On the corner of South Eleventh Street and Cleveland Ave, Cruz’s Drive Inn stood as a cornerstone to the community for over 50 years. Four generations of the Cruz family served both the neighborhood near the Kate Ross apartments and countless Hispanic Wacoans. The store became a hub for news and support for its many patrons.

 Cruz’s Drive Inn was opened in 1965 by Juan and Lilia Cruz. They purchased the store at 826 South Eleventh Street from the Tusa family, prominent Waco grocers at the time, to help relieve Juan’s father Cayetano from a depression caused by the loss of his wife, Leonarda. In the early years, Cayetano and Lilia ran the store during the day, and Juan closed the store at night after his shift at Clark Transit Mix Concrete. Juan maintained his job driving a concrete truck until the store was well established and proved profitable.

 The store had a deli counter selling meats and cheeses, bread, candy, beer, cigarettes, sodas, kerosene, and snow cones. As the business grew, so did the property around the store. Juan purchased a former bar and repair shop that would become storage buildings for the store. Lilia, who ran the financial side of the business, saved profits from snow cone sales to expand the store’s physical footprint. They saved enough to add onto the building, and in early 1980, the expanded store opened without missing a day of business. The larger establishment allowed for the sale of more products, many of which catered to the Hispanic community. Items included religious candles, oils, Mexican herbs and spices, piñatas, Spanish language books and magazines, card games such as lotería and naipes, paletas, Mexican sodas, and more. In later years, the store even sold phone cards and money transfers. These were purchased mainly by Hispanic immigrants and workers to stay in contact with and support their families in Mexico or other Latin American countries.

 As a neighborhood store, Cruz’s maintained a regular clientele, seeing generations of families returning year after year. Through good times and bad, the Cruz Family and their clients supported each other. Mr. Cruz often extended credit to those in need, allowing them to purchase goods and later pay the bill when they were able. Some of these debts remained unpaid when the store closed but were proof of the goodwill and faith between the family and community. This mutual respect also added to Juan’s property holdings. As neighbors moved away or passed, the families often offered Mr. Cruz the first opportunity to purchase the land or houses. In addition to supporting the immediate neighborhood, Cruz’s supported other small local businesses, including Jimenez Bakery and Tiempo Newspaper, by purchasing and distributing their goods.

In 1995, Juan’s first grandchild began working at the store part time in the evenings. Seven of his eleven grandchildren would do the same. In 1999, Juan suffered a heart attack and could not work for several months. At this point, his daughter Diana Hernandez began working full time at the store. She quickly learned the business, taking inventory, purchasing goods from regular vendors, operating the cash register, and serving as the food manager over the deli counter. As more family members became involved in the operation of the store, it became the setting for many birthdays and small holidays and a place for the grandkids to stop by and visit between classes at MCC, TSTC, or Baylor University. 

Juan Cruz passed in May 2007, leaving the business in the hands of his wife and children. His daughter, Diana Hernandez, was integral to the running of the store until it closed in March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2021, Mrs. Cruz sold the property, nearly a half city block acquired piecemeal by Mr. Cruz based on his foresight of the eventual change and development of the neighborhood. Mr. Cruz envisioned opening a storage facility on the land he acquired but never had the opportunity; however, the neighborhood did change as he predicted. Nearby houses that had long been rental properties were sold and renovated to accommodate the influx of visitors to the Magnolia Silos.

 Cruz’s Drive Inn was a family business, not only for the Cruzes, but for those in the surrounding community. Customers often returned after years of absence and recalled to their children buying candy, pickles, chips, snow cones, and chopped beef sandwiches. Additionally, bilingual service (English and Spanish), evoked a sense of place in a new environment for Hispanics new to Waco. Familiar products and the atmosphere made Cruz’s a place of comfort and community to all who walked through the doors.

For more (including 6 images & 2 audio files) view the original article

A Chicano activist and founder of Tiempo newspaper, Ernesto Fraga worked tirelessly to advocate for the interests of Hispanic communities in Waco and Austin. Fraga’s family had a long history in Waco: his grandparents, like so many others, had moved there in 1910 fleeing the Mexican Revolution, joining a growing Hispanic community in Waco. Fraga made it his life’s mission to protect this community by fighting discrimination, advocating for their representation in politics and media, and celebrating their rich heritage. 

Born in 1950 in Chicago, Fraga spent the early years of his life moving all over the country because his stepfather was in the Army. He moved to Waco when he was twelve years old, where his extended family still lived, and grew up on Spring St just north of the Brazos. Many of his family members, along with others in the Waco Hispanic community, worked in the cotton fields. In school, Fraga encountered racism and sometimes got into fights; from a young age he refused to let racism go unchallenged. At age seventeen he left home due to familial strife and moved in with two roommates, one of whom was Manuel Sustaita, a Vietnam veteran and activist in Waco, and at this point his political involvement began. That same year, he helped create a junior chapter of the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC), a Texas-born civil rights organization, bringing together around eighty high school and McLennan Community College students in Waco. Within a year, he moved up the ranks to be elected as a state director. He then helped to organize a chapter of the Mexican American Youth Organization (MAYO) in Waco, a group originally founded in San Antonio based on more aggressive political demonstrations, including protests and school walkouts. MAYO in turn coordinated the Alliance of Mexican American Organizations in Waco, a coalition of churches, businesses, and clubs that advocated for equitable hiring practices. All of this took place before Fraga graduated from high school in 1968. 

In 1970 Fraga moved to Austin to work for the Office of Economic Opportunity, a War on Poverty initiative, and he quickly became involved in the Austin Chicano Movement. He helped found a chapter of the Brown Berets in Austin, a paramilitary organization that pushed for civil rights for Hispanic communities and a major player in the nation-wide Chicano Movement. The Brown Berets participated in strikes, protested police brutality, and advocated for housing, education, and immigration reforms. While in Austin, Fraga also worked with the Echo newspaper and some other barrio newspapers, introducing him to the ability of media to empower a community. He believed that the mainstream press both in Waco and Austin did not represent the issues and concerns of Hispanic residents, making barrio newspapers crucial tools for informing and organizing Hispanic communities. Fraga moved back to Waco in 1974 after being fired by the city of Austin for his involvement in protesting a city official. He organized another chapter of the Brown Berets in Waco but moved back to Austin in 1977 to continue his activism. 

