TEJANAS WERE THE BACKBONE OF SPANISH TEXAS society. Their roles in their families and in their communities have been obscured by archival evidence that focuses on government and public institutions. Yet, glimpses of the women’s experiences appear in the documents as well as artifacts and family histories. Life in early Texas was tough, and women persisted through hardship and violence. The Texas Revolution was no exception as Tejanas experienced the Siege of Béxar and the Alamo as well as the changes brought with independence and then incorporation into the United States. Through all of the tumult, Tejanas persisted, maintained their family stories, and contributed to the culture and economy of Texas. This presentation will offer insights into the experiences of Tejanas before, during, and after Texas independence focusing on broad patterns as well as telling individual stories of remarkable women.
"Tejana Women Roles and Lifestyles During the Time of the Texas Revolution" is presented by Amy M. Porter, PhD. Dr. Porter has taught history at Texas A&M University-San Antonio since 2009. Dr. Porter attended Austin College in Sherman, Texas, where she studied history and Spanish. After graduating from Austin College, Dr. Porter attended Southern Methodist University where she studied with the great borderlands scholar, Dr. David Weber. In 2015, Dr. Porter’s book Their Lives, Their Wills: Women in the Borderlands, 1750-1846 was published by Texas Tech University Press after earning the Lou Halsell Rodenberger Book Prize in History, Culture, and Literacy from the press. The book was a co-winner of the Fabiola Cabeza de Baca prize from the Historical Society of New Mexico in 2016.
Dr. Porter continues to research the lives of women in the Spanish borderlands, and especially San Antonio, during the Spanish and Mexican eras. She has published book chapters on women’s material culture in Béxar and the rancher María del Carmen Calvillo. In addition, she recently co-authored with Andrés Tijerina, Emilio Zamora, Sonia Hernández, and Guadalupe San Miguel Mexican Americans of Texas: A History of Tradition and Struggle. Dr. Porter teaches classes on colonial America, the American Revolution, the Early Republic, San Antonio history, and a historical methods course. She has won several Texas A&M System Teaching Excellence Awards, and in 2016, she was inducted into the Chancellor’s Academy for Teacher Educators for the Texas A&M System.
This session of the History Under the Star lecture series will run from 5:00 to 6:00 and will be followed by a time for questions and answers, and a reception.
Cost: $5 per person/$3 for Museum members; students are free. Purchase your ticket today.