Stolen Heritage: A Mexican-American's Rediscovery of His Family's Lost Land Grant

Murder, violence, and intimidation are the bitter grapes of the Becerra and de la Garza families, early day Spanish settlers who had been in Texas several generations when Stephen F. Austin and other American empresarios received land grants in the early 1820s and 19302.

The author, a member of the family, tells of an emotional and successful odyssey to find the family's lost land grant--their "stolen heritage." After a long search of state archives and county records, he discovered that his great-grandfather had been defrauded of land that today is in the middle of one of the largest ranches in South Texas.

His account of the family's attempt to recover what they consider their landed heritage is charged with emotion, family feuds, and a lawsuit. This book has been called one of the best-researched books on South Texas, the history of the land and the clash of the two cultures that settled South Texas.

About the Author
Rubio, Abel G.: - Abel Rubio was born in Goliad County, Texas. Orphaned at age ten, after the tragic deaths of his parents, brothers, and sisters in an automobile accident, he went to live with relatives. Rubio dropped out of school at fourteen to go on the migrant trail-first to pick cotton in Texas, later to Wisconsin to pick cherries and hoe corn, then to Indiana where Rubio harvested tomatoes. He returned to his native Texas and joined the United States Marine Corps in early 1947, volunteering for combat service in Korea with the First Marine Division. He arrived in Korea in October 1952 and was assigned to a mine-clearing platoon in which he saw extensive duty. Returning to the United States in October 1953, Rubio was stationed in various posts here and abroad. He retired with over twenty years of active service. After an additional ten years in the Fleet Marine Corps Reserves, Sergeant Rubio was placed on the retired rolls in 1977. Rubio was a member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars, American Legion, Fleet Reserve Association, Marine Corps League, Sons of Confederate Veterans, and the Texas Catholic Historical Society. He earned a bachelor's degree in accounting, a profession he practiced in Houston, Texas. Rubio passed away December 10, 2012.