María de Jesús Smith (née Curbelo)

Numerous Anglo-Texians married women of Hispanic ancestry (Tejanas)including notables as Peter Ellis Bean, James Bowie, Erastus Deaf Smith and John W. Smith, while there are few instances on record of men of Hispanic ancestry, either Tejano or Mexican, who married Anglo-women. Most Texian accounts, particularly when under fire or imprisoned, speak admiringly without sexist tone of native Hispanic women they encountered. Why the difference?

My personal opinion is that in most cases it all boiled down to a matter of prejudice. Somehow it always seemed O.K. for the Anglo male tomingle with the "natives" but the reverse would have been way out of bounds.I think this can be see even today in society.

Robert L. Tarin, Jr.

Being a consistent protagonist, that to understand the present, oneneeds merely to study Texas history and culture in depth. I propose that the difference lies in the gap between the Mediterranean and Hispanic cult of machismo (macho) versus Anglo/Nordic male chauvinism (admitting that Anglo-Texians were not always perfect paradigms of male-female equality).The difference is one which still exists today between malesof the two societies and sub-cultures within cosmopolitan societiesas the USA. Anglo-Texian women were granted equality by Anglo-Texianmen, often out of necessity, in carving a society out of thefrontier wilderness with all its dangers from both depredating aboriginal vandals as well as threats to their reason for being from the hostile centralista faction of their adopted land. This equality was impossible to exercise by either an Anglo or Hispanic wife in a familial relationship with a male spouse dominated culturally by thecult of machismo. On average, it would be unthinkable for a macho male's spouse to mold bullets, load and fire rifles, kill and butcher animals, etc. Anglo women were unwilling to forego their relative equality while Tejanas/Mexicanas of equally strong constitution to any Anglo Texian readily accepted the fairly rare opportunity (rare because of many other cultural barriers) ofthe relative equality and respect enjoyed when married to an Anglo Texian husband.

Wallace L. McKeehan

The profit motive is a possible explanation as Anglo men were eligible to receive more land grants if they were married to Hispanic women.

Brian Huberman

Date: 11/ 26/98
From: Jeff Pendleton

I had not intended to submit on this question, as it seemed so simplethat we couldn't get up a good cat fight over it. But, after readingsome of your theories on this month's question, I have to say that I think that some of you guys need to put down the thesaurus and get out more often.

As a fellow who has done his share of traveling in third world countries(when a young buck) I can tell you very simply the cause of the disproportionate marriage statistics. SEX.

Single (both actual and geographical) men coming to Tejas, regardless of  their color and background, were still men with all the usual drives and desires. And being so, they pursued and often married the women who were available. Conversely, there just were no single Anglo women onthe frontier. That just wasn't done. The only single Anglo women would have been widows or perhaps divorcees who would have stayed in or returned to the white settlements in Texas where she would have been more comfortable. I guess a jaded person could see some racism in all this,but I think it is more a case of people gravitating to what is known familiar and comfortable.

Jeff Pendleton

Date: 11/22/98
From: Robert Tarin

Jeff....you don't have to be "jaded" to see prejudice. While I agree with your supposition that sex was the reason, I don't think it was the only reason. I have done some traveling in the world as a "young buck"also in different countries and know that both reasons do factor into the equation.

Robert Tarin

Date: 11/28/98
From: Robert A Carbajal

I'm sorry Mr. Mckeehan, while very elaborate in your arguments, you utterly failed in attempting to prove your thesis. Jeff Pendleton, on the other hand most probably hit the X-ring. The cultural diversity of the two peoples inhabiting early Texas certainly made for tiltilating stories regarding sexual preferences, capabilities, and desires. Unfortunately your "theories" on "Mexican Machoness" remind me of the stories the Anglo soldiers used to tell the local residents in Germany back in the early 70's. They too told stories to the local girls about how the black soldiers would grow "tails" when the sun went down. I choose to file your ideas in the same area.

Sometimes, stuff just happens!

Robert A. Carbajal

Date: 11/29/98
From: Wallace L. McKeehan

For this correspondent, the "prejudice" and "sex" reasons need further development, explanation or clarification. I thought these were positive/negativefactors in any hetero and homo spousal relationships, independent of species, race, culture since sexual differentiation.

