Papers, 1729-1967

Texas A&M University-San Antonio Digital Commons @ Texas A&M University-San Antonio Finding Aids: Guides to the Collection Archives & Special Collections 2020 Curtis (Albert) Papers, 1729-1967 DRT Collection at Texas A&M University-San Antonio Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.tamusa.edu/findingaids A Guide to the Albert Curtis Papers, 1729-1967 Descriptive Summary Creator: Curtis, Albert, 1897-1969 Title: Albert Curtis Papers Dates: 1729-1967 Creator An Ohio native, Albert Curtis (1897-1969) moved to Texas in 1933 and Abstract: eventually settled in San Antonio. While working as a civilian employee at San Antonio military bases, Curtis devoted much of his time to researching and writing, particularly on San Antonio, the Texas Revolution, and the Alamo. Content Manuscripts, correspondence, source material, and personal items make Abstract: up the Albert Curtis Papers, reflecting years of research and writing on the history of Texas. The bulk of the papers are edited typescripts. Many of these are works on the Texas Revolution, particularly the Battle of the Alamo and commander William Barret Travis. Identification: Col 1275 Extent: 13.09 linear feet (23 boxes, 3 oversize items) Language: Materials are in English. Repository: DRT Collection at Texas A&M University-San Antonio Biographical Note Born in Ohio in 1897, Albert Curtis came to Texas in 1933 after periods of residence in New Orleans, Louisiana, and North Carolina. A visit to the Alamo soon after his arrival sparked an interest in Texas history, an avocation he would pursue for the remainder of his life. After two years residence at the Veterans Administration hospital in Legion, Texas (now part of the town of Kerrville), Curtis moved to San Antonio, taking a room a short distance from the Alamo. After several years convalescence, he secured a civil service position, working first in the Office of Censorship during World War II and continuing as a civilian employee at Fort Sam Houston and Kelly Air Force Base. Much of Curtis' spare time was devoted to research on Texas history, particularly the Alamo and William Barret Travis. He apparently gained his first professional writing experience in Page 1 of 14 New Orleans in the 1920s, where he published pamphlets and short articles on local history, usually under the pen name "Stephen Curtis West." After his move to San Antonio he published Military San Antonio, a World War II-era guide to the city for military personnel containing chapters on historic events and places and sketches of the military history of the city. He expanded upon this work in a more ambitious project, Fabulous San Antonio, published by the Naylor Company of San Antonio in 1955. The book added detail on the events, places, and people of San Antonio, with an emphasis on the colorful episodes of city history and its prominent citizens and visitors. While his published output in the area was relatively small, the subject that occupied much of Curtis's research time was the Battle of the Alamo and the commander of the Texan defenders, William Barret Travis. A tireless researcher, Curtis sought out and reviewed primary sources from libraries, archives, and private collections in Texas and beyond. His written output suggests an ambition to complete a full-length treatment of the battle or a Travis biography; a portion of his output was published in two illustrated pamphlets Remember the Alamo and Remember the Alamo Heroes, both privately-printed in 1961. The former incorporated some of Curtis' research on Travis, James Butler Bonham, and the Battle of the Alamo; the latter presented documentary information on the other Texan defenders of the Alamo. Curtis continued to revise and rearrange his chapters on the subject, and his correspondence indicates he sought a publisher for a larger work, but much of what he produced remained unpublished. Albert Curtis died in San Antonio on 1969 September 25. His papers were willed to Octavia West Jones, who later donated them to the Daughters of the Republic of Texas Library. Evidence indicates that some of the Curtis papers remained in her possession and were dispersed upon her death. Scope and Content Note Manuscripts, source material, correspondence and personal items make up the Albert Curtis Papers, reflecting years of research and writing on the history of Texas. The bulk of the papers are edited typescripts. Many of these are works on the Texas Revolution, particularly the Battle of the Alamo and commander William Barret Travis. The earliest items in the collection are photocopies and transcriptions of original documents. Organization of Collection This collection is organized into four series. Series 1: Writings Series 2: Correspondence Series 3: Research material Page 2 of 14 Series 4: Personal