Spanish Influence In The United States (1948)

[Music] this is the Smith home in a suburban community in the middle west today is Saturday and the Smith children Dolores and Don are catching up on some readings here's the package that Dolores has been expecting from Uncle Rick in California he wrote and told her he was sending a present it's a doll a beautiful Spanish Doll don't Dolores has never seen this kind of a doll before do people in California wear clothes like these perhaps her brother Don can explain it's an interesting story you see even today costumes like this are worn occasionally in those parts of our country where Spanish influence is still strong these costumes of old Spain are worn for special occasions in some American cities that celebrate their Spanish origin yes the language the dress and the Romantic customs of Spain have left their influence on our way of life even the names of the original Spanish settlers remain in our towns and cities but how and where did this Spanish culture reach our country it was Columbus who brought the flag of Spain to the new world when he landed in the West Indies some years later the Spanish settled on the peninsula which they named Florida then there they founded the town of St Augustine today St Augustine almost 400 years old reminds us that the Spanish were the very first to bring European civilization to the new world the castle of San Marcos is the oldest standing fortification in our country its thick walls show The Importance which the Spanish put upon military power the early Spanish explorers were not farmers and workers but soldiers wherever they went they planted their flag as conquerors or as they called themselves conquistadores the West Indies and Florida were among the earliest regions settled by the Spanish before 1600 the conquistadores had occupied Mexico and were pushing into the land they named New Mexico this was the Southwest the second region of our country to come under Spanish influence today the governor's Palace in Santa Fe looks much as it did when it was the headquarters of the Spanish government in the southwest there are many traces of this Spanish life for example the Town Plaza or open Square which the Spanish used was a typical feature of Spanish Town planning another feature of Spanish life was the church wherever they went the Spanish established their religion in addition to their government town planning and religion the Spanish brought their system of land ownership the unit of this system was the asenda the asenda was actually a community under control of the asend or Spanish owner to their new lands in the southwest the Spanish brought horses and sheep and Longhorn cattle Longhorns were the first cattle to set foot on American Shores brought by the Spanish in 1521 they spread rapidly and were the beef cattle in the early days of our West today modern cattle breeds have replaced the Longhorns and the modern American Rancher has taken the place of the Spanish asend our ranching industry owes much to the Spanish who were the very first to bring horses and cattle to our Western ranges even our word Ranch comes from the Spanish word Rancho in Spain the cattle herder rode on horseback and was called a vakero in our country the word vakero became Buckaroo the American Cowboy he still uses the sombrero or big hat to shade his eyes the lariat to rope the cattle and sometimes shaps to protect his legs from Thorns did you know that these are Spanish words Lariat means means the Rope shaps are from the Spanish chaos and Sombrero means shade and there are many more Spanish words that we use alala a royal a dry gully Canyon Corral which means fenced in yard Pinto which means painted and the well-known word guitar all these are Spanish words in fact as Don reminded Dolores there are several hundred words of Spanish origin that we use in our language every day and there is more to the story of Spanish influence for instance in our ranching industry the method of identifying livestock is The Branding of the animals with the owner's Mark or brand Spanish Brands were used in Mexico as early as 1545 from there they were introduced into our our country and the system is still used on our ranches today we have seen how the Spanish settled in Florida and in the southwest the third area of our country occupied by the Spanish was California the story of early California is also the story of Father Junipero s he was a Spanish priest or Padre under his leadership 21 missions were founded in California the missions were units of the Catholic church and were the centers of Spanish civilization in the new world surrounded by Gardens and Farms which the Padres tended each mission was a self-supporting community at the missions many Indians were converted to the Catholic faith not only in California but wherever the Spanish went missions were built so successful were the Padres in establishing these Frontier settlements that they were sometimes called the con adores of the cross from the mission towns have grown many of our well-known cities San Antonio El Paso Santa Fe Tucson San Diego Los Angeles San Francisco and Santa Barbara from the missions to Has Come A distinct style of architecture notice how the Twin Towers the arched windows and the plain stuck over walls of the mission style have been adopted in this modern post office of Los Angeles here is Spanish architecture in the modern Courthouse of Santa Barbara typical things to look for in this attractive style are the tower the arched windows and plain stucco walls the open Arcade and the arched doorway with its carved decorations you can see the Spanish style in many different kinds of buildings in libraries in schools in churches and in homes throughout the United States an important characteristic of Spanish architecture is contrast between the simple and the elaborate the plain stucco walls are often set off by decoration such as the colored tiles over this doorway or delicate rot iron grills over the windows sometimes times this rot iron work is used to decorate a Charming balcony or a staircase color is also used for contrast in the Spanish style the stucco walls are a pale background for the bright colors of the decorative tiles red roofing tiles are another colorful feature of Spanish architecture they were used in most Spanish buildings and you've probably seen roofs of this kind in your own town even today this kind of tile is called Spanish tile the typical Spanish house is built around an open court or patio the warm climate of Florida the southwest and California made it possible for the Spanish to build and use the same kind of house that they had known in Spain to their new homes in America the Spanish even brought their type of furniture pieces such as this beautifully carved chest and this chair typical of Spanish Furniture is this claw foot which is often used on our own tables and chairs many indeed are the ways in which the Spanish influenced our country their dress their language their Customs their architecture and their religion are all part of a way of life that has been called the most romantic and beautiful culture ever developed in the United States today Spanish influence can be found in every part of our country yes it's right here in the Smith home as Dolores has just realized their house is of Spanish style there is the stucco the round Arch and the red tile roof and Don reminds Dolores that her own name Dolores is Spanish and so she has learned a few of the many things that have come from Spain to us yes even some of our music shows the same influence the Spanish influence that has become a part of our own daily lives