The profit motive may be on target at least in the case of the Bowie example. Jim Bowie courted (always under the parents eyes of Don Juan and Josepha Navarro Veramendi) the beautiful 18 year old Ursala Veramendi for two years before Don Juan Veramendi would give her hand in marriage. On22 Apr 1831, Bowie signed his marriage dowry contract before Bexar alcalde José María Salinas which included:

"With due consideration for the virtue and other praiseworthy qualitiesof said wife, he offers her dowry by way of marriage to make whatever useshe may of it.15,000 pesos selected from his possessions of lands in theterritory of Arkansas.70,000 arpents of land at four reales each at lowestprice... in legal obligations and sufficient notes. certain individual notes.certain cotton and wool machinery in the state of Boston.certain furniture and articlesin use in his house.land under contract and to be acquired in this country.goodtitle to 15,000 arpents of land on the banks of the Colorado river, andin the Teche in Lousiana, valued at 75,000 pesos...he binds himself to payin money to future wife or representative in case the marriage be terminated."

The Bowie-Veramendi marriage and business contracts were tragically ended by the pale horseman carrying the Asiatic cholera of 1833 (takingBowie's wife, father-in-law, and other Veramendis) which devastated Mexicans including Mexican-Texians (notables as empresario Don Martin de Leon, alcaldeof San Felipe John Austin, and to this writer his 5th great-grandparents and DeWitt Colonists), a loss from which the teflon-coated swash-buckling land speculator, slave trader and "bravo" Bowie is believed to have nevertotally recovered (within days Navarro kin scarcely could recognize thepreviously care-free, now grieving caballero.). Hardly a relationship forged by prejudice and sex.

After 15 years in and out of Spanish prisons and contributing to theMexican independence movement under Jose Morelos, Texian Mexican Colonel Peter Ellis Bean earned the hand of Doña Magdalena Falfande los Godos of Hacienda La Banderilla in Jalapa. Was sex and prejudice a factor that motivated the 50 year old arthritic chieftain to return tothe Jalapan Doña who was waiting with open arms after his absenceof over 20 years? Well, maybe sex indirectly, the old chieftain had been earlier cuckolded by his Anglo wife Candace by co-habitation with who else, but Fredonian Rebellion leader and later Signer of the Texas Declaration of Independence, Martin Parmer.

I have not yet found details of the "love" stories that paired John Smith and Maria de Jesus Curbelo and "the eyes and ears of the Texian Army"Erastus Deaf Smith and Guadalupe Ruiz Duran, but I predict we will seeparallel and noble reasons as Bowie and Bean as well as most of the Anglomale-Mexicana female unions of consequence. Rejecting prejudice and sex,can we stretch it and say that John Smith's interracial marriage may have been motivated by political ambitions? Smith was the first mayor of San Antonio de Bexar under the Republic of Texas,re-elected twice, through Mar 1838 over a council of all Tejano aldermen Manuel Martinez, Francisco Bustillo, Ramon Trevino, Pedro Flores Moreles,Gabriel Arriola, Rafael Herrera, Francisco Granado and Francisco A. Ruiz,succeeded by Anglo William H. Dangerfield and then Tejano Antonio Menchacain whose terms there was only one Anglo alderman.

One interesting variant to the above sagas is the story of Anglo DeWitt Colonist MontravilleWoods who was so lovestruck he got in a hurry to pair up with the lovelyIsabella, daughter of Francisco Hidalgo Gonzales and his wife, Procopia Hidalgo Valdes (Hidalgo being a title of noble ancestry). The couple's elopement caused a fairly heated protest by father Francisco to alcaldeCummins of San Felipe, 1826, calling for punishment of Woods (son of ZadockWoods and brother of Gonsalvo Woods of The Dawson Massacre fame) and return of his daughter. Proper Catholic marriage and dowry solved the problemand Montraville became his father-in-law's respected lifetime business partner and agent-----could be in hindsight the profit motive at play again here.

More diarist descriptions of encounters with native women can be found in the Memoirs of Peter Ellis Bean and George Kendall, TheSanta Fe Expedition , both while prisoners Spain and Mexico, respectively.

Wallace L. McKeehan

Date: 11/30/98
From: John Bryant

Maybe I'm a romantic at heart, but why did there have to be an ulterior motive to any Tejana-Anglo Marriage? Two people meet and and fall in love no matter what their race or religion and this happens all the time even today. While there were no doubt many arranged marriages for financial and political reasons I prefer to believe that just because two people came from diverse backgrounds they still married for love.

John Bryant