.18980.-V.2971.-E.-41.-F.2 
Don Andrés Sánchez de Aparicio , contra Hernando López, sobre injurias.

1655.-Reg.22393.-V.2992.-E.-100.-F.263 
Para que Don Bernardo López de Lara, Alférez Mayor y Alcalde Ordinario de esta Villa, entregue al Capitan Juan de Alarcón y Fajardo, 135 novillos.

LEON, GTO. 25 DE NOVIEMBRE DE 2001

The explorers said they believed the mysterious structures, discovered at the astounding depth of around 2,100 feet and laid out like an urban area, could have been built at least 6,000 years ago.  That would be about 1,500 years earlier than the great Giza pyramids of Egypt.

The intriguing discovery provided evidence that Cuba at one time was joined to mainland Latin America via a strip of land from the Yucatan Peninsula, the researcher said.

Extracts from article by Andrew Cawthorne, OC Register, 12-7-01

According to 189-year-old tradition, the wooden balls were plucked from a golden tumbler and the winning numbers were sung out in high-pitched tones by the children at the San Idelfonso elementary school in Madrid.  

This year, this nation of 42 million people bought more than 100 million tickets spending $1.7 billion on El Gordo - an average of $41 per inhabitant, the State Lottery and Betting Association said.

O.C. Register, 12-23-01

Invitation to view Spanish Website 

Les anunciamos que a partir del próximo día 17 de diciembre de 2001 las oficinas de DIGIBIS. Publicaciones digitales estarán ubicadas en la siguiente dirección:

C/ Claudio Coello, 123
4ª planta
28006-Madrid, ESPAÑA

Tfno: (34) 91 581 20 01.  Fax: (34) 91 581 47 36.

Para su comodidad, ponemos en su conocimiento que estos mismos datos estarán disponibles en nuestro sitio web http://www.digibis.com. 

Ask at a local Family History Center for:
Archivo Biografico de Espana (Portugal & Latin America) on  LDS fiche  # 6002170-72

A guide to Representative Sources for Latin American Studies
Compiled by Frank Conaway, Social Sciences Bibliographer, University of Chicago Library

Sent by Johanna de Soto

http://wwwlib.umi.com/dissertations/about_pqdd
Sent by Johanna de Soto

January 2002, 536 pages, cloth, photos, maps, 0-87417-444-9, $60. plus $4.50 shipping. 
University of Nevada Press, call  toll free 1-877-682-6657 
Sent by Johanna de Soto

LEYENDAS DE MI PUEBLO

Lic. José Alfredo Villegas Galván
Tel: 814-26-69        Fax: 812-32-21
Director, Historico Archivo del Estado San Luis Potosí, México

Arista 400 Esqu. Independencia, C.P. 78000 San Luis Potosí, S.L.P., México

LA VIRGEN DE LA CUEVA 
LA CARRETA SIN BUEYES

Son leyendas que en el Municipio de Cerritos, San Luis Potosí, han sido escuchadas por varias generaciones. De boca en boca se han trasmitido durante ya muchos años y que hoy narramos, deseando que perduren aun por muchos años más.

                                                           EL NIÑO DEL POZO  

En los terrenos que hoy alberga el jardín de niños Rosaura Zapata, había hace ya muchos años un pozo; de ese pozo, disfrutaron innumerables familias sus aguas. Por muchos años prestó valioso servicio a la comunidad. En una época el pozo estaba rodeado de grandes árboles que sombreaban el terreno aledaño, lo que convirtió a este paraje en un lugar típico. Era costumbre ver jugar a los niños cuando ya la tarde comenzaba a caer; llegaban de todas partes de la redonda, o de la calle de Zaragoza, de Ocampo, de "Arriba", o de "Abajo".

Se dice que hace muchos años, un día se quedó uno de los niños jugando cerca del pozo. Cuando ya las sombras de los árboles tapaban casi por completo el lugar. Serían tal vez cinco o seis años, los de su vida, lo cierto es que no alcanzaba aún a comprender el peligro que el pozo representaba para él sobre todo, porque dicho pozo, se encontraba sin mayor protección que la madera del malacate, conque se enredaba la cuerda, que en la punta sostenía aquel cubo que en cada subida entregaba el preciado liquido a quien lo bajaba.

