Cameron County Historical Commission
Regular Meeting-June 12, 2005-Port Isabel Museum
"ORAL HISTORY SURVEY"
The following information is merely a sample of the type of information we would
like to generate in each of the communities in our Cameron County.
In each town we know efforts have been made in past years to collect the
treasured information our honored "elders" possess in their minds and hearts.
Now, leading up to 2010, and before, our Oral History Committee of the CCHC
would like to see how our intentional and concerted efforts might be utilized to
accumulate a central listing of the 'holdings' in each community.
This could be an ongoing addition to our CCHC Website, with the information made
available to everyone ----Where and How and Who might be found in . (That blank
would be filled in with the names and addresses of churches, schools, libraries,
museums -wherever we identify authentic topics and usable formats in each town.)
For several years we have been trying to get an organized panel of interviewers
to begin "doing" this. ( Port Isabel has made "Our Stories" a part of their
Museum's holdings and Brownsville also.) Think about yours!
Rather than being stopped again because of lack of personnel, we decided to take
that first step for doing Research-"Survey the literature!" Remember those
words?
We are asking each of you to take a Form#1. (It was approved by George Gause
when we went to interview him regarding trying to set up a Harlingen Collection,
but you may have one much better-That's great, please share with us !) Begin to
make your lists with locations, people, and phone #'s
DON'T WAIT TILL THE NEXT MEETING! Go out this coming week and talk to the people
and places that might have been used-Some we have been given for our Archive
Room were made by Betty Murray and others for the Sesquicentennial in '87-Erase
that!, Use the phone &email in this heat! Contacts: Mary Lou Rumbo, 956-423-5727
Betty Jo Dunlap- 956797-2272. also, Betty Jo has a fax 956-797-2561 and I have
email rumbomarv.~Iaol.com PLEASE, GET EXCITED; WE CAN DO THIS!!
I
WHAT? WHO? WHERE? (Sample Draft)
_(June, 2005)
A "Beginning " List of audio cassette tapes in the Archive Room of the Harlingen
Public Library (410 '76 Drive, Harlingen, Texas 78550phone,956-430-6631
(Archivist, Tim Reynolds)
Jane Base McGill Collection
(Tapes donated by Stacie Hill Nickleson. copies of tapes her mother ("Sunshine"
Hill Caul made in the "70's covering various topics .) 1. "Shine" and Mac Caul-"Courtship",commuting
by train from Brownsville6/ 11 /05.
2. Dr. Vinsant and ".Miss Nelly", other topics of their time, including Bandits.
3. Sunshine, 1977-Varied topics and memories of family.
Collection of 23 tapes made by Betty Murray and others-Subjects for
interviews include information used in organizing the Rio Grande Valley Museum
in Harlingen's display of historic buildings and important topics from their
years-tapes made from all over the Valley. (The early years of the Historical
Society was inclusive of "the lower Rio Grande Valley", hence the name given to
this Museum. It was the first to begin collections from various nearby towns.
Its "Newsletters" were published on a regular basis from 1940's into 1970's.)
Many of you may remember these years.
Personalities:
,.Albert A. Champion & "Papa Nona". (C. Rotter) no date
2. J. E. Koger-"Early Years, 1914-1930" (Betty Murray, 1/28/86) (2 tapes)
3. Garcia Brothers (Tapes 1, 2. 4,)done by (J. E. Koger) 4. Beth Snow-{Betty
Murray, no date)
5. E. O. Matz, to Tip 0 Tex Genealogical Society,(May 19, 1983)
6. Maxine Shaddix Harris done by (Charlotte Dahm)
7. "Flint" Harris (Charlotte Dahm) These are parents of Dr. Max Harris
of Harlingen
8. Henry Hartzog "Rio Hondo", 1 '/2 tapes done by (Theresa Wiseman) "Land Drives
and Land Development"
Personalities (continued)
9. First afternoon, July 1. 20011 in the Archive Room-Random conversation by
Julie Uhlhom. Elizabeth Garrett, Betty Murray. Mildred Bennett, Mary Lou Rumbo.
"Living through the "33 hurricane"
Doctors
IO.Oscar Hamilton. M.D. (2/26/87) (Dermatologist)
11. David Nickell- M.D. (2/21/87) Husband of Betty Lou Hill. No relation of Lon
C.---(Surgeon)
12. Howard Tewell, M.D. (2/19/87) (Internal Medicine-Founder of Valley
Diagnostic)
13. John Packard,M.D. (2/23/87) (Urologist) 14. David W. Flory,M.D. (3/4/87) (
Pathologist) 15. Robert Jackson, M.D. (3/87) (Surgeon)
16. Archie Martin,M.D. 2/3/87) Radiologist, also Harlingen Air Base
Hospital Commandant during two separate tours of duty. Husband of
Muriel (Kiester)Martin, WASP pilot, now in Texas Air Hall of Fame. 17. John A.
Welty, M.D. (2/4/87) Founder of Children's Clinic
(Pediatrician)
18. Juan Dieck, M.D. (3/8/87) ( General practice; served on Board of Valley
Rehabilitation & Treatment Center for 20+ years.)
Miscellaneous Topics of Interest
19. Maria Teresa Rosas (Migrant) (10/5/94)
20. "Bandit Raids" (Master and copy) Louis Schuler (No date)
NOTE: This listing does not include interviews or programs of HHPS that have
been recorded on VHS video tapes, and microcassette audio tapes in the last 4
years. This is a "work in progress"
Mary Lou Rumbo, Historian HHPS
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