It is time South Texas reclaimed the story of the cowboy.
The Witte Museum is uniquely poised to tell the incredible stories of A Wild and Vivid Land of Indians, Calvary, Longhorn cattle, trail drives, Farm-to-Market roads, and oil. Located at the headwaters of the San Antonio River, the Witte’s footprint is on an historic Apache encampment, where early European settlers developed a center for commerce that incorporated the best of many cultures.
In 2006-2007, the Witte prototyped a South Texas Heritage Center with its groundbreaking exhibit: A Wild and Vivid Land: Stories of South Texas. Seen by more than 100,000 visitors, this interactive, high-tech experience proved that people want to know the history of South Texas.
The legend, and even some real cowboys, have wandered as far north as Calgary, Canada. But it all began between the Nueces and the Rio Grande rivers, where Spanish vaqueros began raising livestock in what was then Northern Mexico. The original cowboy is from South Texas.
While the cowboy remains a stalwart icon, his world has changed: South Texas became part of Texas and then the United States. Those Spanish Land Grants became the legendary King, Kennedy, Yturria, Garcia, and Armstrong ranches. Trails became highways. Oil displaced agriculture as the economic leader. And newcomers began to forge new tales about the men and women who tamed South Texas.
The planned South Texas Heritage Center willcombine unique art and objects from the Witte Museum collections with technology and theatrical set exhibits to present the history of South Texas and its capitol, San Antonio, in a way that has never been seen before. Stories are as much a part of the history of the area as the collections and those stories will be central to the South Texas Heritage Center presentation.
The Witte Museum’s South Texas collection is the largest of its kind in the world. These artifacts - saddles, spurs, branding irons, land deeds, rifles and more - are lasting links to the past which must be put into context for their important stories to unfold. The planned South Texas Heritage Center will provide a permanent home for the Witte’s renowned South Texas collection. Here, the great stories will emerge in real-time narratives, beginning in San Antonio’s Main Plaza of 1847. The story of South Texas will be told conceptually from 1850 to 1950, alongside hundreds of artifacts dating from the 16th century to the 20th century.
Through technology, visitors will “encounter” vaqueros, cowboys, 19th century hotel workers, dry-goods storeowners and familiar figures, including Juan Seguín, Mary Maverick, Davy Crockett, and Richard King. In this way, the stories of South Texas will be preserved, so young and old will learn how it all began. And, they will be reminded that the cowboy is indeed from South Texas. |