Las horas de la tarde pasaron y cuando por fin la madre de aquel menor, advirtió la desaparición de su hijo, el vecindario completo se dio a la búsqueda de él. Fue en vano el auxilio prestado, el niño no apareció. Llegó la luz del día y con ella, las esperanzas de encontrar aquella criatura perdida. 

Ya por la noche, los hombres, amigos de la familia, habían buscado por todos lados; alguno de ellos, apoyado por los demás, había bajado a las aguas del pozo, pero hasta entonces todo había sido inútil, el menor no se encontraba por ningún lado.

El día transcurrió sin mayor novedad que la misma desaparición del niño. Pasaron dos, tres y cuatro días, no se encontraba. Las misas que le mandaron decir, si bien daban fortaleza espiritual a la familia, poco pudieron apoyar la búsqueda del menor. 

El pozo fue clausurado, los vecinos no quisieron otra desgracia, pues ya había sucedido.

Con el paso de las semanas, la desilusión llegó a la familia. Meses después, se corrió la noticia de que había cambiado de domicilio, que en horas de la madrugada, había tomado el camino de Tula Tamaulipas, y no se supo mas de ellos.

Tampoco del menor perdido, se supo nada, aunque por muchos años, en Cerritos, se ha dicho que por las tardes y las noches, en las cercanías de ese pozo, se escucha el llanto de un niño, un llanto de hambre, de frío, por la falta de su madre, un niño perdido, o tal vez ahogado.

Esa noche, se dice, hace muchos años, el tren llegó dos horas tarde, debido tal vez a un problema de vía, o de lluvia, como en otras ocasiones. La estación de Cerritos, apenas si tenía iluminación, un foco fuera de la oficina que a esas horas ya estaba vacía, había otro en la bodega de carga, pero ambos, no eran suficientes para iluminar la banqueta del frente.

Serían pasadas las doce de la noche, cuando el silbido despertó a los pasajeros, que aguardaban en las bancas de madera. El rechinido de los frenos y el humo de la maquina, anunciaron la parada en la estación. Sólo tres personas bajaron, del vagón de segunda clase; dos hombres y una mujer, esta última con un largo vestido color gris y un rebozo blanco, cargaba una pequeña maleta; Al bajar de inmediato procedió a buscar un taxi, para abordarlo.

Desde el día anterior, se dice, no había dejado de llover, las calles de la ciudad se encontraban encharcadas, y algunas sin empedrar, o mejor dicho, la mayoría, llenas de lodo. En la estación, se formaban grandes lagunas debido a lo disparejo del terreno.

Las otras dos personas, subieron al camión de "cheto", que aún esperaba la llegada del pasaje, para regresar al centro de la ciudad. Apenas subieron, el camión emprendía su regreso.

La pasajera, encontró el ansiado carro de sitio. Subió al asiento trasero y pidió que la llevaran a la comunidad del Tepetate, distante, aproximadamente cuatro kilómetros de la estación. Para un taxista, no es fácil negar un servicio, sobre todo cuando por la lluvia y la hora, se puede cobrar un poco más.

Don Nacho, que se había iniciado como chofer de sitio, ya muchos años atrás, abordó su automóvil, y presto a dar buen servicio, tomó el camino del Tepetate, cuando el tren ya iniciaba su partida. Poca platica en el trayecto, el pasajero se concretó a tapar su rostro y pedir rapidez en el viaje.

Pasaron primero frente al panteón, el camino seguía de frente; habrían recorrido poco más de la mitad, pero debido a la lluvia, tenía que ir adivinando los hoyos y cuidar el no atascarse en esa tierra chiclosa; no existía aún el bordo de terracería como ahora, eran caminos que en época de lluvia, se dificultaba el trayecto. Se veían los árboles brillar por las gotas de lluvia. El verde del maíz, sobre las milpas, se perdía con la débil luz de la luna, escondida en esos nubarrones, que descargaban su preciado liquido sobre el camino. Uno de los limpiadores del automóvil no funcionaba, pero el del lado del chofer, aunque gastado, ayudaba a aclarar la visibilidad del camino.

