Interviewee

Lucina González Loza

Interviewer

Steve Velásquez

Project

Bracero Oral History

Biographical Synopsis of Interviewee

Lucina González Loza was born on June 30, 1923, in San José del Paso, in the municipality of Manuel Doblado, Guanajuato, México; she had two sisters and one brother; her mother, Victoria Zamora, was a housewife, and her father, José de Jesús González, was a blacksmith; Lucina was formally educated through the second grade; she grew up helping her mother at home; when she was fifteen years old, she married Cayetano Loza Ornelas; they had twelve children, six boys and six girls; two of her sons, Juan and Manuel, enlisted in the bracero program.

Summary of Interview

Ms. González talks about her family and what her life was like growing up; in 1938, when she was fifteen years old, she married Cayetano Loza Ornelas, who was twenty-two years old; a year later, they had their first son, Juan; they went on to have thirteen children in total, six boys and six girls, but one son passed away; two of their sons, Juan and Manuel, enrolled in the bracero program; Juan enlisted when he was roughly thirty years old, and two years later, Manuel joined him at the age of twenty; although they did not earn much, the money they sent home went a very long way; their departure weighed heavily on Lucina, and she prayed for them daily; Juan told her that her prayers helped him survive in spite of all that he suffered; Manuel and Juan often brought small gifts home for everyone; Juan once brought a radio, and everyone loved it; she also describes how Manuel would have someone else write letters home for him, because he did not know how to write very well; she insisted that he write them on his own; when he did, she was the only one who could understand the letters; in addition, she talks about how life on the ranch changed when they were gone; Lucina goes on to explain which of her children later came to the United States; two of her sons, Juan and Pedro, live in Chicago, Illinois, and the rest of her children live in Manuel Doblado, Guanajuato, México.

Date of Interview

7-30-2007

Length of Interview

51 minutes

Tape Number

No. 1289

Transcript Number

No. 1289

Length of Transcript

32 pages

Interview Number

No. 1289

Terms of Use

Unrestricted

Comments

Interview in Spanish.

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