Two of the most famous incidents the Brown Berets organized in East Austin took place at this time. The first was a confrontation with the Ku Klux Klan in 1977. The KKK claimed they were going to patrol the border in South Texas to intimidate illegal immigrants. After the Brown Berets announced their intent to confront the KKK at a press conference and organized caravans to travel to South Texas, a KKK leader called off the patrol to avoid the encounter. Fraga recalled this success with pride. The second was a protest in 1978 against the annual Aqua Fest, a boat racing contest that took place in a Hispanic neighborhood. The residents of this neighborhood had repeatedly petitioned to have the contest moved to another location, to no avail. The races caused noise, traffic, and significant pollution, as viewers left their trash in the neighborhood and parked on lawns, devaluing the properties in the area. The peaceful protest turned violent when police began to roughly handle and then beat protesters. Ernesto Fraga was one of the nineteen protesters arrested, although all of the charges against them were dropped when the court found that they had been within their rights to protest. Fraga’s activism in Austin was varied, but it forever shaped his political consciousness. 

Fraga’s most well-known work in Waco began with the founding of the Tiempo newspaper in 1982. He believed it was important to have a media outlet that represented Latino concerns. Tiempo was distributed free of charge; Fraga and his wife Linda made their living from ads placed in the newspaper. Tiempo covered all kinds of topics, both political and personal, and it was bilingual. Articles about immigration issues could be found next to announcements of community socials. Fraga continued his political activism, organizing marches and protests, especially against immigration-related policies which he and others felt were degrading to Latinos. The day after one such march in July 2018, Fraga suffered a heart attack which forced the closing of Tiempo. Another newspaper has not yet stepped into the same role, leaving a “void” in the Waco Hispanic community. He inspired not only Latinos, but other minority groups to organize and fight discrimination. Fraga never remained silent on an issue that impacted Latino communities, but raised awareness and advocated for change. 

For more (including 8 images & 6 audio files) view the original article

At a fountain named La Pila, children frequently splashed and played while others took a drink or filled jars and buckets with water. La Pila, meaning “the basin,” was the centerpiece and social hub of the historic Calle Dos neighborhood from the 1920s to the 1960s. Fed by an artesian well close by, the fountain produced warm, drinkable water to a neighborhood in which few had access to running water in their homes.

The origin of La Pila is unknown, although Waco newspapers suggest that the city authorized the construction of an artesian well near the area in 1915, and it was reported in 1933 that a fountain in the area was fed by a nearby well with warm water. Children would play and bathe in its waters, and families would bring containers to fill from its four faucets, taking the water home to use for cooking, drinking, and cleaning. Often day laborers gathered at La Pila, waiting to be picked up for work. The fountain’s artesian waters even drew Waco residents who did not live in Calle Dos. Rudy Solano, who lived in Calle Dos as a child, recalled that “people would pull up in their fancy cars and load up their fancy glass containers.” While La Pila held a communal significance for the residents of Calle Dos, it served the broader Waco area as well. 

In 1950, the waters of La Pila dried up. Although its practical use had faded, it still served as a gathering place for the community until Urban Renewal destroyed both Calle Dos and La Pila in 1958. Urban Renewal was an effort to clear “slums” from the downtown area, and it happened in cities across the nation. Low-income neighborhoods and minority communities were those most impacted, displaced from homes and businesses. La Pila was buried, and its concrete edges were damaged even further with the later expansion of University Parks Drive. 

In 2016 Alice Rodriguez, founder of the Waco Hispanic Museum, and Louis Gayton-Garcia decided that unearthing La Pila would be an excellent way to commemorate an important aspect of Waco Hispanic heritage. Partnering with archaeologist Katherine Turner-Pearson, the work to excavate the historic fountain began the following year with a grant for the project from Baylor Philanthropy and Public Service. The money was quickly exhausted, and Turner-Pearson used donations from the community and an army of volunteers, including students from the nearby Indian Spring Middle School, to contribute to the project and to educate the community about the process of excavation. 

In 2020, Pearson-Turner and the Waco Hispanic Museum wanted to take the project in very different directions. The Waco Hispanic Museum had wanted to completely unearth La Pila and create a small park or monument out of it, perhaps with benches and art surrounding it. Pearson-Turner, however, believed it would be best to rebury La Pila because of the complications in getting volunteers during the COVID-19 pandemic. She explained that it was a common archaeological practice to uncover an artifact enough to make a report about it and then backfill and rebury the item to protect it. With loss of funding and volunteers, the recommendation of the Texas Historical Commission to backfill, and the lack of a detailed plan with Waco ISD to turn the fountain into a monument on their property, La Pila became once again a buried memory. 

La Pila’s future is uncertain. It might be uncovered again and reconstructed, or it might remain as it is. Regardless of what happens, La Pila still stands in the memories of those who lived in Calle Dos as a symbol of their community, and the excavation project ensured that the legacy of La Pila was shared with a new generation of Wacoans. 

For more (including 5 images & 2 audio files) view the original article

Manuel "Manny" Sustaita was a Vietnam veteran, civil activist, and the founder of Waco Citizens for a Vietnam Veterans Memorial. Though an insurance salesman by trade, he spent most of his life advocating for veterans and their families, Hispanic communities, and other underserved groups in Waco.

Sustaita was born in 1944 in Waco. As a boy he sold newspapers, shined shoes, and did other odd jobs to help support his family. In his free time, he played sports with the Waco Boy’s Club and especially enjoyed playing basketball. Though his parents did not speak English, they required their children to learn it, resulting in Sustaita and his siblings speaking what he called “neighborhood Spanish,” a mix of Spanish and English. Sustaita struggled with academics, and he dropped out of high school when he was fifteen.

Sustaita joined the National Guard at age sixteen, partially because of a desire to travel, and partially because of his love for movies like To Hell and Back and The D.I. Popular in the fifties and sixties, these movies depicted life in the military in a thrilling and heroic light, and Sustaita was moved by the example of the heroes in these films. For someone under the age of eighteen to join the military at that time, they had to have written parental consent. His father could not write, so Sustaita forged his signature. In 1963, Sustaita enlisted in the Marines. After training in San Diego, he went to Camp Lejeune in North Carolina and then to Guantanamo Bay in Cuba. After this first deployment, he served in Costa Rica and the Mediterranean before volunteering to join reconnaissance in Okinawa. With reconnaissance, he toured in the Philippines, Thailand, and finally went to Vietnam in 1965. Sustaita’s battalion operated out of an American air force base in Da Nang. Their primary objective was to scout for the division, and they chiefly had contact with Viet Cong guerilla units. Sustaita did one tour of duty in Vietnam before returning to the United States and serving at Camp Pendleton in California. He finally left the Marines in 1966.