Don Nacho, por el espejo retrovisor, de pronto vio el asiento vacío. Sintió un frío infinito sobre su espalda que le recorrió todo el cuerpo; quiso detener su carrera, pero no lo hizo, aceleró el automóvil y siguió el viaje. Casi a la entrada del Rancho, se llenó de valor y volvió a ver el espejo, esta vez, quedo más sorprendido, fue dicen unos, una cara de animal desconocido, otros mencionan que era una gran lechuza. No se sabe a ciencia cierta, que fue lo que Don Nacho vio esa noche de lluvia, en el asiento trasero de su automóvil, pero sabemos que su asombro fue tal, que en las primeras casas del Tepetate, bajó del vehículo, que apenas logró detener.

La luz prendida, el motor encendido, la portezuela del chofer abierta, así encontraron cerca de las cuatro de la mañana el carro de sitio de don Nacho, él no aparecía. Fue hasta cerca de las nueve de la mañana, cuando alguien de la comunidad lo descubrió, se encontraba sentado en el tronco de un gran mezquite, cubriéndose el rostro con las manos y bañado por la lluvia.

Lo llevaron de regreso a Cerritos, su familia preocupada por que no regresaba, lo recibió y de inmediato llamaron al médico para que lo atendiera. Pasaron los días, don Nacho no mejoraba, por el contrario, las personas que lo visitaron, decían que se encontraba más enfermo.

Así transcurrieron casi dos meses. Un día, la novedad en el pueblo, fue que don Nacho había fallecido; el velorio, la misa, el sepelio, todo fue concurrido. 

Se dice que fue del susto, otros que la mojada de ese día, el médico no aclaró las dudas de la familia; con certeza, no se sabe cuál fue el motivo de su muerte. El ya no quiso hablar del asunto, solamente se le oía decir que porque le había tocado a él, pero nunca volvió a comentar el tema con nadie. Si acaso a su esposa, algo le dijo.

Dentro del municipio, distante aproximadamente ocho kilómetros de la cabecera, se encuentra la Rinconada, es una de las comunidades más antiguas de Cerritos, puesto que desde el siglo XVII ya se hablaba de ella.

En este lugar, por los años de 1923, se cuenta, fue encontrada la imagen de la Virgen de Guadalupe, en una Cueva ubicada en un cerro.

Comunidad dedicada a la siembra del maíz, de fríjol, de calabaza y de sorgo. Pero también se dedican sus moradores a la cría de ganado, sobre todo menor.

Por ese año de 1923, dice la tradición, andaban dos jóvenes, Roberto Guerrero y Valentín Turrubiartes, en el cerro que se encuentra frente al caserío; un cerro que ya los lugareños llamaban "Las Torres", tal vez por su gran altura y la semejanza que tiene con las torres de una iglesia.

Buscaban en su recorrido, un panal de abejas, del que días antes habían tenido noticia. Juan el chivero, contaba que cuando bajaba de "Las Torres" había visto un enjambre que pasaba cerca de él, pero que no alcanzó a ver donde tenía su panal.

Roberto y Valentín ese día, habían caminado desde temprana hora con la idea de encontrar el panal, cosa que cerca del medio día habían logrado. Era grande, y se encontraba lleno de miel. Lo encontraron en un lugar lleno de rocas, grandes, como todas las del lugar. Una abertura era suficiente para dar cabida a ese gran panal. Cuando por fin lograron apoderarse de él, fue cuando por esa abertura de la roca, alcanzaron a descubrir, con mucha dificultad, por la oscuridad de la cueva, la imagen de la Virgen de Guadalupe, grabada en la pared de una roca, al fondo, se alcanzaba a distinguir la silueta.

Aún cuando quisieron introducirse al interior del espacio, para poder apreciar mejor la imagen, no lo lograron, ya que la abertura tan estrecha, no se los permitió.

