Tomás Rivera archive, circa 1954-1984, undated., bulk 1970-1980

Online content

Collection context

Summary

Creators:
Rivera, Tomás, 1935-1984
Abstract:
Tomás Rivera was born on December 22, 1935 in Crystal City, Texas. Rising from humble beginnings as the son of Mexican migrant farm workers, Rivera went to Southwest Texas State University, where he received his B.S. in English Education in 1958. Aiming higher, he returned to Southwest Texas State to get a Master's in Education in 1964 and then, in 1969, he received a Ph.D. from the University of Oklahoma in Romance Literatures. Rivera taught at the university level for many years at various institutions before becoming chancellor at the University of California, Riverside in 1979, the first minority chancellor in the University of California system. He served as chancellor until his untimely death on March 16, 1984. The Tomás Rivera archive contains more than 85,000 items in 198 document boxes (82.5 linear feet) which are divided into five sections: Biographical Works, Literary Manuscripts, Educational Material, Civic Leadership, and Illustrative Material. Folders further subdivide each box.
Extent:
82.5 linear feet and (198 document boxes)
Language:
English .
Preferred citation:

[Identification of item], [date if possible]. Tomás Rivera archive (UA 253). Special Collections & University Archives, University of California, Riverside.

Background

Scope and content:

The Tomás Rivera archive contains more than 85,000 items in 198 document boxes (82.5 linear feet) which are divided into five sections: Biographical Works, Literary Manuscripts, Educational Material, Civic Leadership, and Illustrative Material. Folders further subdivide each box. The Catalog has three indexes: subject, title, and name, which reference the Section, Box and Folder number. The Archive also contains more than 1,000 books from Dr. Rivera's private library.

A portion of this collection remains unprocessed. Please contact Special Collections & Archives for additional information regarding this material.

Biographical / historical:

Tomás Rivera was born on December 22, 1935 in Crystal City, Texas. Rising from humble beginnings as the son of Mexican migrant farm workers, Rivera went to Southwest Texas State University, where he received his B.S. in English Education in 1958. He then taught English and Spanish in high school in San Antonio, Crystal City, and League City.

Aiming higher, he returned to Southwest Texas State to get a Master's in Education in 1964 and then, in 1969, he received a Ph.D. from the University of Oklahoma in Romance Literatures. From teaching he moved to administration. He began as an Associate Professor of Spanish at Sam Houston State University in 1969; he moved to the University of Texas in San Antonio in 1971 to be a professor of Spanish and Directory of Foreign Languages. Five year later he was Vice President for Administration there, a post he held for two years, at which time he moved to the University of Texas at El Paso to be its Executive Vice President. In 1979, Rivera became Chancellor at UCR, where he served until his untimely death on March 16, 1984. He was survived by his wife, Concepcion; daughters Ileana, Irasema; son, Javier.

With diligence and intelligence Rivera overcame the great handicap of his youthful poverty and rose to success through academic achievement. He was a strong proponent of education, as his career in the academic work indicates. He was also a writer and a poet of some note. Writing about the life of migrant workers.

The University of California Riverside library, which house social science and humanities, was renamed in his honor. It is in the Tomás Rivera Library that the archive is housed. They are administered by UCR Special Collections & Archives and available by appointment only. Contact Special Collections & Archives at 951-827-3233.

Acquisition information:
His wife, Concepcion Rivera, donated the Tomás Rivera archive. It continues to be added to due to an annual Tomás Rivera Conference, a Tomás Rivera Documentary Project, donations by friends and colleagues, and new publications being written about his life and work.
Processing information:

Compiled by Armando M. Martinez, edited by Clifford R. Wurfel, introduction by Luis Leal, foreword by Eliud Martinez. Completed in 1992.

Arrangement:

This collection is organized into five sections and three sub-sections:

  • Section 1. The Biographical Works of Tomás Rivera.
  • Sub-section 1.1. Correspondence of Tomás Rivera.
  • Section 2. The Literary Manuscripts of Tomás Rivera.
  • Sub-section 2.1. Literary Manuscripts of Chicano Writers.
  • Sub-section 2.2. Literary Material of Tomás Rivera.
  • Section 3. The Educational Material of Tomás Rivera.
  • Section 4. The Civic Leadership of Tomás Rivera.
  • Section 5. The Illustrative Material of Tomás Rivera.

Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard

Access and use

Restrictions:

The collection is open for research.

Terms of access:

Copyright Unknown: Some materials in these collections may be protected by the U.S. Copyright Law (Title 17, U.S.C.). In addition, the reproduction, and/or commercial use, of some materials may be restricted by gift or purchase agreements, donor restrictions, privacy and publicity rights, licensing agreement(s), and/or trademark rights. Distribution or reproduction of materials protected by copyright beyond that allowed by fair use requires the written permission of the copyright owners. To the extent other restrictions apply, permission for distribution or reproduction from the applicable rights holder is also required. Responsibility for obtaining permissions, and for any use rests exclusively with the user.

Preferred citation:

[Identification of item], [date if possible]. Tomás Rivera archive (UA 253). Special Collections & University Archives, University of California, Riverside.

Location of this collection:
University of California, Riverside - Special Collections and University Archives
P.O. Box 5900
Riverside, CA 92517-5900, US
Contact:
(951) 827-3233