Casa Maldonado 1312 Guadalupe St. San Antonio, Texas
aka
the Pink Building
Westside Historic Preservation Group
History of Casa Maldonado & Willie Maldonado For over 2 years, the Esperanza Peace & Justice Center, the Westside Historic Preservation Group and Westside residents and community historians have worked to gather the stories and history of Casa Maldonado, 1312 Guadalupe St., and many other important places of San Antonio’s Westside. The Casa Maldonado is a 90+ year–old building, which has served the Westside community in many ways and tells a piece of the Westside story that is seldom remembered and rarely documented. Do not allow our history to be erased.
“Lo que somos, no podemos borrarlo.” -Sra. Isabel Sanchez, 87 year-old Lifelong Westsider
historic landmark
The significance of 1312 Guadalupe for designation as a historic landmark in the City of San Antonio can be found in seven of the Criteria for Designation identified in section 35-607 of the Unified Development Code (as amended, 6/24/2011):
Application of the Historic Designation Criteria. 1. Its value as a visible reminder of the cultural heritage of the community;
The Maldonado Building is a visual reminder of the Westside of San Antonio. The simple, wood frame commercial structures built in the early 1920’s once lined Guadalupe Street. The few two-story wood frame structures stood out as important landmarks and symbols of the neighborhood’s increasing vitality and maturity as a Mexican-American urban center. Spurred by a large influx of Mexican immigrants between 1910 and 1925, Guadalupe Street became the commercial center of San Antonio’s Mexican-American community. Wood-frame commercial structures served both the commercial and housing needs of their owners. The Maldonado Building is prototypical of this development pattern, having been used by the Maldonado family for residential and commercial purposes throughout the family’s 87 year ownership. Today, 1312 Guadalupe St. is the only wood-frame structure remaining in the central area of Guadalupe and Brazos, and it is only one of two two-story wood-frame structures still standing on the whole length of Guadalupe Street, making the Maldonado Building a significant example of the community and commerce of an earlier era.1
Shotgun houses are few, corner stores/cafes are rare and there are only two, 2-story wooden structures left on Guadalupe St. that were built over 80 years ago.
Villa Guadalupe
Casa Maldonado is located in the area known as Villa Guadalupe. The following descriptions come from the Villa Guadalupe Historic Resources Assessment prepared for the City of San Antonio by Andrew Perez Associates Architects in 1986. This extensive report contextualizes the historical, social and cultural significance of this neighborhood. Although written only 25 years ago, the majority of the commercial and housing stock that was described in this book is gone. Vecindades and jacales are extinct. Shotgun houses are few, corner stores/cafes are rare and there are only two, 2-story wooden structures left on Guadalupe St. that were built over 80 years ago.
Villa Guadalupe, established in 1733, was home to San Antonio’s Spanish and later Mexican and Mexican American community. In 1842, after San Antonio was incorporated, the city allowed for unimproved lands located within its jurisdiction to be sold. “The sale of these lands included all of the Villa de Guadalupe area. Not surprisingly, many of the buyers were incumbent or former councilmen and city officials who held the parcels for speculation.” 2 Moderate growth occurred from the middle 1890s and continued into the first decade of the Twentieth Century. The ethnic matrix was, by accounts, mixed. Houses were modest, but had an ample lot size. Installation of water and sanitary sewer piping was initiated in 1908 along the major streets.
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The character of the area changed rapidly during the years 1910-1925. The series of revolutions, and political and religious turmoil which convulsed Mexico during this time created a great influx of immigrants into San Antonio. It was during this time that the area, occasionally called Villa de Guadalupe on deed records, was developed almost in its entirety. The area served as a catchment for people from Mexico as it lay close to the railroad and was one of the first neighborhoods encountered on the roads from the West and Southwest. The area also had no racial deed restrictions, was relatively low in land value and was largely undeveloped. Immigrants with moderate means could afford the land and a house, and those with little money could afford the tenements and shotgun houses for rent. This immigration also coincided with a growth trend for San Antonio, particularly the boom years of WWI. 3
1983 Plaza Guadalupe Market Analysis & Development Plan
Above: 1923 Sanborn Map. 1312 Guadalupe pre-dates the Guadalupe Theater (est. 1942) and the Guadalupe Association.