Al día siguiente regresaron al lugar, acompañados de una joven de nombre "Pola" Reyes; ella, nativa también de La Rinconada, se introdujo por la abertura de la roca. Con la cera del panal, habían hecho ya una vela, misma que prendieron a los pies de la imagen de la Virgen.

La región estaba necesitada de agua, las cosechas a punto de perderse, era urgente la lluvia. Una de las personas de la comunidad, se acordó de la imagen de la virgen de Guadalupe aparecida en el cerro y le prometió que si llovía, ella iría hasta lo alto del cerro, tronando cohetes, a rendirle culto.

El cuatro de agosto de aquel lejano año, amaneció lloviendo, así fueron los días siguientes. El valle se mojo, las cosechas se salvaron y fue un buen año en el campo cerritense.

Se cumplió con la promesa, todos los habitantes de La Rinconada, fueron hasta la cueva tronando cohetes en agradecimiento al agua recibida. No le faltaron flores, velas, veladoras, todo con lo que la comunidad le mostró su agradecimiento.

Pasados los días, comenzaron a descubrir la entrada, usaron cartuchos de dinamita, lo que permitió que se pudiera entrar libremente al interior de la cueva y rendir culto a la Guadalupana. También el trabajo comunitario de los habitantes de la Rinconada, logró que poco a poco, en las alturas de "Las Torres" se fueran construyendo escalones con las mismas rocas, para tener fácil acceso y poder visitar a la recién descubierta imagen.

Pronto los habitantes de Cerritos supieron de este acontecimiento, incrédulos llegaban para ver y homenajear a la Virgen. Corrió la noticia en toda la región, llegaron de todos lados, todos cooperaron para tener fácil acceso hasta la cueva. 

Desde entonces, año tras año, la virgen tiene en su día muchos visitantes; llegan de la región a verla. No le faltan ofrendas: Flores, velas, veladoras, cohetes etc.

En la actualidad existe a la entrada una capilla, que ha sido edificada con el trabajo de los habitantes del municipio, y principalmente de los vecinos de La Rinconada, para ellos es su Patrona, su tesoro, su hallazgo. Por eso, la siguen cuidando como el primer día de su descubrimiento, como algo sagrado que vive en cada uno de los hogares de esa comunidad.

Una de las leyendas que en este pueblo han venido contándose desde hace ya muchos años, y que la sabemos por nuestros antepasados; es la que se cuenta que sucede todavía durante algunas noches de mucha oscuridad. El relato data de la época en que en Cerritos, no había como ahora, alumbrado público.

Durante las horas de la noche, cuando más negra es la oscuridad, camina por la calle de Lerdo de Tejada, pasando por un costado de la plaza principal, una carreta sin bueyes; el rechinido de las ruedas con el empedrado, hacen que quien la escucha sienta de pronto un escalofrío en todo su cuerpo. Esta carreta sale, dicen, desde el cerro de "Las Peñas", y baja hasta el jardín principal, sigue luego por la calle de Ocampo, para subir a continuación al "Cerro de la Cruz".

Hay quienes se han arriesgado a señalar, que la carreta, lleva un pasajero; un hombre vestido de negro cuyo sombrero de anchas alas, no permite ver su rostro, el que además casi cubre por completo con un paliacate.

Otra versión, nos dice que efectivamente, la carreta lleva un pasajero, pero en su féretro, que es un difunto y que el recorrido, si bien sale del "Cerro de las Peñas", en la esquina del jardín principal, entre Ocampo y Juárez, toma esta última calle, pasando por la gasolinera y encaminándose sobre la de Manuel José Othón, hasta llegar al Panteón municipal, donde se supone deja su misteriosa carga.

Quienes aseguran haber visto la carreta y a su pasajero, o el féretro, prefieren no contarlo a desconocidos, por temor a ser juzgados. Sin embargo, en este pueblo, mucho se ha hablado, durante años de "La Carreta sin Bueyes". Verdad o no, es un relato popular que recogemos y del que aquí dejamos constancia.