When he returned to Waco, Sustaita became a life insurance salesman, drawing on his sales experience from his childhood jobs and love for interacting with people. After working for MetLife Insurance for a while, he started his own insurance company, called Multi Services Associates. He married Patricia Rivera Sustaita, and they had two daughters before getting divorced in 1981.

Sustaita made a name for himself in Waco as a civil activist. He was a founding member of the Cen-Tex Mexican American Chamber of Commerce, and he later served as its president. He served on the board of the Waco Boys’ Club and was involved with the Red Cross, but perhaps his most memorable contribution to the Waco community was his work on the Waco Vietnam Veterans Memorial.

Sustaita was deeply moved the first time he visited the National Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington D.C. Knowing that there were many people in Waco who had lost brothers and sons in Vietnam, as well as a significant number of other veterans, he resolved to build a memorial for the people of Waco. He, along with the Waco Citizens for a Vietnam Veterans Memorial, began the planning process in 1987, but due to a series of delays, the memorial was not dedicated until 2004.

After a lifetime spent serving his country and community, Manuel Sustaita died peacefully on May 20, 2020. He left behind a legacy of activism, having worked tirelessly to aid veterans, the Hispanic community, and all who needed help in the Waco area.

For more (including 9 images & 9 audio files) view the original article

Settlers of the Texas Frontier were undeniably an eclectic bunch, and the founders of Waco were no exception. One of the main organizers of the new city was a Jewish, Jamaican-born Spaniard named Jacob de Cordova. De Cordova was not only instrumental in the founding of Waco, but he would soon be the largest landholder in the fledgling state of Texas. In his life he explored more territory than famous voyager Cabeza de Vaca and brought more settlers to Texas than Stephen F. Austin.

Jacob Raphael de Cordova was born to Judith and Raphael de Cordova in Spanish Town, Jamaica, on June 6, 1808. Judith died during childbirth, and Raphael resented the infant Jacob for her death, so he sent Jacob to be raised by an aunt in England. Though far from family, Jacob received an incredible education in Europe and was proficient in five languages: English, French, Spanish, German, and Hebrew. These would all come in handy when recruiting and dealing with settlers from around the globe. Fortunately, he eventually moved back to Jamaica to live with his family, and he and his father grew very close.

De Cordova was just a boy when he first set his eyes on the land that would become his passion and his home. In 1819, Jacob traveled to the United States with his father, and they made a side trip to the Spanish territory of Texas. Though only eleven years old, de Cordova was captivated by the area and vowed that he would return.

By the mid-1820s, de Cordova had decided to move to the United States for good, yet he first sought a colder climate, as he thought the heat and humidity of Jamaica contributed to his poor health. He set off for Philadelphia, where he married the daughter of a pioneer family, Rebecca Sterling, and settled for a few years. Rebecca identified as Baptist, but her Christian faith and Jacob’s Jewish faith never appeared to cause any discord in the marriage. The couple had five children during this period: William, Henry, Joshua, Jenney, and Elizabeth. But the cold did not bring the rejuvenation de Cordova had hoped for, and after a massive blizzard in 1836, the couple moved south to New Orleans. De Cordova thrived in New Orleans and set up a successful import/export business. But he really had his eyes on Texas, what he later called “the brightest star in the constellation of the American Union.” After getting his feet wet in the business world, he decided to move his family to Galveston, where his life as a true Texan began.

De Cordova quickly became a naturalized citizen of the Republic of Texas. He moved from the small, swampy town of Galveston to Houston, where his business expanded greatly. With his new citizenship, he also found new ways to serve the Houston community. He helped found the Houston Chamber of Commerce, became an alderman in 1844, and was elected representative to the Second Texas Legislature in 1848. Additionally, he took it upon himself to found an Odd Fellows Lodge, a chapter of one of the oldest fraternal organizations dedicated to service and helping those in need. He served previously as Grand Master of a lodge in Louisiana, and he went on to found three additional Texas lodges. Jacob de Cordova had fully invested himself in the betterment of the community.

In 1845, de Cordova dove into his biggest venture yet. Alongside his half-brother Phineas, Jacob founded what would become the largest land agency in the state of Texas. The two brothers were well suited to run a business together, as Phineas did the office work and Jacob went out and surveyed, bought, and sold land. It was Jacob’s expertise in this area that led him to Waco as well. A man named Jonas Butler hired Jacob in 1848 to lay out a town on some land he owned on the Brazos River. After making the city layout, de Cordova hired George Erath to survey plots for settlement. De Cordova also received one-fifth of the interest of the land, and he held full power of attorney for the land transactions. De Cordova and Erath agreed to sell the plots for five dollars apiece in town, and three dollars outside the city. Mrs. Sophia St. John then hired him to sell her land on the other side of the Brazos, what was called the La Vega land grant. Rebecca de Cordova insisted the new town be named Lamartine, but Erath vehemently protested. Instead, the town was named Waco after the local Native American population, the Waco, or Wi-iko, tribe. Jacob de Cordova and George Erath later fought to make Waco the county seat of McLennan Country when it was formed in 1850, and, of course, won. Interestingly, de Cordova never lived in Waco. He settled with his family on an estate farther north on the Brazos at Kimball’s Bend. He named the settlement Wanderer’s Retreat, the same name as his previous estate in Guadalupe County, and lived there until his death.

De Cordova’s career soon extended far beyond agent work in Waco, and his agency eventually owned more than one million acres of Texas property. From his extensive knowledge of the state, he created the first accurate map of the state of Texas, which his agency sold for twenty dollars. The map proved to be much needed, and he continued to update it throughout his life. Having such a great love for Texas and such a large stake in its settlement, de Cordova set off on an advertising campaign to recruit settlers. He delivered lectures on Texas in New York, Philadelphia, and even Birmingham, in the United Kingdom. To reach all the places he could not travel, he wrote two treatises on Texas—The Texas Immigrant and Traveler’s Guidebook and Texas: Her Resources and Her Public Men. He also ran two newspapers, De Cordova’s Herald and Immigrant’s Guide and the Southwestern American.

