Letters and Letter Writing at MOSTHistory

Letters and Letters and Letter Writing Letter Writing

at MOSTHistory

by Francisco Guajardo, CEO at MOSTHistory

The Museum of South Texas History holds veritable treasures in separate collections of letters The collection of letters from Congressional Medal of Honor recipient Sgt. Freddy González is such an example, as the Edinburg native wrote more than 150 letters to his mother from Vietnam. The museum also holds a collection of letters from Mexican American War Captain Charles Henry Chapman, who wrote letters to his wife between 1846 and 1847. The museum featured three Chapman letters at a conference on the history of the Mexican American War. In one letter, Chapman ruminates on his thirsty soldiers who mistakenly drank

from one of the salt lakes as they marched from Corpus Christi into the challenging . terrain of South Texas. In a letter from March 27, 1846, Chapman wrote, “Many a poor fellow was sadly disappointed when on leaving the column and running hastily to these ponds and dipping up a cup full, would find it as salt and brine.” On May 2, 1846, Chapman described his Mexican adversaries as “these cowardly scoundrels” who were “wiling (sic) to commit murder upon one or two defenseless individuals but dare not face a body of men prepared to fight.” When Sgt. Freddy González arrived in North Carolina for basic training during the

summer of 1965, he promptly began his letter-writing campaign. He wrote five letters to his mother, Dolia, in his first week away from home.

Sgt. González’s letters persisted between 1965 and 1968, shortly before dying during the Tet Offensive at the Battle of Hue. In his penultimate letter, Sgt. González mourned the passing of his childhood friend, Victor Espinoza.

On Jan. 24, 1968, Sgt. González wrote, “Mother, I was shocked to hear that Victor got killed, but it’s things that will happen in war...I hope all the people back home remember Victor cause he didn’t die for nothing.”

The museum has used Sgt. González’s letter to engage local teachers and students in the art of letter writing. The response has been positive and enthusiastic.

One teacher noted, “We need these kinds of historical documents to inspire our students to write.”

It is clear the museum must continue its role as the preserver and presenter of regional history and heritage.