Villarreal, Antonio 2020-10-15
The interview focuses on race relations and politics in Edwards County and Pecos County Texas through the life of Antonio Perez Villarreal. Thus, the interview discusses, at length, genealogical material regarding the Villarreal and Perez families in Rocksprings, Texas. Moreover, it details many personal reflections and stories from his childhood. Of particular interest is the story of the infamous lynching of Antonio Rodrigues. Villarreal discusses the events lasting traumatic effects on the community. However, most of the discussion focuses on Villarreal’s career in public service. The interview outlines his run for city council and county commissioner in Edwards County, as well as details his time as a public servant in Ft. Stockton. The interview also contains information on labor conditions, social life, and migration patterns in Texas.
General Interview Information
Interviewee Name: Antonio Villarreal
Additional Parties Recorded:
Date: October 15, 2020
Location: via phone
Interviewer: Zachary Hernandez
Length: 01:57:54 (1 hour 57 minutes)
Abstract
Introduction and family history; Lessons he learned from his grandfather and father; Spending time with family; Marrying his wife young; being elected to the Rocksprings city council; His experiences during his first term as a city council member; Working for a winery and moving to Fort Stockton; Educating voters; The G.I. Forum and facing racism and discrimination; Running for mayor of Fort Stockton; working as the mayor; Creating opportunities for Fort Stockton’s residents as mayor
Access Information
Original Recording Format: born digital
Recording Format Notes: patrons may listen to audio in our reading room
Transcript: transcript available on dspace <https://hdl.handle.net/10605/375397 >
Related Interview: Villarreal, Antonio 2020-10-22
Thank you for your interest in this oral history interview. Our oral history collection is available to patrons in the Southwest Collection's Reading Room, located on the campus of Texas Tech University. For reading room hours, visit our website. Please contact Reference Staff at least one week prior to your visit to ensure the oral history you are interested in will be available. Due to copyright issues, duplications of our oral histories can only be made for family members. If an oral history transcript has been made available online, the link will be provided on this page. More information on accessing our oral histories is located here. Preferred citation style can be found here.