Under these conditions, the area became a major center of MexicanAmerican life, culture and enterprise in San Antonio. Our Lady of Guadalupe Church became a major religious focus. The Progreso and Guadalupe Theaters provided live and film entertainment in the Spanish Language. The Inman Christian Center met severe social needs. There was a varied mixture of housing, business and commercial uses. 4 The combination of store and residence is not uncommon of older and historic cities and is found as a distinctive pattern with greater frequency in the Villa than remaining historic neighborhoods in San Antonio. 5 The Store/Residence patterns are found principally fronting Guadalupe Avenue, El Paso Street and at street intersections in the northwest quadrant of the Villa. Their distinctive and occasionally unique appearance belies a greater significance of the historic independence from vehicular transportation and the interdependence of a mixed-use neighborhood. 6
4
The Villa Guadalupe Historic Resources Assessment describes Casa Maldonado as follows: 1312 Guadalupe Julius Mugge sold lot No. 16 to Albino Maldonado on 22 April 1909. Development of the site began with the construction of a one-story wood frame house c.1910. The plan was a “T� with a front porch and rear shed. The house was replaced during the mid 1920s with a one-story wood frame commercial building. . . The remaining walls are all wood frame with wood-drop siding. The roof is gabled and covered with standing seam metal. A small square wood louvered attic vent is centered to the top of the raked parapet. A two-story structure, appearing to date from the mid to late 1930s was added to the rear. The construction is wood frame with drop siding and a gable roof with composition shingles. Windows are coupled one over one wood sash. 7
2. Its location as a site of a significant local event;
The Maldonado Building’s location as a site of significant local events. The Maldonado building was a central location for community and political organizing in San Antonio’s Mexican-American community during one of the most important periods in its history, the 1940s through the 1960s. Prior to the 1940s, Mexican-American citizens were effectively excluded from all elections for public office, both as voters and as candidates. The repeal of all-white primaries in 1946 presented the first opportunity, albeit meager, for twentieth-century Mexican-Americans to participate meaningfully in democratic governance. 8 1312 Guadalupe served as a community gathering place during the late 1930s and early 1940s when Bill Maldonado used it as the home base for his work as a founder of the Spanish Baseball league in 1937, as manager of the winning Progreso Club team, and as a leader in the league’s campaign for political and social justice. 9 In the decades of Mexican-American enfranchisement following repeal of the “allwhite primaries,” the Maldonado Building became the Westside Headquarters for an emerging group of Progressive Democrats. As Bill Sinkin described the situation: “We were all active people, a heavy group trying to organize a good liberal organization… I don’t think that they, (Democrats) had organized a good liberal organization before then. But he, (William) started it in the Westside.” 10 Among the activities headquartered at the Maldonado Building during these years were: Bill Maldonado’s 1948 campaign for county commissioner, in which he was one of the first MexicanAmericans to seek the Democratic Party nomination in the twentieth century; the Westside portion of Adlai Stevenson’s 1952 Democratic Presidential Campaign (managed by Bill Maldonado, Pete Torres, Willie Macias, and Alex Ramirez); and the 1954 campaign to recall the Mayor and other council members. 11 From 1961 to 1977, 1312 Guadalupe was rented out by Goodwill as on-the-job vocational testing and training stations for disabled and disadvantaged persons.12 Cecilio “Snuffy” Martinez works as building manager during the 1970s. Snuffy Martinez himself helped crash the gate of machine politics in San Antonio. He was the lead plaintiff in a 1974 lawsuit that nudged San Antonio toward single-member City Council districts.13 “Our streets were the last to be fixed. Our sidewalks were the last to be looked at. It finally bore fruit in 1977, when city voters approved a referendum for single-member districts after the city settled the lawsuit. Martinez ran for office and lost. His son, Walter Martinez, later served a term in the legislature and on the City Council.” 14 During the late 1970s, Rosa Rosales and other women activists rented the space from Snuffy Martinez and used the building as office space for the San Antonio headquarters of the National Association of Government Employees. They also sold clothing to help pay the rent. 15
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For at least five years, 1312 becomes home to Speedy’s, a popular Mom and Pop fast food diner. Not having many restaurants in this neighborhood, Speedy’s appeals to the high school youth from Lanier, Tafolla, and JT, as well as community residents from the Alazan-Apache Courts and surrounding areas. To this day, most folks have great memories of Speedy’s.
