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Mexican American folklorist, writer, teacher, speaker, and cultural historian, Jovita Gonzales de Mireles, was born in Roma, Texas, near the Texas-Mexico Border as a fifth-generation descendant of a land-grant family, she was born and raised on her grandparents’ rancho, Las Viboras, where she heard stories and legends from the people who lived and worked there. Their experiences influenced her throughout her life. Jovita moved with her family to San Antonio in 1910 and she completed the high school equivalency by the age of 18. She earned a scholarship at our lady of the Lake College in San Antonio, while studying and teaching Spanish at a local school. Jovita earned her bachelor’s degree in 1927. Meanwhile, in the summer of 1925, she was introduced to J. Frank Dobie, noted Texas historian and folklorist, who encouraged her to write about her heritage and culture. In 1929, Jovita was awarded a Lapham Scholarship to conduct research along the border. This award allowed her to complete her master’s thesis at the University of Texas. Jovita’s literary abilities, combined with her authentic knowledge of south Texas, gave her an authority within the field of Texas folklore studies. She gave lectures at Texas Folklore Society (TFS) meetings and was the first and only Mexican American woman to serve as president of TFS. Jovita’s writings, articles, novels, and Spanish school curriculum books were celebrated. She also wrote two novels which went unpublished until they were discovered in the archives at Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi: Dew on the Thorn (1996) and Caballero (1997). Jovita taught Spanish and history in Corpus Christi until her retirement in 1966. She was active in LULAC, sponsored many academic and social clubs, and co-created to Pan American Club of Corpus Christi. Jovita died in 1983 and is buried at Rose Hill Memorial Park. (2017) |