Despite his dedication to settling Texas, things did not go as planned for de Cordova. The land agency fell on hard times, and Jacob found himself in a massive amount of debt. He had invested in Confederate war bonds, and then during the war the Union blockade had stopped immigration to Texas. On top of that, he refused to foreclose on any current settlers when they could not pay their debts. This combination quickly spelled trouble, and de Cordova found himself in the middle of several lawsuits when his creditors came collecting.

But he was not out of ideas just yet. Jacob started purchasing equipment and making plans to harness the Brazos River’s water power. This project would power textile mills and boost manufacturing along the river from the Gulf of Mexico to Waco and beyond. But this dream did not become a reality, as de Cordova died in 1868 before all the machinery arrived. He was originally buried near the Brazos in Bosque County, but he and his wife’s bodies were later moved to the state cemetery in Austin.

After his death, de Cordova’s substantial land holdings—spread across forty-eight Texas counties—were divided up to pay his debts. This was no simple task, and it took over sixteen years for lawyers to untangle his agency’s assets and distribute its holdings. Much of the land was sold for as little as twenty-five cents an acre, and settlers often remarked it was “rich man’s land for a poor man’s price.” So, though de Cordova did not reap the benefits of all his lands, he still did indirectly help populate the state he so loved. Yet his greatest legacy remains the city of Waco. Jacob was right when he said of Waco, “She will be my daughter, and a beautiful daughter she will be.”

For more (including 9 images & 1 audio file) view the original article

When initial efforts to racially integrate the Waco Independent School District (WISD) proved insufficient in bringing about educational equality, community members like Pete D. Arvizu took to the courts in protest. The resulting legal battle, Arvizu v. WISD, stood as part of a series of court decisions in the early 1970s that, among other measures, mandated bilingual education as a form of relief from the damages of illegal segregation. In doing so it helped define what that integration process would entail for minority students of African and Hispanic descent.

Following the creation of America’s first public school system in 1837, racial segregation dominated the nation’s educational landscape. Even after the abolition of slavery, Supreme Court decisions such as Plessy v. Ferguson (1896) effectively sanctioned segregated education by ruling that “separate but equal” schools were an acceptable and beneficial form of racial division. As a result, African American students were unable to benefit from America’s developing public school system. Furthermore, while Hispanic students were largely classified as white for the purposes of segregation, many faced discriminatory treatment and did not have access to resources, such as English language instruction, to aid in their academic growth.

After civil rights activists fought for more than a half century to dismantle legislated segregation, the Supreme Court struck down the “separate but equal” doctrine in 1954 with the Brown v. Board of Education ruling, declaring race-based school segregation unconstitutional. Despite the enormity of this judicial victory, many school districts resisted the court order to take steps toward school integration. Waco was one such community.

While desegregation efforts in Waco officially began in 1963, the district was slow to change. By the fall of 1968, the majority of schools operated under de facto segregation, with the racial makeup of students and staff falling dismally below federal standards. It was not until December of 1970 that the school board of the Waco Independent School District drafted a comprehensive integration plan. Similar to many integration plans across the nation, the district relied upon busing to achieve appropriate racial representation in each school. Many in Waco’s black and Mexican American communities, however, found the new busing patterns problematic as students were transported to schools far from their homes, often being forced to leave before daylight and arrive home late into the afternoon.

The new integration plan left several racially identifiable schools, which, parents argued, kept segregation alive in the education system. The plan also required a disproportionately large number of minority students to be bused to new schools, while most white students remained in their neighborhood schools. While federal courts had declared that Mexican American students were minorities for the purposes of desegregation, districts often used Hispanic students to reach desegregation quotas without integrating Anglo students as well. However, when Mexican American students were integrated into majority-Anglo schools, they were often taken away from the few bilingual learning resources that did exist.

Pete Arvizu, whose residence is shown on the map below, and other concerned parents began to file lawsuits against the Waco Independent School District in late summer 1971. In February of 1972, US District Judge Jack Roberts combined two major lawsuits—one primarily made up of Mexican American plaintiffs and the other primarily composed of African American plaintiffs—given the similarity of the two cases. The plaintiffs demanded that the school system appropriately distribute students, hire more minority teachers, and abolish disparate school facilities. After over a year of examination and public hearings, Roberts ruled in 1973 that “vestiges of segregation” did indeed still exist in WISD. The court found that of the 35 district schools, 15 were racially identifiable, with over 50 percent minority students. Minority representation among faculty and staff also fell short of standards. Of the 6,000 students who were to be bused, more than 5,000 of them were black.

Just as such segregation limited the potential of African Americans to succeed, the court found that Mexican American students, as a minority group had also suffered discrimination and disadvantage, were “entitled to proper implementation of steps necessary to assure them the equal protection of the laws and an equal educational opportunity.” Given that the absence of bilingual education stymied the future potential of English language learners, the court ordered that Mexican American students be provided with a special curriculum and bilingual educational programs.

The district largely complied with Judge Roberts’ directives, but some Wacoans were unhappy with the new realities of school integration. Enrollment in the school system decreased by around two-thousand, or more than 10 percent, between the 1972-73 and 1973-74 school years. In Waco and across the nation, the mass exodus of white families out of cities and into suburbs reduced the effectiveness of integration approaches such as busing. Many Waco-area families flocked to what would become the Midway Independent School District. In addition, many white families moved their children to private or parochial schools following the desegregation of public schools.

White and black families alike continued to express anger at being forced to send their children to schools in distant neighborhoods when other schools stood close by. They claimed that busing was ineffective, disorganized, and undermined neighborhood and community spirit. After the 1980s, education policy began to shift away from busing, and some school districts began to adopt new tactics to promote diversity and equal educational opportunity, such as the opening of magnet schools. The realities of public school life continued to shift in the decades following Waco’s initial attempts at integration. Arvizu v. WISD and other integration efforts ushered in a new era in American public education and bore results that are still visible to this day.