Willie Maldonado 3. Its identification with a person or persons who significantly contributed to the development of the community;
Casa Maldonado’s identification with a person or persons who significantly contributed to the development of the community. The Maldonado family owned the Building at 1312 Guadalupe Street from 1910 through 1997. Members of the Maldonado family lived in the building off and on during these years, the family used the building for commercial purposes, and, most notably, the family made the Maldonado Building available as a central location for community and political organizing that would transform the lives and aspirations of Mexican-Americans living in the Villa Guadalupe area, in South Texas, and eventually throughout the United States. 16 The rigid and pervasive system of racial segregation in San Antonio during the 19th and 20th centuries shaped the economic, political, and social conditions of life for the residents of Villa Guadalupe. The history of the Maldonado family and the building they built, lived in, and owned for 87 years reveals typical Westside lives shaped by limiting circumstance and intrepid hope. As the Villa Guadalupe population grew, the needs of its members also grew, and the community united in the daily struggle for decent wages, food, housing, education, and medical care in a part of the City that had been long neglected and its people long exploited. In the late 1940s, a profound shift occurred in the political circumstances of Villa Guadalupe residents, and one member of the Maldonado family, Indalecio Guillermo Maldonado (19041968) 17 – renamed “William” during a part of his childhood spent in Pennsylvania -stepped forward to help forge a new direction for Mexican Americans in San Antonio and throughout the United States. The historical record first identifies Bill Maldonado in 1937, as one of the founders of the highly regarded and influential Spanish American Baseball League.18 Bill becomes the manager of the Progreso Club team, and in 1937, his team wins the State championship. Bill continues to support extramural sports for the “Latin” community, pitching for “the LULACs” (League of United Latin American Citizens, the oldest Mexican American organization in the nation) and raising funds for “underprivileged youth and the LULAC scholarship fund. From newspaper articles, we see Bill playing baseball at least until 1951, at age 46. 19
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These minority league baseball teams are historically significant in U.S. history as they challenged segregationist policies that kept Mexican American and Black men
and women from playing in integrated baseball teams at the professional level. Individuals like Bill and Moises Maldonado, Santos Villareal, Juan Garza and Antonio Bernal spent their own money and gave their time to develop and underwrite the costs of these baseball teams. 20 The Progreso Club not only played throughout the state of Texas and won the State Championship; they competed with groups in Mexico and with Black baseball teams such as the Black Senators of Austin. 21 In August 1939, representatives of the League of Loyal Americans conferred with Mayor Maury Maverick to adopt the uniform racial classification adopted by the 1936 US Bureau of Census. San Antonio would now allow Mexicans to be classified as White. Leading the group were Alonso Perales, William Maldonado and M.A. Urbina. 22 On August 8, 1943, William Maldonado was hired as manager of the Alazan-Apache Courts. A resolution of the Texas legislature stated, “…it would improve international relations to have a man with a Latin-American background to manage the courts built for Latin-American tenants.” 23 In 1904, the Democratic Party effectively barred non-white candidates from elective office with rules limiting membership in the party to white Texans. At that time, the Democratic Party dominated elections, yet the party rules prevented any person of color from seeking the party’s nomination or voting in its primary elections. These “all-white primary” rules remained in force until 1946, when, forced by a U.S. Supreme Court decision, in 1944, the Texas legislature prohibited such rules. Although the Texas poll tax remained in force until 1966, the end of all-white primaries provided the first opportunity for meaningful democratic participation for Mexican- and African-American San Antonians and marked the beginning of a crucial period in Mexican-American history. 24
Bill Maldonado was the only Mexican-American candidate for county commissioner in the Bexar County Democratic Party primary and one of only three Mexican-Americans (out of a total of 100 candidates) standing for election in Texas.
