Handy Ranch
Donna, Hidalgo County, Texas
Marker Inscription
Thomas J. Handy (1843-1927) first came to the Rio Grande Valley from Wisconsin as a Union solider during the Civil War. While stationed with Co. F, 4th Wisconsin cavalry, handy met Angelita Cavazos (ca. 1844-1925). The two were married on April 25, 1866 at her family’s asadores ranch, located along the military highway that paralleled the rio grande. After the war, Handy became a farmer and rancher and U.S. Customs inspector, stationed along the military highway. Thomas purchased 2214 acres of land along the Rio Grande in 1878 and Angelita later inherited family property, making the Handys significant land owners in the area. By the 1960s, most of the handy property had been sold, with a large portion sold to the city of Alamo.
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Thomas J. Handy came to the lower Rio Grande as a Union cavalryman during the Civil War and stayed to build a life on the border. In 1866 he married Angelita Cavazos at her family's ranch along the old military highway, and together the couple became substantial landowners, joining an Anglo newcomer's fortunes to a rooted Tejano ranching family. Handy farmed, ranched, and served as a U.S. Customs inspector, and the family's holdings shaped the land around present-day Alamo for nearly a century.
Why it matters
The Handy Ranch embodies the blending of Anglo and Tejano families that redrew landholding and society in the Rio Grande Valley in the decades after the Civil War.
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Related people
- · Thomas J. Handy
- · Angelita Cavazos
Themes & tags
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