For more (including 5 images & 3 audio files) view the original article

Mutualistas were first established in Texas during the late nineteenth century by Mexican immigrants. These mutual aid societies provided immigrants with a connection to their home country and a support network to meet basic needs as they forged a life in a new and unfamiliar country. The popularity of mutualistas grew significantly in the twentieth century, with more than 100 estimated to be in Texas. While the majority of these mutualistas have closed, there are still a small number in operation today. This includes the mutualista in Waco, which has been a part of the community for approximately one hundred years.

Established on July 6, 1924, the Waco mutualista was initially located within the thriving Hispanic community living at and around Calle Dos. That same year, St. Francis on the Brazos was founded to serve the poor Mexican American community in the area. Likewise, the mutualista formed under principles of union, fraternity, and progress, with its primary goal centered on watching over the Mexican working-class community. This idea is reflected in its name, La Mutualista Sociedad de Jornaleros, as the word jornaleros means “laborers” in English.

As the mutualista was made up of a majority of Catholic members, the organization worked closely with St. Francis on the Brazos in scheduling so that the mutualista’s activities did not overlap with church activities. While most members were Catholic, a few were Protestant. Additionally, the mutualista in Waco allowed both men and women to participate, making it distinct from other mutualistas which were only open to men or had elitist membership restrictions.

The Waco mutualista held their first meetings on Bridge Street. They later relocated to another small building in the Calle Dos neighborhood just large enough to serve as a meeting space. Community festivities, such as dances and wedding celebrations, were held outdoors on a wooden platform—later replaced with a concrete slab. These events often drew large crowds, and over time the mutualista became a key entertainment center within the Calle Dos community.

Along with serving as a space for community members to celebrate their heritage, mutualistas provided access to services that community members were often denied, such as healthcare and education. They also advocated for improved working conditions and workers’ rights. Financial assistance was provided to cover expenses incurred from illnesses and funerals, which helped families prior to the era of hospitalization insurance and sick pay. Participation in mutualistas increased dramatically in the late 1800s and early 1900s, due to rising numbers of Mexican immigrants arriving in the American Southwest to fill low-skilled and low-waged occupations in areas such as farming, ranching, mining, and the growing railroad network. Financial hardship during the Great Depression forced many of these mutualistas to close. But the Waco mutualista continued to thrive through the thirties and forties, and growing membership meant an expansion was needed.

On July 17, 1952, the mutualista moved into a newly built hall located on 312 North Second Street. However, the organization’s time in this building was short-lived with the launching of Waco’s urban renewal program, which began in 1958 after a city-wide vote. By 1978, the Urban Renewal Project had helped channel more than $125 million into renovating Waco’s urban center. Slums and properties that were in disrepair along the Brazos River from modern-day LaSalle Avenue to several blocks past Waco Drive were cleared. Owners of cleared properties were compensated, though some controversy emerged over whether these payments were fair, especially considering that minorities were more impacted by the wide-spread renovation.

As part of the Urban Renewal Project, the homes and businesses of Calle Dos—many of which were in poor condition—were torn down. Among the buildings removed was the mutualista, and members relocated it to 2214 South Fifteenth Street, off LaSalle Avenue. This new property was purchased from a retired contractor. In addition to purchasing a building, the mutualista also bought five acres of land behind the property to be used for future expansion. Participation had boomed, and the organization had once again outgrown its previous location. The new site was larger than the previous location on North Second Street, with an occupancy of four hundred—making it ideal for hosting large dances and other community activities.

Today, the Waco mutualista continues to provide aid to the community, as it has since its founding. The organization collects money for scholarship funds, toy drives, and other service activities. While its focus remains on the Mexican American and Hispanic communities, the mutualista also seeks to serve the community at large—a continuation of its rich history of service.

For more (including 5 images & 4 audio files) view the original article

When Ramiro “Ramsey” Muñiz ran for governor of Texas in 1972, he became the first candidate of Hispanic descent to run for the state’s gubernatorial seat. Despite Muñiz’s controversial legacy, his career was, for many, as inspiring as it was polarizing.

Ramsey Muñiz was born in Corpus Christi in 1942 to Rudy G. Muñiz and Hilda [née] Longoria. One of five children, the young Ramsey worked to help make ends meet for his large family, sometimes picking cotton from daybreak until evening. The future candidate was exposed to Mexican-American politics from an early age and often volunteered his time to help with the campaigns of Chicano politicians as a teenager. As a student, Muñiz excelled both in the classroom and on the football field at Corpus Christi High School, and eventually received a scholarship to attend Baylor University. He graduated in 1967 with a bachelor of science degree and went on to attend Baylor University Law School. Muñiz, who had played football for the Baylor Bears during his undergraduate years, worked as an assistant coach to support himself through law school and graduated in 1971 with a doctor of jurisprudence. The new attorney stayed local after graduation to work as an administrator for the Waco Model Cities Program, then headquartered at 1818 Columbus Avenue.

Muñiz’s college and law school years coincided with the heyday of the Chicano movement in American politics, as a growing number of Mexican Americans united to call for economic, social, and political equality. Many Chicano activists felt that neither of America’s major political parties were prepared to fight for the Mexican American cause. La Raza Unida Party (RUP) emerged in 1970 as the answer to Chicano calls for a third party that would represent the interests of Mexican Americans in Texas. Thanks to leaders such as Jose Angel Gutierrez and Mario Compean, the party’s initial success at the local level in Crystal City inspired some RUP members to establish a party presence at the state level in 1972.

After several well-known Democratic politicians turned down the RUP nomination for governor, Ramsey Muñiz emerged as the party’s most viable gubernatorial contender. Muñiz had joined the party in 1968 while still a law student. The aspiring governor selected as his running mate journalist Alma Canales who, at twenty-four years of age, did not meet the minimum age requirement for lieutenant governor. Muñiz, however, felt that as a young, college-educated activist, Canales represented the RUP’s average supporter and would help to win the vote of the party’s female members. The duo’s platform centered around bilingual education, women’s and workers’ rights, and the establishment of Mexican American political power at the local level.