Following repeal of the “all-white primary” system in 1946, Bill Maldonado developed into one of the most important leaders of the newly enfranchised Westside Mexican-American community. By February, 1948, William, a deputy sheriff for over six years, resigns his job so that he can become a candidate for one of the Bexar County Commissioners, stating that “no Latin-American has been elected a county commissioner in the past 40 years and that he is out to break the jinx.” 25 Bill Maldonado was the only Mexican-American candidate for County Commissioner in the Bexar County Democratic Party primary and one of only three Mexican-Americans (out of a total of 100 candidates) standing for election in Texas. Unfortunately, he was unsuccessful in this campaign. Bill Maldonado’s candidacy was significant because it followed the U.S. Supreme Court decision 7
in Smith v. Allwright, 321 U.S., 649 (1944), which declared the Texas Democratic Party rule banning non-whites from party primary membership and primary election voting to be unconstitutional. 26 From the late 1930s until 1959, William Maldonado served as an officer and eventually President of the Hod Carriers, Building and Common Laborers’ Local No. 93. In his capacity as President, Maldonado leads a negotiating team in the struggle to maintain a level of subsistence wages and safe working conditions for 3000 union workers. When the employers insist on lowering wages, member of Bill Maldonado’s candidacy Local 93 execute a strike that last was significant because it folmany months. 27
lowed the U.S. Supreme Court decision in Smith v. Allwright, 321 U.S., 649 (1944), which declared the Texas Democratic Party rule banning non-whites from party primary membership and primary election voting to be unconstitutional.
On June 28, 1952, William Maldonado was appointed to the Board of Commissioners of the San Antonio Housing Authority. By 1952, he was elected vice chair of the board of commissioners. Other members included chairman Bill Sinkin and Henry Castillo. Maldonado maintains this position for a couple of years. 28
In 1952, Maldonado, together with Pete Torres, Willie Macias and Alex Ramirez, ran the Westside portion of Adlai Stevenson’s Presidential Campaign, converting 1312 into a bustling political campaign headquarters. Casa Maldonado served as the Westside Headquarters for progressive democrats, enabling community members to come to meetings, strategize, organize and do community outreach. In May of that year, as a delegate to the State Democratic Party Convention, Maldonado joined Maury Maverick, Bill Sinkin, Bernard Lifshutz, Kathleen Voigt and 15 other liberal Democrats in a walkout to protest the regressive platform being promoted by Texas Democratic Party insiders. 29 In 1954, several city leaders organize as the Recall Committee for Honest Government to recall Mayor White. 1312 Guadalupe becomes the Westside headquarters, with William Maldonado as one of the lead organizers. 30 This campaign created a lasting network of progressive Mexican-American activists in the Westside and established a presence in the Democratic Party that would lead to a fundamental reorganization of the political party. 31
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For the liberal Democrats like Bill Sinkin, the Westside was where the liberal votes were to be found and if they were going to win a citywide election, they had to reach out to the most liberal voters in the Westside. Bill Sinkin, 97 year-old San Antonio Democratic Party kingmaker, chairman of Hemisfair ’68 and founder of Solar San Antonio recalls working with Bill Maldonado. “We were all active people, a heavy group trying to organize a good liberal organization… We wanted to be kingmakers. But the group itself was a heavy group and I don’t think that they, (Democrats) had organized a good liberal organization before then. But he (William), started it in the Westside.” 32
“Why was it important for us to have the Mexican Americans. I tell you, most of us who were here and most of us who had associations in the Westside didn’t take a much time to see that there was benign neglect (in the Westside)…and we had to do something. There were conservative Democrats and they weren’t interested (in improving the lives of Mexicans).” 33 esides working with white liberal Democrats, William Maldonado continued his B work with the Mexican American community. According to newspaper accounts and an interview with Judge Abert Peña, William Maldonado helped start a new group called Loyal American Democrats. 34 “Well, they had what they call, they had a liberal group in San Antonio, but they had no Mexicanos. …the only Mexicano groups we had on the West Side, they are either controlled by some politician in the courthouse or some vendido (sellout) on the West Side, so they always had them split up. So, we organized what we called the Loyal American Democrats, Willie and I and several other people. “Willie Maldonado?...” William Maldonado. “And we called it the Loyal American Democrats and we got some people that we figured were liberal-minded, didn’t belong to any of the factions over there on the West Side, and we insisted that you could join, but we would not accept people, politicians in office or anyone that worked for a politician in office. This is going to be strictly independent… So, we started working with the Blacks… But, we built a coalition, we built [Willie Maldonado’s] most important lasting coalitions of Blacks, Mexicanos, contribution to San Antonio was the provision of a and labor and white, so-called, physical site for progressive political work that enabled white liberals.” 35
Mexican-Americans in San Antonio to forge an ethnic identity and a vision of democratic participation that has become a significant element in contemporary political life throughout the United States.
