The history of Rio Vista Farm and the Bracero Reception Center is one of labor and immigration which not only shaped the region, but also provided a foundation for modern Mexican American communities. This is a site whose story is finally being told.

The National Trust for Historic Preservation’s involvement with Rio Vista Farm began in 2015 after the site was identified as part of a survey of significant Latino sites. Since then, the National Trust has worked with partners to preserve, document, and promote this historic site. The Texas Historical Commission and the National Trust for Historic Preservation funded studies and critical stabilization work for five buildings, while also providing important technical assistance and advice.

In 2023, to further preserve the story of this historic site for posterity, Rio Vista was selected by the National Park Service's Historic American Building Survey (HABS) for documentation. Established in 1933 in collaboration with the Library of Congress, HABS's mission is to record the built environment in the United States using detailed measured drawings, photographs, and written histories. For the documentation of Rio Vista, the program enlisted the help of student architects Allison Toro Villada and Steven Esparza through the Latino Heritage Internship Program (LHIP).

Documenting Rio Vista has larger implications, as Sehila Mota Casper, former National Trust staffer and the executive director of Latinos in Heritage Conservation, said, "the HABS documentation represents a significant step forward, shedding light on the historical significance of the labor movement and migration patterns through the Bracero Program. The story of Rio Vista Farm is now being unveiled, highlighting the enduring contributions of the nearly 5 million contracts for skilled Mexican workers who played a vital role during a critical period in United States history.”

The Legacy of the Bracero Program

It is at reception centers such as the one at Rio Vista that these laborers were processed into the United States, received health screenings, and were assessed for their skills. The site included barracks, recreation centers, shower buildings, and a mess hall. The significance of this site to understanding the history of Mexican Americans, and the impact these individuals had on the growth of the United States' agricultural economy, cannot be understated.

Documenting the remaining buildings is an essential part of preserving that history for years to come.

Documenting Rio Vista Farm

Allison Toro Villada and Steven Esparza met for the first time shortly after arriving in El Paso along with Paul Davidson and Robert Arzola, the HABS Architects. They knew up front that the documentation of the various structures had to occur within five days within which the two of them would learn about the historic site while gaining expertise in a variety of documentation tools and strategies.

On day one, the group met with the director of Rio Vista Farm, Victor Reta, director of Recreation, Communications, Historic Preservation, Emergency Management, and Special Events for the City of Socorro, who walked them through the site giving them the history as they took in the different conditions of the structures. This was Villadaʻs first time in Texas, and she said, “the heat was something different, I donʻt know where I am right now, but this is really cool. This is an amazing site with a sense of history that is still standing.”

The project hit its first bump, however, when the equipment arrived two days late. Instead of doing laser scanning first, Villada and Esparza used a profiling comb-a-metal tool with teeth, that when pushed into a surface, provides critical measurements for windows and doors. Esparza, who had never used this type of comb before said, “I kind of liked picking up all those new skills because I know I can use them in my next historic documentation class.”

The next step, once the equipment arrived, was to set up the laser scanners. This involved placing individual targets in the various buildings that would help guide the equipment in the process of collecting data. The worry for both Esparza and Villada, who were documenting the processing center and the x-ray building, was missing a spot and having a gap in the data. Villada said “back in the office we did have that frustration of why didn't we place a target over there? Then we had a missing door or a missing roof, which was a challenge.”

The most valuable lesson for both student architects was being hands-on at every step of the documentation process for Rio Vista. “All in all, it was a pretty great experience both on the site and then later how we got to apply that data to make drawings,” said Esparza.

As Scott Keyes, chief of Heritage Documentation Programs at the National Park Service said, “after years of interest in the Rio Vista Bracero Reception Center, the Historic American Buildings Survey (HABS) was thrilled to document the property with students from the Latino Heritage Internship Program. The drawings produced by Allison and Steven will help preserve and rehabilitate this significant site, while also raising awareness of the Bracero Program and the important contributions of Mexican workers to the agricultural history and development of the United States. The resulting documentation will be permanently archived in the HABS/HAER/HALS collections of the Library of Congress where it will serve as a valuable resource for future researchers, historians, and the public.”

The Future of the Rio Vista Farm

With HABS documentation (which included 70 large format photographs) completed of select buildings, the future of Rio Vista Farm is looking good. While a lot of work still needs to be done, in 2022 CSCI secured a $750,000 grant from the Mellon Foundation for the creation of a Bracero Museum with the University of Texas at El Paso and the City of Socorro.

Then in August 2023, Rio Vista Farm was approved by the National Park Services Advisory Board for designation as a National Historic Landmark, the highest level of designation bestowed by the National Park Service. On December 13, 2023, the Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland officially designated the site a National Historic Landmark following a multi-year nomination process.