Interviewer
Myrna Parra-Mantilla
Project
Bracero Oral History
Biographical Synopsis of Interviewee
Herminio Quezada Durán was born in Satevó, Chihuahua, México, in 1925, to a family of farmers; he had ten siblings; upon his father’s passing in 1949, he and his family moved to Chihuahua, Chihuahua; he became a bracero in 1952, at the age of twenty-seven; he worked in Colorado, Texas, New Mexico, and Utah.
Summary of Interview
Mr. Quezada briefly recalls having been born and raised in Satevó, Chihuahua, México; his entire family worked on ranches; when his father passed away in 1949, he and his family moved to Chihuahua, Chihuahua; prior to becoming a bracero, he worked illegally in the United States; in 1952, he was hired under the Bracero Program; he recalls that Fort Bliss, in El Paso, Texas, was the first reception center he encountered as a bracero; he was then taken to Rio Vista, a processing center in Socorro, Texas ; he remembers that none of the braceros wanted to go to Pecos, Texas, because the fields there were enormous; for this reason, many braceros were hired; the ranchers often had agreements between each other to exchange or trade braceros as necessary for work; many braceros preferred working in the central United States; braceros cooked their own meals; stewards would take them to grocery stores to buy their supplies.
Date of Interview
12-20-2002
Length of Interview
50 minutes
Listen to the Interview
Tape Number
No. 987
Transcript Number
No. 987
Length of Transcript
33 pages
Interview Number
No. 987
Terms of Use
Unrestricted
Recommended Citation
Interview with Herminio Quezada Durán by Myrna Parra-Mantilla, 2002, "Interview no. 987," Institute of Oral History, University of Texas at El Paso.
Comments
Interview in Spanish.