Throughout these years, Bill Maldonado worked with numerous significant political leaders, including Henry B. Gonzalez, Maury Maverick, Bill Sinkin, Kathleen Voigt, G. J. Sutton, Alonso Perales, Albert Peña and Bernard Lifshutz and continues to create and work with alternative organizations such as the Independent Legislative Ticket and the Committee on Fair Taxation in 1960.36 Unfortunately, William would die too soon, July 2, 1968, William Maldonado dies and leaves behind his wife, Hazel, and three grown children.37 Although William Maldonado became a well-known leader in his own time, perhaps his most important lasting contribution to San Antonio was the provision of a physical site for progressive political work that enabled Mexican-Americans in San Antonio to forge an ethnic identity and a vision of democratic participation that has become a significant element in contemporary political life throughout the United States. Among Mexican-Americans, San Antonio has long been identified as the “capital” of Mexican America” because of the crucial role that the San Antonio’s near Westside has played in the development of Mexican-American political life. Bill Maldonado played a very significant part in shaping the postWWII Mexican American constituency, and the Maldonado Building played a critical role as a central base for community organizing, a gathering place for debate and strategic planning, and a safe location for a wide variety of political and community development work. 9
“The key phrase that we may use to describe the context that colors this humble looking house, referred to as the Maldonado house, is the ‘Political Struggle of a Community for Inclusion in its own Governing Institutions.’ But even more than that it represents an era of incredible self sacrifice by an heroic civic minded sector of the Mexican American community who in the end did not benefit from most of the changes that came about because of their efforts. But we must never forget them and before it is too late we must protect a part of that landscape where they found themselves.” - Dr. Rodolfo Rosales 41
(b)7. Its unique location or singular physical characteristics that make it an established or familiar visual feature;
Casa Maldonado’s unique location or singular physical characteristics that make it an established or familiar visual feature.
For residents of the near Westside, the three block stretch on Guadalupe St. from Brazos to Trinity has been the center of commercial, political, and cultural activity for as far back as anyone can remember. The Maldonado Building is one of the
most distinctive and familiar visual features of this important locus of community activity. 38
(b)8. Its historical and cultural integrity of location, design, and materials;
The Maldonado Building’s historical and cultural integrity of location, design, and materials. The building is close to 90 years in age. It is a ver-
(b)12 It is distinctive in character, interest and value and strongly exemplifies the cultural, economic, social, ethnic and historical heritage of S.A.
The Maldonado Building is distinctive in character, interest and value and strongly exemplifies the cultural, economic, social, ethnic and historical heritage of San Antonio. The Maldonado Building is located in a historically poor neighborhood of San Antonio, historically under-served in terms of historic landmark designations. There are very few, if any designated landmarks of this architectural type in the area. Nor are their designated landmarks of vernacular structures related to the Mexican Revolution, the consequential immigration influx to the west side, and the impact of the influx on the commercial built environment. This building has distinctive value to the community as a whole because it typifies an under-served, underdesignated cultural and ethnic heritage. 40
(b)13 It is an important example of a particular architectural type
The Maldonado Building is an important example of a particular architectural type. The architectural type, and the flexibility of the construction and layout allowed for a series of varied uses over its 90-year history. This type of architecture is representative of commercial structures that once existed on the street. Because this modest wooden structure predates more prominent and important buildings on the block, its significance becomes even more profound. It is the last remnant of an architectural type from an earlier time and place in history that is rapidly disappearing. 42
(b)13 It bears an important and significant relationship to other distinctive structures … by contributing to the overall character of the area … based on architectural, historic or cultural motif.
