The African Texans

Foreword

Illustrations ▼▼▼  Foreword The Institute of Texan Cultures opened in  with exhibits depicting the cultural groups that settled early Texas. The exhibit displays resulted from a massive research effort by many young scholars into the history and culture of Texas. This research served as the basis for writing what became known as “the ethnic pamphlet series.” The series included pamphlets devoted to such titles as the Swiss Texans, the Norwegian Texans, the Native American Texans, the Mexican Texans, the Greek Texans, the Spanish Texans, the African American Texans, the Chinese Texans, and many more. Some years later several books about additional cultural groups were produced.These included the Japanese Texans, the Irish Texans, the Polish Texans, and numerous others. Thirty years later, as staff reviewed the early pamphlets, it became obvious that although the material remained accurate, it was time for a revision with a fresh look. Thus emerged the Texans All book set. Organized by world regions, each volume briefly summarizes aspects of the social and cultural contributions made by the groups immigrating to Texas. The book series includes the five distinctive cultural groups that were in Texas or came to Texas before statehood and into the early twentieth century: The Indian Texans, The Mexican Texans, The European Texans, The African Texans, and The Asian Texans. Each author used an organizational pattern dictated by the content .(The African Texans is organized chronologically,for instance.) The content of each book does not follow a traditional history of battles and events in Texas, but rather addresses the cultures and the people as they formed early communities in Texas. The authors utilized primary sources to incorporate into the text, and sidebars provide biographical or topical sketches.As the manuscripts neared Foreword ▼▼▼  completion, maps were commissioned to illustrate the settlement areas of the various cultural groups in Texas. As the various immigrant groups adapted to the land and culture of others, and new generations were born and intermarried with other groups,their unique cultural identities began to weaken. For many their“old world”identity faded, and the ethnic origins of many communities began to disappear.With the twentieth-century exodus from rural communities to larger towns and cities, the distinctive cultural traditions and customs of rural communities further blurred. Many of the people presented here are unknown because several of the stories are about ordinary people who struggled to build a home and make a living in Texas. The majority of the more than three hundred photographs used in the series are from the Institute of Texan Cultures Research Library’s extensive photograph collection of over three million images relating to the people of Texas. This story of Africans in Texas is not the same as other immigrants . While some came as free men and women, most were uprooted from their homelands inAfrica and brought to Texas by force. Others came as property of the descendants of European immigrants who had settled in the United States. Many books recount the struggle of African Americans against their oppressors and offer comprehensive historical overviews. The content here summarizes and provides examples of the social and cultural contributions made byAfrican Texans as they built churches, formed schools, challenged the legal system, and sought economic opportunities to abolish the legacies of slavery and to stand proudly among the many diverse peoples of Texas. Sara R. Massey Introduction ▼▼▼  The African Texans Introduction ▼▼▼  African Texan settlement up to . Map by Jack Jackson ...