The Muñiz/Canales ticket brought in 6.28 percent of the vote in the November election, most of which came from smaller Hispanic communities in South Texas. While Democratic candidate Dolph Briscoe emerged victorious over Republican Henry Grover with 48.79 percent of votes cast, the RUP was so successful in siphoning off Democratic votes that Briscoe became the first candidate to win a Texas gubernatorial election without a majority. The 1972 loss deterred neither the RUP nor Muñiz from seeking the governor’s seat for a second time. Muñiz ran again in 1974, along with several other RUP candidates seeking state and local offices. This time, the RUP attempted to recast itself not simply as a Chicano party, but one that represented the everyman. The 1974 platform proposed improvements in medical care, transportation, education, environmentalism, and urban life. Muñiz, however, was unable to gain the support of many urban Hispanic voters, and received less than 200,000 votes when election day arrived. Dolph Briscoe nabbed an easy victory as a result.

In the years immediately following the election, the party suffered from internal divisions and lack of external support. This decline was exacerbated when Muñiz was arrested in 1976 for the attempted importation of over three tons of marijuana from Mexico. The former politician fled south to Mexico, but was apprehended five months later, and received felony drug charges for which he served five years in prison. During his time in prison, the RUP continued to suffer a string of political defeats and largely faded out of the public eye. Shortly after Muñiz’s release from prison, he was again arrested in 1982 for possession of cocaine, for which he served a two-year sentence. While he found work as a legal assistant following his second release, his career was short-lived. In 1994, Muñiz received a third charge for conspiracy to distribute drugs when, during a traffic stop, police located a large supply of narcotics in his car. Muñiz pleaded not guilty, insisting that neither the car nor the drugs were his and arguing that the traffic stop was without probable cause. Many others questioned the proceedings surrounding Muñiz’s conviction, claiming that evidence pointed to a set up. In the end, the former politician was sentenced to life in prison.

To many, Muñiz was a political prisoner, unjustly accused to silence an entire party. The “Free Ramsey” movement ceaselessly fought to liberate the politician in the decades following his imprisonment, and eventually secured his “compassionate release” on December 10, 2018. The persistence of this effort testifies to the lasting impact of Muñiz and the Raza Unida in Mexican American history and on the American political landscape.

For more (including 5 images & 6 audio files) view the original article

During the early 1970s, the rhythms of Austin's much-acclaimed music scene reverberated through McLennan County from Bellmead's Abraxas Club.

Until the club's founding, Waco had remained relatively closed off to the music culture that thrived ninety miles to the south in Texas's live-music capital. That changed, however, when Roy Delgado, Steve Espinoza, Jesse "Jay" Ortiz, Arthur Ramos, and Pete Saiz set out to open a nightclub of their own, one which would bring some of Austin's best blues, rock, and Tejano performers to McLennan County listeners. The co-owners dubbed the new venue Abraxas, a nod to Carlos Santana's 1970 album of the same name.

As news of the up-and-coming venue spread, the Abraxas Club succeeded in attracting a growing number of talented artists. With help from Austin-based booking agent Charlie Goodnight and musician Jimmie Vaughan (older brother of the famed Stevie Ray Vaughan), the venue went on to book such performers as the Allman Brothers Band, Freddie King, Ruben Ramos, Paul Ray, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Wet Willie, and David Zychek. While the weekly lineup at the Abraxas featured musicians from a variety of genres ranging from blues to boogie to Texas rock, the club's Tejano flavor quickly emerged as one of its most defining qualities.

In addition to cultivating a space for Tejano music to thrive in Central Texas, the Abraxas Club played a part in the growing Chicano movement of the early 1970s. The club's owners were eager to lend resources and support to their fellow Mexican Americans in the struggle for social, political, and economic empowerment. The founders worked to solidify the movement in the Waco area by offering their club as an organizing space to activist groups such as the Chicanos Unidos, Mexican American Youth Organization, and the political party La Raza Unida. During its four-year lifespan, the Abraxas Club also served as a center for community discussion groups on the Chicano experience. In this way, the club's impact extended far beyond its weekly audiences, contributing to a much broader revival of Mexican-American consciousness in the early 1970s.

Although many were drawn to Abraxas's countercultural, activist vibe, the venue's association with drug use kept many in the area from patronizing the establishment. Several of the club's owners and patrons recalled frequent police raids, in which officials searched the premises for illicit substances, underage drinkers, and AWOL military personnel fleeing the draft in the closing days of the Vietnam War. Financial setbacks associated with these raids and steep booking-agent fees ultimately took their toll on Abraxas. The club often could not afford to entice would-be musicians with competitive compensation, and eventually ceased operation in 1974 following a drug raid led by local police.

For some, the club's closing was a victory in the fight against societal vices. For others, it proved an ill-fated end to a beloved musical and cultural community. Despite the Abraxas's checkered legacy, the club's life provides an illuminating glimpse into several significant cultural, social, and political impulses in 1970s Texas, and as such remains a valued piece of Waco history.

For more (including 4 images & 3 audio files) view the original article

La Fiesta Mexican Restaurant & Cantina serves as a landmark of the success of the Castillo family—one of the oldest Central Texas restaurant families still in business today.

Family patriarch Antonio P. Castillo Sr. started the Castillo restaurant legacy when he purchased the Old Texas Café in downtown Waco in 1920. After recognizing the local demand for Mexican food, Castillo closed the Texas Café in 1926 and opened the Aztec Café at 818 Austin Avenue. The Aztec introduced authentic Tex-Mex cuisine to the area, quickly becoming a popular place to dine. Baylor students especially enjoyed the restaurant due to the dance hall in the back of the restaurant nicknamed The Patio.

The business developed into a family venture. Castillo’s seven children grew up at the same time the Aztec Café served downtown Wacoans. Antonio and his wife, Josephine, taught them how to make pralines—a Mexican candy still served at Castillo restaurants today—the old-fashioned way. Each of the children became involved in the family restaurant business at one time or another.

In 1948, the Castillos opened El Patio, a restaurant located on Sixteenth Street. Shortly after its opening, an Italian airman serving at Waco’s James Connally Air Force Base introduced Antonio and his sons to the art of making pizza. He also taught them the proper technique for making lasagna, spaghetti, and manicotti—dishes popular among the airmen from the Northeast who populated the air force base. Capitalizing on the new and popular Italian cuisine options while continuing to serve Tex-Mex food, the Castillos renamed the restaurant The Italian Village in 1952—a name that remained until its closing in 1986.

