Challenging the notion that South Texas isn't Southern (San Antonio, Austin: cities, Hispanic)

[BillyH]

Originally Posted by Suesbal

Are you referring to those homes in the King William District? Many were built by German immigrants and their descendants. San Antonio had a strong German heritage, but I think World War One hastened an end to that.

No that area is ever older, Tobin Hills, Beacon Hill, Monte Vista north of downtown and other areas. Google 509 W. French Place, as an example that area is Monte Vista. Speaking of large Baptist church, Trinity Baptist 319 E. Mulberry Ave.

[LocalPlanner]

Originally Posted by BillyH

As a transplant from IL. and now a long time resident of SA, I still see subtle differences. I still have to ask for unsweet tea at certain restaurants. Friends and coworkers can’t believe I don’t use sugar or sweeteners “I can’t believe you drink it like that”. I hear y’all on a daily basis from whites and Hispanics alike, I’ve been here to long I say it too. When I visit relatives in IL and they hear me say it they reply you been indoctrinated by the south and laugh. As for history SA has a Confederate Cemetery, just read about that not long ago. There was a large Confederate monument in downtown Travis Park removed after Charlottesville, a high school built in 1958 named after Robert E Lee renamed some years back to Legacy of Education Excellence (LEE), the school had a huge Confederate painted flag on the building for years, gone for years now. There are many antebellum styles homes in the downtown area, I don’t see any of that in IL. they name their schools after Lincoln and Grant.

Oh, no doubt you can find elements of Southern culture in SA, as there were Southern immigrants of British ancestry to the town even prior to the Civil War. However, those elements also sit alongside major influence from Tejano culture (of course) and the very non-Southern Germans who came there post-1840. As I've noted, the Germans ended up having Texas accents, but that doesn't mean they're "Southern." San Antonio represents essentially blended frontier area for Southern culture, and I wouldn't consider it a dominantly "Southern" city at all.

[BillyH]

Originally Posted by LocalPlanner

Oh, no doubt you can find elements of Southern culture in SA, as there were Southern immigrants of British ancestry to the town even prior to the Civil War. However, those elements also sit alongside major influence from Tejano culture (of course) and the very non-Southern Germans who came there post-1840. As I've noted, the Germans ended up having Texas accents, but that doesn't mean they're "Southern." San Antonio represents essentially blended frontier area for Southern culture, and I wouldn't consider it a dominantly "Southern" city at all.

Agree and there is transplant from every where now.

[Treasurevalley92]

Originally Posted by BillyH

Agree and there is transplant from every where now.

Georgia, TN, NC etc all have tons of transplants from the all over the place...does that make them no longer southern?

[LocalPlanner]

Originally Posted by Treasurevalley92

Georgia, TN, NC etc all have tons of transplants from the all over the place...does that make them no longer southern?

The point is, they used to be fully Southern. San Antonio was never fully Southern, it was always a mix with Tejanos and German immigrants plus Southerners.

[supfromthesite]

Most Texas cities have a southern influence, including Corpus and Laredo.

McAllen was settled by Midwesteners and as a result it seems most people don't say y'all.

[LocalPlanner]

Originally Posted by supfromthesite

Most Texas cities have a southern influence, including Corpus and Laredo.

McAllen was settled by Midwesteners and as a result it seems most people don't say y'all.

True. Southerners emigrated from the eastern part of TX (the legitimately Southern part) to South Texas and to West Texas. Southerners also emigrated to much of Oklahoma. In these places they brought cultural influences. But, South Texas, West Texas, and most of Oklahoma are not legitimately "Southern."

[supfromthesite]

Apparently central/north Texas has more of a Tennessee/Kentucky/Arkansas influence and south Texas was settled more by people from Alabama, Mississippi, etc. the deep south.

Of course people from both parts of the country migrated to both places, but I found that interesting.

[Htown2013]

Texas is basically it's own region. Parts of it are geographically much further south than the Deep South, similar to Florida.

Texas has southern elements and southern influence, some parts more than others. Far East Texas and the Beaumont-Port Arthur region do seem much more like the Deep South than the rest of Texas. Baytown is like that a bit, but not as much. Houston clearly has the southern influence, but it has so much else as well.

Take Florida, the panhandle region including Tallahassee and Pensacola seem much more like the Deep South than Orlando or Miami. South Florida seems very little like the Deep South and more it's own region, both culturally and geographically. South Texas is also its own thing, but it is distinctly Texan.

[As Above So Below...]

Originally Posted by supfromthesite

Apparently central/north Texas has more of a Tennessee/Kentucky/Arkansas influence and south Texas was settled more by people from Alabama, Mississippi, etc. the deep south.

Of course people from both parts of the country migrated to both places, but I found that interesting.

Well, if we look at the ancestry of Caucasians in both, DFW and East Texas have more English than any other groups. However, Austin, San Antonio, and South Texas have more German than any other group. Pretty much all of the deep South cities have few Germans but lots of English.