nacular building, with a simplicity that reflects the era of construction and the ethnic community it served. The fact that it has remained, with little alteration except for the front facade, is testimony to both the integrity of the original construction and the impoverishment of the surrounding area, which suffers from the persistent lack of resources for building maintenance and repair. The Maldonado Building maintains its architectural integrity on three facades. The stuccoed front facade while not original is a typical pattern of remodel for the neighborhood, but the integrity of the 80% of the building is still intact. 39
Casa Maldonado bears an important and significant relationship to other distinctive structures … by contributing to the overall character of the area … based on architectural, historic or cultural motif. The Maldonado house is next door to the Progreso Theater, the Progreso Drugstore and across the street from the Guadalupe Theater. For over 70 years, these four structures have stood side by side and defined a striking visual of the diverse architectural styles found within the Villa Guadalupe. The Maldonado house, which is a simple, two-story wood structure, built in the 1930s represents a working class family’s residential/commercial structure, as does the simple two-story height Progreso Theater, which catered to the poor and working class Mexican and Mexican-American families of the 1930s and 40s. Finally, the corner buildings of the Progreso Drugstore and Guadalupe Theater, built in the 1940s, were built to showcase the cultural pride of the Mexican and MexicanAmerican community of San Antonio. These last two buildings used Mexican craftsmen and laborers to construct the building and Mexican tiles were used to emphasize the relationship to the roots this community has in Mexico. 43
11
12
?
1952 Sanborn Map
important as one of so few historic buildings remaining on Guadalupe Street - a main thoroughfare of the near Westside.
Casa Maldonado is
this small radius have been demolished.
92% of buildings in
Only 12 remain.
In 1952, there were 143 buildings in the area between Brazos and San Jacinto, El Paso and Montezuma.
131 Lost
12 Saved
92% DEMOLISHED
Evidence of Historical Significance for 1312 Guadalupe Street 1) Villa Guadalupe Historic Resources Assessment prepared for the City of San Antonio by Andrew Perez Associates Architects in 1986, p. 3-5, 15, 119, 227-28. 2) Villa Guadalupe Historic Resources Assessment prepared for the City of San Antonio by Andrew Perez Associates Architects in 1986, p.5. 3) Villa Guadalupe Historic Resources Assessment prepared for the City of San Antonio by Andrew Perez Associates Architects in 1986, p.5. 4) Villa Guadalupe Historic Resources Assessment prepared for the City of San Antonio by Andrew Perez Associates Architects in 1986, p.6. 5) Villa Guadalupe Historic Resources Assessment prepared for the City of San Antonio by Andrew Perez Associates Architects in 1986, p.15. 6) Villa Guadalupe Historic Resources Assessment prepared for the City of San Antonio by Andrew Perez Associates Architects in 1986, p.15. 7) Villa Guadalupe Historic Resources Assessment prepared for the City of San Antonio by Andrew Perez Associates Architects in 1986, p. 227-28. 8) U.S. Latinos & Latinas and World War II Oral History Project, University of Texas, Austin. Interview with Ed Idar, organizer/ volunteer for the American G.I. Forum and the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund, December 2, 2000, in San Antonio, Texas, by Maggie Rivas-Rodriguez; Sanford N. Greenberg, “White Primary,” Handbook of Texas Online, Published by the Texas State Historical Association, accessed March 9, 2011; and Tejano Voices, Oral History Interview with Albert Peña Jr. Univ. of Texas Arlington, p.19, 1996. 9) San Antonio Express, June San Antonio Express, January San Antonio Express, February San Antonio Express, February San Antonio Light, October 24, Antonio Light, October 26, 1952.
