How do we find information on our Hispanic families? I’m not a skilled Genealogist like Moises Garza – you might look him up at We are Cousins or Mimi Lozano out in California at Todos Somos Primos. But Gilbert Villareal asked if I would contribute some experiences as a researcher at the various archives in […]
The cooking for volunteers started small. The Folk Festival at the Sam Houston Memorial Museum in Huntsville, Texas has been going on for close to 20 years. It began during a period when the Texas legislature, in its infinite wisdom, decided to defund museums and let them sink or swim on their own. The community […]
“They” say you have to have web page if you are going to publish. Upon retiring and taking up writing novels instead of serious non-fiction, “everyone” said I had to have a web page. “The agents and publishers will look at it,” they said, “and decide if you are even […]
What makes a hero into a memorable character rather than a cliché? The clichés abound. Hundreds, no, thousands of romance novels provide an enticing bare-chested hero on the cover as a temptation. And invariably the heros are tall—almost always 6’2”—and incredibly good looking, whether rough-hewn strong or James Bond smooth. And they are, equally […]
Public History classes can take many forms. When there is a Folk Festival at our Sam Houston Memorial Museum every May, the possibilities become endless. Public History, for those of you who wonder, is a course that deals with hands-on history, whether it is museums, libraries, building cabins, or, […]
No, the Spanish DID NOT kill off all the natives of Mexico. I write in support of my friend Joe Lopez and his article on the European conquest of the New World in the Rio Grande Guardian. He compares the conquests of the Native peoples by the Spanish and the English. An interesting comparison. First, […]
One of the joys of doing research for novels is finding out tidbits of history about a city in which I grew up. While researching for my novel on 1770s New Spain, I learned that Mexico City had been called “The City of Palaces.” The reason was Carlos III of Spain. For nearly 200 years, […]
There are some people we never forget. Back in 2007/2008, I had the unmitigated good fortune of having a group of students sign up for Public History Courses at Sam Houston State University. Our History Department was working closely with the Sam Houston Memorial Museum (across the street from our campus) to move, rebuild […]
PBS has certainly hit it big with its program on Downton Abbey. It is fascinating to see how a TV show can become so popular. Even Julian Fellowes and the members of the cast and crew didn’t expect it to “go viral” with world-wide syndication and translations into dozens of languages. What is it […]
It’s a new age: education, training and learning by Power Point. By now, I believe most of us have had to sit through a Power Point presentation. Some are crisp, clear, concise, and colorful with big, bold lettering and dynamic images. They tell a good story, offer an outline and identify the message. Others, […]