Born in 1904 on her grandparents' ranch in Roma, Texas, pioneering folklorist and educator Jovita González felt a deep commitment to the people and culture of South Texas. She traveled throughout Cameron, Starr, and Zapata counties, interviewing residents of the borderlands. González captured the voices of ordinary Mexican Americans seeking to preserve their cultural traditions during a period of tumultuous change. In 1930, the same year she received her master’s degree in history, González became the first Mexican American president of the Texas Folklore Society. More»


Portrait of Jovita González, 1931. E. E. Mireles and Jovita González Mireles Papers, Special Collections and Archives, Bell Library, Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi.