By Amanda Alaniz

 PHOTO GALLERY by David Pike

 PHOTO GALLERY by Silver Salas
Password: chaps (case sensitive)

EDINBURG, TEXAS – Gloves on, case open and an instructor telling students to be careful as they lift a historical rifle to be placed inside a glass case: It’s the beginning of bringing a Civil War exhibit to life.

The UTRGV Community Historical Archaeology Project with Schools (CHAPS) program, in conjunction with students from the courses “The Civil War in the Rio Grande Valley” and “Museums and Heritage Tourism,” have put together a traveling exhibit called “War and Peace on the Rio Grande.” The exhibit will be available from Feb. 4 to June 19 at the UTRGV Visitors Center on the Edinburg Campus.

The UTRGV Community Historical Archaeology Project with Schools (CHAPS) program, in conjunction with students from the courses “The Civil War in the Rio Grande Valley” and “Museums and Heritage Tourism,” have put together a traveling exhibit called “War and Peace on the Rio Grande.” The exhibit will be available from Feb. 4 to June 19 at the UTRGV Visitors Center on the Edinburg Campus. Here, two UTRGV students iron out one of the flags for display in the traveling Civil War exhibit. (UTRGV Photo by David Pike)

The exhibit recounts the Civil War era from 1846-1876 and how it affected the Rio Grande Valley, using panels, pictures, artifacts and mannequins dressed in the attire of the era.

“It tells the story of how local people were involved in the Civil War and how the Civil War had an impact on this region,” said Dr. Christopher Miller, professor in the UTRGV Department of History who teaches the “The Civil War in the Rio Grande Valley” class.

The exhibit is a byproduct of CHAPS’ Rio Grande Valley Civil War Trail project, launched in February 2015. The program already executed a similar exhibit for Fort Brown in Brownsville that was put together by students and currently is on display at the Historic Brownsville Museum.

Miller said the current Civil War exhibit has been in production for close to three years, with help from a variety of parties to put it all together.

“We called in some professional consultants who helped us with conceptualizing the exhibit,” he said. “We worked with faculty from the UTRGV history department, from anthropology and archaeology, in terms of actually putting it together. And our students, who are drawn from a wide variety of different disciplines.”

Assembling the exhibit began February 1, with students from the classes moving delicate artifacts into display boxes and ironing out wrinkles in flags and recreated historical clothing.

The students will take turns serving as docents for the exhibit and answering questions from visitors.

Nathaniel Puente, a UTRGV senior from Harlingen, said he signed up for the class because he’s fascinated with the history of the Rio Grande Valley.

“We have a very unique area here on the border and a lot of people are not familiar with it. It turns out that’s almost what this class is entirely about,” the social studies composite major said. “A lot of people know the last battle of the Civil War happened here (at Palmito Ranch), but what they don’t know is all the events that happened before.”

Puente said he hopes visitors learn some things about the Valley that they didn’t know before and appreciate the rich history of the area.

The UTRGV Community Historical Archaeology Project with Schools (CHAPS) program, in conjunction with students from the courses “The Civil War in the Rio Grande Valley” and “Museums and Heritage Tourism,” have put together a traveling exhibit called “War and Peace on the Rio Grande.” The exhibit will be available from Feb. 4 to June 19 at the UTRGV Visitors Center on the Edinburg Campus. Here, UTRGV students work together to dress exhibit mannequins in recreated historical clothing. (UTRGV Photo by David Pike)

“There were a lot of important events that happened here during the Civil War that people in this area should be aware of,” he said. “People should be proud that we have that heritage all around us.”

Kelly Lopez, a UTRGV history major and native of Los Angeles, California, remembers being interested in the Civil War when she was younger. Now, she’s excited for children who can grow up with access to historical knowledge.

“History brings communities together, it gives them a root to their history,” the history major said. “It brings pride to the community.”

FILM DEBUT

“The Civil War in the Rio Grande Valley” exhibit will be part of UTRGV’s Festiba festivities, accompanying the CHAPS debut of the film “Just a Ferry Ride to Freedom.” The film, by Dr. Nick Taylor, lecturer II of broadcast journalism at UTRGV, showcases stories about the Texas-Mexico border and its connection to the Underground Railroad.

The film will debut at 6:30 p.m. Feb. 20 at the UTRGV Performing Arts Complex on the Edinburg Campus, with a reception at 5 p.m. in the Visitors Center in Edinburg.

In September, the exhibit will be on display at the Zapata County Historical Museum.

For more information about the exhibit or the CHAPS program, visit https://www.utrgv.edu/chaps/.

GALLERY

Community Historical Archaeology Project with Schools Exhibit

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