29, 1950, 11, 1952, 20, 1952, 22, 1952, 1952, San
10) Tejano Voices, Oral History Interview with Albert Peña Jr. Univ. of Texas Arlington, p.16, 1996 and San Antonio Light, October 12, 1952. 11) San Antonio Express, February 29, 1948; San Antonio Express, March 30, 1948; San Antonio Light, March 21, 1948; San Antonio Light, May 14, 1948; San Antonio Light, June 6, 1948; San Antonio Light, October 24, 1952; San Antonio Light, October 26, 1952; San Antonio Express, October 14, 1952; San Antonio Express, August 15, 1954; San Antonio Express, August 19, 1954; San Antonio Express, August 20, 1954 12) May 2, 1967 paid advertising in newspaper
and San Antonio Light, July 17, 1970 13) San Antonio Express, November 3, 2009 and Personal interview with Cecilio “Snuffy” Martinez and Graciela Sanchez, April 2010 14) San Antonio Express, November 3, 2009 15) Personal interview with National President of LULAC, Rosa Rosales and Graciela Sanchez, Summer 2010 16) Villa Guadalupe Historic Resources Assessment prepared for the City of San Antonio by Andrew Perez Associates Architects in 1986, p.5 and Sanford N. Greenberg, “White Primary,” Handbook of Texas Online, Published by the Texas State Historical Association, accessed March 9, 2011 17) San Antonio Light, July 4, 1968 18) San Antonio Light, February 28, 1937; San Antonio Light, March 18, 1937; San Antonio Light, May 9, 1937; San Antonio Light, Aug. 30, 1937; San Antonio Light, September 5, 1937; San Antonio Light, September 30, 1937; San Antonio Light, October 3, 1937; San Antonio Light, October 10, 1937; San Antonio Light, April 10, 1938; San Antonio Light, May 15, 1938; San Antonio Express, July 7, 1948; San Antonio Express, July 28, 1951 and La Prensa, Spanish language newspaper, April 20, 1937 19) San Antonio Light, February 28, 1937; San Antonio Light, March 18, 1937; San Antonio Light, May 9, 1937; San Antonio Light, September 5, 1937; San Antonio Light, April 10, 1938; May 15, 1938; San Antonio Express, July 7, 1948; San Antonio Express, July 28, 1951
December 16, 1959; San Antonio Express, December 16, 1959; San Antonio Express, December 23, 1959 28) San Antonio Express, June 29, 1950; San Antonio Express, January 11, 1952; San Antonio Express, February 20, 1952; San Antonio Express, February 22, 1952 29) San Antonio Light, October 24, 1952; San Antonio Light, October 26, 1952; San Antonio Express, May 28, 1952; San Antonio, Express, July 19, 1953 30) San Antonio Express, October 14, 1952; San Antonio Express, August 15, 1954; San Antonio Express, August 19, 1954; San Antonio Express, August 20, 1954; San Antonio Express, August 25, 1954 31) San Antonio Express, October 14, 1952; San Antonio Express, August 15, 1954; San Antonio Express, August 19, 1954; San Antonio Express, August 20, 1954 32) Personal interview with Bill Sinkin and Graciela Sanchez, March 3, 2011 on video tape 33) Ibid 34) Tejano Voices, Oral History Interview with Albert Peña Jr. Univ. of Texas Arlington, page 16, 1996 and San Antonio Light, October 12, 1952. 35) Tejano Voices, Oral History Interview with Albert Peña Jr. Univ. of Texas Arlington, p.16, 1996 and San Antonio Express, July 19, 1953
21) La Prensa, Spanish language newspaper, April 20, 1937
36) San Antonio Express, May 16, 1954; San Antonio Light, February 11, 1955; San Antonio Light, May 28, 1958; San Antonio Light, July 10, 1960; San Antonio Light, August 4, 1960; San Antonio Light, March 31, 1961
22) San Antonio Express, August 19, 1939
37) San Antonio Light, July 4, 1968
23) San Antonio Express, August 8, 1943
38)Villa Guadalupe Historic Resources Assessment prepared for the City of San Antonio by Andrew Perez Associates Architects in 1986, p.6.