papers Restrictions Access Restrictions No restrictions. The collection is open for research. Usage Restrictions Please be advised that the library does not hold the copyright to most of the material in its archival collections. It is the responsibility of the researcher to secure those rights when needed. Permission to reproduce does not constitute permission to publish. The researcher assumes full responsibility for conforming to the laws of copyright, literary property rights, and libel. Index Terms Personal Names Curtis, Albert, b. 1897. Borden, Gail, 1801-1874. Travis, William Barret, 1809-1836. Subjects Alamo defenders. Authors, American--Texas. Missions--Texas--San Antonio. Locations Alamo (San Antonio, Tex.) Alamo (San Antonio, Tex.)--Siege, 1836. New Orleans (La.)--Description and travel. San Antonio (Tex.)--Description and travel. San Antonio (Tex.)--History. San Felipe (Tex.)--History. Texas--History. Genres/Formats Personal papers. Correspondence. Manuscripts. Notebooks. Page 3 of 14 Related Material Albert Curtis Collection, 1962-1965, Dolph Briscoe Center for American History, The University of Texas at Austin. Administrative Information Preferred Citation Albert Curtis Papers, 1729-1967, Col 1275, DRT Collection at Texas A&M University- San Antonio. Acquisition Information Gift of Octavia West Jones in memory of Sally Ward Beretta, 1979 June. Processing Information Processed by Warren Stricker, 1999 October. Finding aid edited and encoded by David Gallin-Parisi, 2011 August. Finding aid updated by Rebeka Delgado, 2020 April. Detailed Description of the Collection Series 1: Writings The bulk of the papers are part of this series, which consists of edited typescripts and published works. The typescripts were generally loosely organized, if at all, and the author frequently rewrote and reorganized chapters and sections in various ways. As most of this work remained unpublished, and since the author did not consistently specify his intentions, it is often difficult to determine the intended grouping of chapters within a larger framework. A number of tables of contents are found with the typescripts; however, Curtis' frequent changes make these only partly reliable as a guide. The typescripts have been arranged by title, if one is present, or by subject matter for untitled works. This arrangement is often tentative and is based on the author's occasional grouping of sections in binders, the presence of a working title, or other internal evidence that suggests the order of completion, such as a similarity of format or the inclusion of the author's various addresses. A large part of this series is devoted to works on the Texas Revolution, particularly the Battle of the Alamo and the role of William Barret Travis. The best-organized work is titled "Remember the Alamo: Biography of the Alamo Commander William Barret Travis," which includes twenty short chapters on the battle and the subsequent history of Page 4 of 14 the Alamo. Another well-ordered work is "Remember the Alamo: William Barret Travis Biography," which focuses more closely on Travis and his role in the history of Texas. The other titled works are generally less organized or complete. Untitled manuscripts arranged under subject often include some duplication of chapters or content from other groupings. Some of this material was incorporated into the two published works Remember the Alamo and Remember the Alamo Heroes, but a final manuscript of these two works has not been identified. Other subjects are also covered in the manuscripts, and another of the better-organized titled works deals with the history of the town of San Felipe de Austin, including a lengthy chapter on Gail Borden, Jr. San Antonio history is covered in a typescript entitled "Mission Stars Over San Antonio" on the Spanish missions of the area, and under untitled groupings which cover some of the subject matter dealt with in Curtis' published writings on San Antonio. A work on New Orleans history, "Perfume Creole," presents vignettes of local color. Unsorted and unidentified manuscripts generally consist of incomplete or disordered sections that could not be reliably identified. Shorter works include fiction, a number of articles on San Antonio topics, a small amount of poetry, and miscellaneous writings. Copies of some of Curtis' published works are included here, Military San Antonio in the form of edited galley proofs. Box Folder 1 Manuscripts Alamo Tourist Book 1 Tour of the Alamo Grounds, 2 copies 2 Alamo Secularization - End of the Mission Period, 2 copies 3 Alamo Mission Memorabilia, 2 copies The Fabulous Alamo 4 Tribute to the Alamo, by Major General Herbert L. Grills, Former Commander, Lackland Airforce Base, 1957 Pilgrimage to the Alamo, 1958

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