Tomas Benavidez was born March 7, 1888 to Matias and Amada (Resendez) Benavidez. His brothers are Francisco, Gilberto, Jesus, Matias, Fortunato and Nasario.
Tomas was born in Cerralvo, Nuevo Leon, Mexico. Nuevo Leon is the smallest of the five Mexican states that border the United States. Its capital is Monterrey.
Maria Jimenez was born April 10, 1889 in Nava, Coahuila, Mexico to Feliz and Clemencia (Jimenez) Jimenez. Her sisters are Amada, Teresa, Juanita (who married Tomas' brother, Gilberto), and Francisca. Her only brother is Doroteo.
Tomas and Maria emigrated separately to the United States through either Sabinal or Eagle Pass, Texas. They met in Charlotte, Texas where they had both gone to seek work. They married there in 1914, and in the 14 years between 1915 and 1929 they had seven children, Matias, Maria, Fortunato, Nasario, Tomas, Jr., Maria Eva, and Jesus.
Maria was a housewife, and Tomas a laborer all his life. He worked for the railroad, was a sharecropper, and even a rancher in Mexico when the family returned for a time. An unconfirmed story is told that during their return to Mexico when Matias and/or Maria were very young, they bought and worked a ranch where they did very well, even hiring helpers there. However, between the Mexican soldiers on one side and Pancho Villa and his bandidos on the other, the thefts and losses were so great that they came back to the United States and eventually worked across South Texas, including Houston, Crystal City, Eagle Pass, and Carrizo Springs, where some of their children were born. At some time in the '40s or '50s they moved and finally settled in San Antonio, Texas.
Tomas died of a heart attack on June 7, 1976 at the age of 88 in San Antonio, Texas and is buried at Mission Park Cemetery South.
Maria died on November 21, 1984 at the age of 95 in San Antonio, Texas and is buried at Mission Park Cemetery South with Tomas. |