One of Castillo’s children, Sam Castillo Sr., left the Italian Village in 1963 to follow in his father’s footsteps and open his own restaurant, on the corner of Eighteenth Street and Washington Avenue. La Fiesta Mexican Restaurant & Cantina is one of the Castillo restaurants which remains in operation today, although it relocated to Franklin Avenue at Valley Mills Drive in 1972. The restaurant quickly became a local favorite, known for its unique menu combining traditional family recipes with new and fresh takes on dishes.

In the mid-twentieth century, Castillo family members opened various Tex-Mex restaurants throughout the city, including two additional La Fiesta locations which operated until the early twenty-first century, and Casa de Castillo on Sanger Avenue.

The vision of four generations of the Castillo family continues today with La Fiesta’s commitment to quality Tex-Mex cuisine from decades-old family recipes. The restaurant strives to preserve the vision of Antonio Castillo’s original restaurant by serving up fresh ingredients, original family recipes, and a lively atmosphere.

For more (including 5 images) view the original article

Calle Dos emerged in the early twentieth century as a haven for Mexican immigrants fleeing border violence and rapidly developed into a center of culture and community for Waco’s Hispanic population.

Prior to the establishment of Calle Dos, Mexican immigrants settled on the banks of the Brazos River in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries in an area called Little Mexico, or Mexican Sandtown. The dawn of the Great War and arrival of a military base in Waco in 1917 led to the city shutting down the Reservation, a legal red-light district situated upon the banks of the Brazos River to the west of Sandtown. As prostitutes and madams left the city, houses sat vacant.

Around the same time as the closure of the Reservation, Mexican American laborers and immigrants fleeing violence at the border caused by the Mexican Revolution arrived in Waco. Although some Wacoans turned up their noses at the idea of moving into a formerly disreputable area, many immigrants saw the affordable houses as an opportunity to begin a new life.

Never an officially designated neighborhood, the boundaries of Calle Dos were often disputed. Some claimed the area simply to be an extension of Sandtown, while others claimed it as its own entity bounded by Fourth Street, Washington Avenue, modern-day Waco Drive, and the Brazos River. In either case, it is clear that the community along the Brazos grew to be a tight-knit center of Hispanic culture.

Many Calle Dos residents opened up businesses along Second Street, transforming the once avoided area into a busy thoroughfare. Various organizations established in the area to serve the immigrant community also contributed to the neighborhood’s sense of identity. A Baptist mission formed on Second Street in the late 1800s, which became the Mexican Baptist Mission in 1907. The Sociedad Mutualista Mexicana de Jornaleros formed in 1924 in order to assist Mexicans with their rights, jobs, funerals, and other needs, occupying the Baptist mission’s original building on Second Street. That same year, Franciscans arrived in Waco and established a Catholic church which soon became a center of community for Waco’s Hispanic population.

Former residents recall the poor but tight-knit neighborhood fondly. Most houses lacked indoor plumbing, and residents often tacked cardboard to windows and walls to keep the cold out during the winter. Yet many most vividly remember the vibrant community life centered in festivals and dances put on by area churches and fraternal organizations. Neighbors gathered at La Pila, a spring-fed fountain just off the banks of the river, and children often played and bathed in its waters. Hispanic community members who resided in other areas of Waco, such as on cotton farms in areas surrounding the city, also claimed ties to the area due to the wealth of cultural opportunities which Calle Dos provided Mexican Americans.

The beginning of Waco’s urban renewal program in 1958, established to alleviate inner-city blight, led to the demise of the culturally rich neighborhood. Local leaders declared portions of the city blighted and, after compensating owners, claimed the properties and demolished any structures not meeting the program’s requirements. The project cleared areas along the Brazos River from modern-day La Salle Avenue to several blocks past Waco Drive. The homes of Calle Dos were demolished and La Pila stopped up and buried, forcing residents to disperse to other areas throughout the city and state.

Today, only a few remnants of the former neighborhood stand, including a grove of ancient live oak trees, St. Francis on the Brazos Catholic Church, and the partially buried remains of La Pila. Recent efforts to excavate La Pila and establish a historical marker for the fountain which once centered an entire community reveal the importance of the former neighborhood. For half a century, Calle Dos provided cultural identity and community for Waco’s Mexican American population and the efforts of community leaders today ensure that this legacy will not be forgotten. 

For more (including 4 images & 3 audio files) view the original article

Sandtown was a vibrant and predominately Mexican American neighborhood that was active from the turn of the twentieth century to the 1960s. It encompassed the area of downtown Waco between Third Street and the Brazos River, and the seven blocks between Mary Street and present-day Baylor Law School. There were multiple interpretations on the actual boundaries of Sandtown as no official borders were ever established by the city of Waco.

At its peak during the 1950s, approximately fifty working-class families, such as the Fuentes, the Martinezes, and the Vasquezes, resided in Sandtown. For many of the community’s families, the neighborhood was the first place they called home within the United States after emigrating from Mexico. Former resident Jesse Serrano, recalling his experience of growing up in Sandtown, remarked, “I wish that we were still at our neighborhood here and that I could return to live here because it was an enjoyable place and we did keep it clean in spite of everything – the storms, the sandstorms, for what reason Sandtown was named.” Indeed, the neighborhood's sandy surroundings were a result of its proximity to the Brazos River. One resident later recalled watching his neighbors cast a line out their bedroom window to fish.

There were a few businesses located within Sandtown, from grocery stores and auto garages to barbershops and beer joints. Memorable establishments include Sunbright Waste Paper Company, Ruben Bravo’s Produce Company, and Rubles’ Grocery Store. Some of the schools in the neighborhood included South Third Street Elementary and A. J. Moore High School. Religious and social gathering sites such as an Assembly of God sanctuary and "The Blue Moon" nightspot also dotted the Sandtown landscape.

In 1958, the city of Waco voted to participate in the federal urban renewal program. As only property owners could vote, Sandtown residents, who were tenants primarily, had almost no chance of defeating the proposition. Only a small portion of the neighborhood’s residents were able to participate. One of the purposes of urban renewal was to eliminate slums in the downtown area, and the program directors quickly set their sights on Sandtown. As a result, the residents of the neighborhood soon found themselves scattered across the city, county, and beyond. “I’ve been quoted more than once as calling it ‘urban removal’ because it uprooted the Hispanic family in the worst way,” maintained former resident Robert Gamboa.