20) ibid
24) Sanford N. Greenberg, “White Primary,” Handbook of Texas Online, Published by the Texas State Historical Association, accessed March 9, 2011 and Tejano Voices, Oral History Interview with Albert Peña Jr. Univ. of Texas Arlington, page 19, 1996 25) San Antonio Express, February 29, 1948; San Antonio Express, March 30, 1948; San Antonio Light, March 21, 1948; San Antonio Light, May 14, 1948; San Antonio Light, June 6, 1948 26) Sanford N. Greenberg, “White Primary,” Handbook of Texas Online, Published by the Texas State Historical Association, accessed March 9, 2011 27) Galveston News, October 9, 1949; San Antonio Light, November 1, 1949; San Antonio Express, November 1, 1949; San Antonio Express, August 6, 1951; San Antonio Express, June 20, 1959; San Antonio Light,
39) Ibid, pp. 227-28 40) Ibid page 5 41) A Brief Overview: The Struggle for Inclusion: A History We must Preserve, by Rodolfo Rosales, Ph.D., March 16, 2011 42) Villa Guadalupe Historic Resources Assessment prepared for the City of San Antonio by Andrew Perez Associates Architects in 1986, pp 15 and 119. 43) United States Department of the Interior. National Park Service 1982:5, 17, 19, 28, 28 as found in Villa Guadalupe Historic Resources Assessment prepared for the City of San Antonio by Andrew Perez Associates Architects in 1986, p.199 and pp. 169, 229-30, 231-33.
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Of the 71 buildings from Guadalupe St. to S. Tampico found to have historic,
social & cultural significance
in 1986’s Villa de Guadalupe Historic Resources Assessment prepared for the City of San Antonio, only 20 survive today.
Westisde Historic Preservation Group and Community Members who have testified and organized in favor of saving and restoring Casa Maldonado Imelda Arismendez, Maria Antoinetta Berriozabal, Dwayne Bohuslav, Antonia Castañeda, Veronica Castillo, Adam Castillo, Yolanda Leyva Chavez, Laura Codina, Brenda Davis, Jose Garcia De Lara, Rachel Delgado, Anel Flores, Jo Flores, Juanita Gallardo, Tina Garza Moore, Monica Garcia, Daniel Gonzalez, David Gonzalez, Dan Gonzalez, Grace Gonzalez, Jerry Gonzales, Marisa Gonzalez, Abigail Grass, Jessica O. Guerrero, Amanda Haas, Jo Ann Herrera, Araceli Herrera, Mildrid Hilbrich, Grace Ibarra, Rachel Jennings, Amy Kastely, James Kitchen, Pak L. Lai, Carmen Lopez, Maru Lopez, Rachel Melendes, Angie Merla, Mary Ann Merla, Josie Merla Martin, Catie Merla Watson, Gilbert Morales, Jesus Najar, JJ Niño, Guadalupe Olguin, Aurora Olguin, Maricela Olguin, Barbara Pena, Lucy Perez, Ray Perez, Kamala Platt, Elizabeth Pople, Patti Radle, Rod Radle, Alvaro Ramirez, Gloria A Ramirez, Ana Lucia Ramirez, Joe “Bat” Ramirez, Sr. Ramon, Rocky Resendez, Sylvia Reyna, Genevieve Rodriguez, Samuel Rodriguez, Mary Agnes Rodriguez, Rudy Rosales, Rosa Rosales, Tiffany Ross, Hilda Ruiz, Humberto Salas, Alfonsina Salas Castillo, Graciela Sanchez, Isabel Sanchez, Enrique Sanchez, Bernard Sanchez, Gustavo Sanchez, Leticia Sanchez, Susana Segura, Carlos Salazar Solorzano, Cynthia Spielman, Fabiola Torralba, Sandra Jean Torres, Ana Uviedo, Ines Valdez, Maria Luisa Vasconcellos, Leticia Vela, Monica Velasquez, Rita Vidaurri, Jenny Wade, Rosalynn Warren, Molly Watt, Tomas Ybarra Frausto 2,000 Community Members have signed a petition to save the Casa Maldonado
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Esperanza Peace & Justice Center 922 San Pedro, San Antonio, Tx 78212 | www.esperanzacenter.org Phone (210) 228-0201 | Fax (210) 228-0000 5/5/2011