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Retta Murphy's unpublished doctorial dissertation signed by advisors for the University of Texas. Leaves iii-iv:
"The presidio, the mission, and the town were characteristic features of Spanish imperial expansion in America. In the accumulation and preservation of official records, and consequently in the presentation of facts to historical investigators, the presidio was far less notable than either the mission or the civil settlement. In the study of the history of colonial Spanish America a great deal of interest and emphasis has centered upon the sites, the foundings, the efforts, and the significances of numerous missions, as well as upon the development or decline of some towns. Military institutions have received less emphasis, except in the narratives of campaigns and conquests. Increasing investigation of presidial affairs, however, is according a finer balance to the whole study of the Spanish American colonies. In the eighteenth century the Spanish colonial empire was usually more active in the work of maintenance than in that of expansion, and New Spain was the most important part of that empire. The military posts in northern New Spain contributed no little to the institutional life of the frontiers and to the problems of the governing officials in Madrid and in the City of Mexico. It is the purpose of this writing to portray many of these problems of military administration, as they were producing, early in the second quarter of that century, a program of reform which centered around the presidial inspection by Brigadier Don Pedro de Rivera."

Edwin Fauver talks about his early life and upbringing in Washington, D.C. and shares how he came to Texas via attending college at Corpus Christi University. He discusses playing college football, joining the Navy, his job at Gary Job Corps Center, and more extensively about the responsibilities of his job as director of the university's physical plant. .

Emmie Craddock talks about her early life in Louisiana and then Houston, her education at Rice, and her early teaching days in Missouri City. She recalls her time in the U.S. Navy during WWII, during which she was head of the women's reserve, as well as studying for her PhD in history with W.P. Webb at UT-Austin. She discusses how she was hired by James Taylor to join the history department and her career as a faculty member at Texas State. Dr. Craddock also describes her political career as a councilwoman and mayor for the City of San Marcos, touching on topics such as creating a local charter and dealing with environmental disputes, ordinances, flooding, and landfills.

Merry Kone Fitzpatrick talks about how her family came to settle in San Marcos and her childhood in San Marcos. She recalls her elementary, junior high, and high school experiences, including tidbits about the Blanco and San Marcos Rivers, Sewell Park, the Presbyterian Church, and attending the campus school. Professor FitzPatrick shares information about her brothers and their careers. She describes downtown San Marcos and its local landmarks and businesses, covering her childhood through the 1930s.

Cover story on Roy Barnett (Deer Crossing Saloon owner)