The people of Sandtown added greatly to Waco’s rich diversity and its working class residents contributed to the economic growth of the city. Though small in size and for many years lacking formal recognition, there is no dispute over Sandtown’s significance amongst its former residents. For these individuals, Sandtown was the place they grew up in, suffered hardships, and created countless wonderful memories. As Jesse Serrano affirmed, “Sandtown did exist, Sandtown is still here, and it will always be here in our hearts.”

For more (including 5 images & 3 audio files) view the original article

Waco entered an economic slump in the aftermath of the 1953 Waco tornado, urban renewal in the 1960s, and the Austin Avenue Pedestrian Mall in the 1970s and ‘80s. Many businesses either moved or closed their doors permanently during this time. Yet one business thrived during the downtown economic collapse—Tito’s Downtown Barbershop. The barbershop survived because its owner, Santos “Tito” Martinez, provided motivation for customers to come downtown for haircuts through his customer service.

For Tito, cutting hair is not merely a means of employment, but also the art of human interaction. His dedication to his customers is the reason why his barbershop has flourished.

Tito entered into the barber trade in 1957, at the age of twenty, following a brief stint with the former William Cameron Company. “Get in. It’s good. You’ll learn something,” Tito recollected his friend, Joe Gutierrez, saying while trying to persuade him to enter the Waco Barber College as he was walking one day. After six months of training and a brief trip to Austin for the examination, Tito began cutting hair professionally at a barbershop on South Third Street on the city square.

Yet the United States government had another plan for Tito. Just eight months after beginning his new trade, the US Army drafted him as a medic to serve in Korea during peacetime operations. Though his situation had changed, Tito continued to practice his barber trade while in the service.

Following his discharge in 1961 and a brief stint working in a barbershop owned by Manuel Cruz on Jefferson Avenue, Tito found a new home for his own barbershop on Austin Avenue between Third and Fourth streets. Nearly seven years later, he moved to his current location in the National Lloyds Building located near the corner of Austin Avenue and Ninth Street.

Inside his current barbershop, numerous photographs of people hang along the walls, small black-and-white testimonies to the many relationships Tito has formed over the years as one of Waco’s longest-serving barbers. A majority of these photographs are of his family. He frequently enjoys sharing his pride for them and the joy they bring to his life with his customers.

There are also two small oatmeal-colored business cards that rest inside the bottom left corner of his mirror. They are among Tito’s most cherished items. Written on the cards are the names of Lyndon Lowell Olson Jr., former United States Ambassador to Sweden, and the late Bernard Rapoport, famed philanthropist and founder of the American Income Life Insurance Company. Tito considers each of these men to be among the many friends he has made over the years.

Tito recalled, “Some people say, Well how come you don’t have appointments? And Mr. Rapoport and Lyndon says, What do you want an appointment for? You sit and talk and enjoy yourself.” Both of these men understood that you came to Tito’s Barbershop primarily for a good chat and then a haircut.

Looking back Tito said, “You know, really I say, in my business, I enjoy it, what I do. That’s why I still come down here. I believe it’s good to get out and meet people and talk to people.”

Tito has no intentions to quit his beloved occupation anytime soon, planning to continue his conversations and haircuts for years to come. He and his barbershop serve as a testimony to the way in which some businesses were able to weather tough economic times through their dedication to customers and the community.  

For more (including 5 images & 3 audio files) view the original article

The founding of St. Francis on the Brazos in 1924 marked the return of Franciscan missionaries to central Texas after a century’s absence. At the invitation of Rev. C.E. Byrne, the bishop of Galveston, Spanish Franciscan missionaries settled in Waco to serve the poor Mexican American community of the area. After their first wooden mission burned to the ground in 1928, the missionaries petitioned to have a stone structure built. The Galveston diocese funded the project and hired Roy E. Lane, a Waco architect, to design the church. Lane designed several other notable Waco buildings including the Hippodrome Theatre and the twenty-two-story Amicable building (later known as the ALICO building). The parish community held fundraisers for the building project and many members donated their services as laborers. The new building opened its doors to parishioners in 1931. 

 The exterior of the church is a near replica of the famous mission of San Jose de Aguayo in San Antonio. In fact, the ornamental stone façade depicting Saint Joseph on the exterior of the church is a facsimile of the one adorning San Jose de Aguayo. Yet some differences exist. The interior of the church is unique, styled in a modern adaption of Spanish Renaissance themes. This allows for the integration of multiple cultures in the interior art. The plaster interior of the church is stylized after Moorish and Spanish designs, and the altar is composed of Italian marble imported from Rome. Above the altar hangs a crucifix modeled after the miraculous Limpias crucifix at the Church of St. Peter in Santander, Spain. Perhaps the most unique element of the church is the enormous mural painted on the wall behind the altar depicting the history of Franciscan missionary efforts in Texas.

 In 1962, Rev. Mate Ramis, the priest of St. Francis on the Brazos, wrote to the Daughters of Mercy in Spain requesting that they expand their order to the United States. He hoped that the sisters would aid the Hispanic community in Waco by providing religious education classes. The Daughters of Mercy was founded in 1856 as a religious order of women dedicated to serving small, poverty-stricken villages in Spain. Four Spanish sisters responded to the call, though three of them had yet to take their final vows. After arriving in Waco and completing their vows, the sisters offered kindergarten classes on weekdays and religious instruction on Sunday afternoons. In 1987, two of the nuns left Waco to serve a parish in Austin. The remaining sisters taught 140 children and almost 400 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine (religious education) students. When new amnesty laws passed in Texas, the sisters worked with officials to legalize 300 Hispanic families in the area.

 Throughout its long history, St. Francis on the Brazos Catholic Church served as a spiritual and cultural anchor for Waco’s Hispanic community. The church tied the surrounding neighborhood and businesses together, offering a place of respite for residents. Many parishioners were immigrants struggling to make a new home in America, and in addition to providing a comfortable worship environment, the church offered ties to Hispanic culture. The church also provided English language and citizenship classes to help immigrants acclimate to their new home. In the 1960s, urban renewal demolished the homes and businesses in the surrounding area, changing the face of the community drastically. Despite the passage of time, St. Francis remains a mainstay of the Hispanic community in Waco.

For more (including 6 images & 4 audio files) view the original article