Texans fight off the Mexican army during Saturday’s reenactment of the Battle of San Jacinto at the Texas Independence Day Celebration in San Benito. (Photo by Rodrigo Davila)
By CHRISTINA R. GARZA
Special to the NEWS
Texas history came alive this past weekend as hundreds of people filled the South Texas Youth Stock Show grounds in San Benito for day two of the Texas Independence Day Celebration.
Live music and the smell of barbeque filled the air as caliche and dust were blown in the strong wind gusts of the fifth annual event. The festival ran the gamut of Texas tradition with food cooked over open flame, lone star flags and re-enactors dressed as vaqueros and soldiers of the Texas army. A raccoon skin cap could be seen gracing the head of a festival-goer despite the heat.
Attendees watched with baited breath during the re-enactments of the Battle of Bexar and the Battle of the Alamo. Re-enactors commanded the attention of the crowd as they rode in on horseback in full regalia. Ruben and Anabeth Cordova of the Texas Independence Day Committee made a fetching historically accurate pair. Ruben was dressed as a vaquero, with deep blue jacket with red trim and broadfall pants and tall riding boots. Anabeth wore a full bright red skirt and puffy white blouse as part of her “soldadera” or camp follower outfit for her re-enactment presentation. Although the most utilitarian part of her costume was the small knife she wore around her neck, “They carried a utility knife with them because everywhere they went they needed to keep it handy,” Cordova said. Women in the Mexican army during the battles for Texas independence wore many hats out of necessity.
“In the Mexican army a lot of the wives, sisters or girlfriends, if they had nothing else at home they would follow the men and cook for them and nurse them. A lot of times they would even pick up a gun if they needed to. They were paid by the Mexican army,” Cordova said.
The festival wasn’t all gun smoke and glory. The San Benito Fire Department as well as Rudy “Tejano” Peña, a cultural historian had tables set up to forge stronger ties with the community. Peña is a strong advocate of Tejano culture, saying “Tejanos were born Tejanos, we need to know our culture and where we came from.”
Diana Bates, of the Texas Independence Day Committee, hung art work from San Benito school children ranging from grades kinder through eighth who had submitted their depictions of Texas independence for an art show. Ribbons were pinned to the colorful drawings. The artworks were judged on their content, creativity and theme. Bates hopes other school districts can participate in future Texas Independence Day art shows. “I think this year they heard about it a little late, but we would love more participation from other schools next year,” Bates said.
Among the Texas fare was a traditional cowboy staple, “pan de campo” or camp bread was a festival favorite. The Lone Star Dutch Oven Society was requested to bake pan de campo in a Dutch oven. This cooking method is commonly used outdoors as it requires hot coals. But it is not limited to savory pan de campo, Melissa Golnick of the Lone Star Dutch Oven society explained, “Anything you can cook in a regular oven can be cooked in a Dutch oven.” The pan de campo baked in the Dutch oven took about 10 minutes to cook on each side before the warm bread was removed from the oven. It was salty and substantial, the perfect addition to the steaming fresh chili it was made to accompany.
In addition to the pan de campo, the sizzling barbeque was a feast for the senses. Pit paradise lie just beyond the show ground’s warehouse. Barbeque pits surrounded by pit crews with Nascar precision tended to juicy cuts of beef and chicken. Edwardo Campos of the Meat Beaters, a lower Rio Grande Valley pit crew, entered the festival’s first annual International Barbeque Cookers Association cook off. “We wanted to get involved because it was the first year and we want to grow with the community. We want more events like this.”
Read this story in the March 13 edition of the San Benito News, or subscribe to our E-Edition by clicking here.
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