Bill and Marjorie Walraven Papers

Collection — Multiple Containers

Identifier: Coll-22

Staff Only

This collection is a journalistic approach to South Texas history that mainly starts with the fall of the Alamo and proceeds until the turn of the twenty-first century. It extensively covers both Goliad and San Jacinto and contains troop information that has been compiled from multiple sources. Walraven’s writings touch on many aspects of the rise of Corpus Christi and the settlement of South Texas. While most of the research material is photocopied from primary documents housed elsewhere, it is a useful centralized repository of information about Texas history and the people who lived it.

Dates

Majority of material found in none

Conditions Governing Access

No restrictions

Conditions Governing Use

This material is made available for use in research, teaching, and private study, pursuant to U.S. Copyright law. The user assumes full responsibility for any use of the materials, including but not limited to taking precautions against infringement of copyright and respecting the publication rights of reproduced materials. All rights are reserved and retained regardless of current or future development or laws that may apply to fair use standards. Any materials used should be fully credited with their source according to the example given in the Preferred Citation note. Requests for assistance with citations and images of publication quality should be directed to specialcollections@tamucc.edu

Extent

11.66 Linear Feet ; 11.66 Linear feet

Abstract

This collection represents a lifetime of Texas history research by Corpus Christi Caller-Times columnist Bill Walraven.

Biographical / Historical

Joseph William “Bill” Walraven was born in Dallas, Texas in 1925. He served in the Pacific Theater of World War II and liked to joke that he was on the only PT Boat not commanded by John F. Kennedy. He graduated from Texas A&I University – Kingsville with a degree in journalism and studied professional writing at the University of Oklahoma. He met his future wife, Marjorie, another journalism major, while he was enrolled at A&I. He worked at the San Antonio Light and San Antonio Express newspapers before landing his 37 year long career at the Corpus Christi Caller-Times in 1952.

At the Caller-Times he began by writing as a police, courthouse, city hall, business, and oil reporter, then went on to write five columns a week on a wide range of subjects including humor, families, history, and people. He also wrote six books, mostly centered around Texas history. They are: Corpus Christi, History of a Texas Seaport; Real Texans Don’t Drink Scotch in Their Dr. Pepper; Walraven’s World; and with Marjorie as co-author: El Rincon, a History of Corpus Christi Beach; Magnificent Barbarians, Little Told Tales of the Texas Revolution; and All I Know Is What’s on TV.

In the course of writing, Walraven conducted a large amount of research, the bulk of which makes up this collection, which was donated in 2005. He made significant contributions to the study of early Texas history and was able to spread that knowledge to his wide readership at the Caller-Times. Bill Walraven passed away in 2013 at the age of 88.

Arrangement

This collection has been maintained in as close to original order as possible. It consists of three series, Topics Arranged in Alphabetical Order, Local History, and Oil Books. Some topics are redundant and appear in multiple series. Some topics in Local History are not specific to South Texas, though that is how they were labeled. Physically, Oil Books are located in the middle of the Local History series. The donor file contains an index of Walraven articles in the Caller-Times from 1974-1989.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

This collection was donated by Bill and Marjorie Walraven in September of 2005. Thomas H. Kreneck assisted with the donation.

Related Materials

283 Murphy Givens South Texas Historical Papers

Processing Information

This collection was processed by Eric Christensen, Librarian of Archive Processing, for Mary and Jeff Bell Library’s Special Collections and Archives Department.