Do more than remember the Alamo
Updated 4:59 pm, Monday, March 5, 2012
“Remember the Alamo!” On this day 176 years ago, that cry issued forth across Texas as the siege of the old Spanish mission came to a bloody end.
Despite the admonition, the remains of the Alamo were allowed to deteriorate over the decades that followed the famous battle. The Alamo may have been the Cradle of Texas Liberty, but both as an independent republic and as a state, Texas showed little interest in preserving the site.
Nor was there much interest in preserving an accurate version of the Alamo narrative. The mutual struggle of recent Texian settlers and native Tejanos against a military dictator who fancied himself the “Napoleon of the West” receded from memory. A triumphalist version of an ethnic conflict emerged, aided and abetted by popular culture, beginning in 1915 with the silent film, “Martyrs of the Alamo.”
The physical remains of the Alamo were saved a century ago by Clara Driskill and Adina De Zavala, and then preserved by the Daughters of the Republic of Texas. Historians such as Dr. Lino Garcia Jr., professor emeritus at the University of Texas-Pan American, and Dr. Félix Almaráz at UTSA have helped revive an accurate historical record of Texas history and the Tejano role in it.
After several years of controversial management of the historic site by the DRT, the Legislature last year made the General Land Office the new custodian of the Alamo. New DRT leaders, working with Land Commissioner Jerry Patterson, have taken some positive steps toward improving preservation efforts, providing a more comprehensive history and making DRT operations more transparent and accountable.
Much more can be done to make the Alamo, which is owned by the state, and Alamo Plaza, which is owned by the city, a world-class attraction, one that is commensurate with the Alamo's place in Texas history and that complements efforts to revitalize downtown San Antonio.
The proposed municipal bond package San Antonio voters will consider in May contains $1.2 million for Alamo Plaza, one of the largest single expenditures. Planning already is under way to transform the plaza, including proposals to restrict or close adjacent streets to vehicular traffic.
A workshop on plans for Alamo Plaza will take place Wednesday at 5:30 p.m. in the Central Library Auditorium. We encourage the public to take part in this process and to take a greater interest in operations at the Alamo. Remembering the Alamo is not enough. Texans and San Antonians should be committed to preserving its structures and history for future generations.