Texas town looks to tell story of Mexican guest workers
Posted March 04, 2017 6:00 am
DALLAS (AP) - A Texas border town is working to restore what is believed to be the only remaining site that once helped process the millions of Mexicans who came to the U.S. as temporary guest workers under a program that started during World War II.
The crumbling white adobe buildings at Rio Vista Farm in Socorro were the arrival point for "braceros" - Spanish for laborers. The braceros came to the U.S. to work on farms and railroads as part of a program in the middle part of the 20th century.
Local officials and preservationists hope to turn Rio Vista Farm into a site that will tell the story of the workers and a largely forgotten program that lasted for about 20 years.
This undated photo provided by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services' (USCIS) History Library and the National Trust for Historic Preservation, shows temporary clerks completing the short-term labor contracts and identification cards. Each clerk was proficient in both Spanish and English. The bracero program is the largest guest-worker program in our nation's history and recruited 4.6 million skilled Mexican nationals. (United States Citizenship and Immigration Services' (USCIS) History Library/National Trust for Historic Preservation via AP)
The Associated Press
This undated photo provided by the National Trust for Historic Preservation shows a building in the historic Rio Vista Farm in Socorro, Texas. The Texas border town is working to restore crumbling white adobe buildings that were once a processing site for millions of Mexicans who came to the U.S. as temporary guest workers for more than two decades starting in World War II. Local officials and preservationists want to create a site that will tell the stories of the âbracerosâ who worked on farms and railroads. (National Trust for Historic Preservation via AP)
The Associated Press
This undated photo provided by the National Trust for Historic Preservation shows a building in the historic Rio Vista Farm in Socorro, Texas. The Texas border town is working to restore crumbling white adobe buildings that were once a processing site for millions of Mexicans who came to the U.S. as temporary guest workers for more than two decades starting in World War II. Local officials and preservationists want to create a site that will tell the stories of the âbracerosâ who worked on farms and railroads. (National Trust for Historic Preservation via AP)
The Associated Press
This undated photo provided by the National Trust for Historic Preservation shows a building in the historic Rio Vista Farm in Socorro, Texas. The adobe structure shows deterioration that is evident throughout the entire complex. The Texas border town is working to restore crumbling white adobe buildings that were once a processing site for millions of Mexicans who came to the U.S. as temporary guest workers for more than two decades starting in World War II. Local officials and preservationists want to create a site that will tell the stories of the âbracerosâ who worked on farms and railroads. (National Trust for Historic Preservation via AP)
The Associated Press
This undated photo provided by the National Trust for Historic Preservation shows a building in the historic Rio Vista Farm in Socorro, Texas. The Texas border town is working to restore crumbling white adobe buildings that were once a processing site for millions of Mexicans who came to the U.S. as temporary guest workers for more than two decades starting in World War II. Local officials and preservationists want to create a site that will tell the stories of the âbracerosâ who worked on farms and railroads. (National Trust for Historic Preservation via AP)
The Associated Press
This undated photo provided by the National Trust for Historic Preservation shows a building in the historic Rio Vista Farm in Socorro, Texas. The center adobe structure built in 1935 was once the recreation hall for the County Poor Farm. The Texas border town is working to restore crumbling white adobe buildings that were once a processing site for millions of Mexicans who came to the U.S. as temporary guest workers for more than two decades starting in World War II. Local officials and preservationists want to create a site that will tell the stories of the âbracerosâ who worked on farms and railroads. (National Trust for Historic Preservation via AP)
The Associated Press