Sent by Johanna de Soto

The Mendoza Family in the Spanish Renaissance 1350-1550  by Helen Nader

THE LIBRARY OF IBERIAN RESOURCES ONLINE:  http://libro.uca.edu/mendoza/preface.htm

Thus, Tendilla -- Iñigo López de Mendoza (1442-1515) -- was the son of Iñigo López de Mendoza, count of Tendilla (d. 1479); the grandson of Iñigo López de Mendoza, marquis of Santillana (1398-1458); and the baptismal sponsor of his mayordomo, Iñigo López, and of his physician, Iñigo López. In an effort to keep confusion to a minimum in the text, I have used the full name, title, and dates in the first reference and the title alone or family name alone in subsequent references, although in many cases the titles are anachronisms. Thus I refer to Iñigo López de Mendoza (1398-1458) as Santillana throughout and to Iñigo López de Mendoza (1442-1515) as Tendilla throughout, although Santillana did not receive his title until 1445 and Tendilla did not inherit his title until 1479 and was elevated to the title marquis of Mondéjar in 1512. I hope that this scheme will help the reader keep the cast of characters straight. It may help to keep in mind that not every Mendoza was a member of this particular family, nor were all the members of the family named Mendoza. Membership in "la casa de los Mendoza" was determined by a subtle blend of common ancestry, property, action, and values.
 
Editor's Note:  Detailed information on social, religious,political aspects of life in this time period.

Sent by Johanna de Soto

LITTLE-KNOWN LATIN AMERICAN MANUSCRIPTS AT THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS

Donald L. Gibbs, University of Texas at Austin
http://www.lib.utexas.edu/benson/larr.html
Reprinted from Latin American Research Review, Volume 27 Number 3
Nettie Lee Benson Latin American Collection at the University of Texas

This collection of documents has grown steadily since 1940, having doubled in size in the last quarter- century. Few researchers are aware of this expansion, however, partially due to the lack of printed guides. In a few years, it may be possible to compile a more complete indexed guide to these materials. The purpose of the present list is to describe a broad selection of the more recent acquisitions and to inform interested researchers of their availability. Some of the more recently received and newly opened collections are described here publicly for the first time.

The pre-1940 collections totaled about half a million pages of manuscripts, maps, photographs, and associated materials ranging from a 1524 letter by Hernán Cortés to revolutionary broadsides of the Victoriano Huerta period. Most of this material arrived in five collections: the Joaquín García Icazbalceta Collection (50,000 pages on early colonial Mexico), the Genaro García Collection (300,000 pages on colonial and nineteenth-century Mexico), the W. B. Stephens Collection (20,000 pages on northern Mexico and the southwestern United States), the Justin Smith Collection (10,000 pages on the U.S. war with Mexico), and the Manuel Gondra Collection (20,000 pages on colonial and nineteenth-century Paraguay). The first four collections document early Mexican history in almost every aspect from exploration, Indians, missions, land holdings, mining, commerce, and education to government and church administration, foreign relations, and even a small section of plays and poetry. The material varies widely in nature and source, but perhaps the richest files for research are the sixteenth-century "Relaciones geográficas" for central and southern Mexico and Guatemala and the correspondence of nineteenth-century political leaders including Vicente Guerrero, José María Luis Mora, José Servando Teresa de Mier, Antonio López de Santa Anna, Ignacio Comonfort, Lucas Alamán, Vicente and Mariano Riva Palacio, and Valentín Gómez Farías. The Manuel Gondra Manuscript Collection (mostly typed copies of archival documents but with some originals) includes detailed reports of economic, political, and social conditions, military campaigns, Indians, Spanish settlements, missions, governmental and ecclesiastical administration, commerce, and international relations in the Río de la Plata region.

Sent by Joanna de Soto

Born in Ciudad Guzman, Jalisco, Arreola became friends with writer Juan Rulfo, today one of Mexico's most celebrated authors.  Rulfo's stories used fantasy worlds to chronicle the frustration many Mexicans felt after the revolution of 1910 failed to break up much of the country's ruling class.

 L.A. Times, 12-5-01