Felix Longoria

The funeral rites of Three Rivers native Felix Longoria advanced public debate on the status and rights of Mexican-Americans and military veterans. Private first class Longoria enlisted in the U.S. Army in Nov. 1944 and was killed during the Battle of Luzon in the Philippines. His parents received his posthumous medals, while his wife and daughter moved to Corpus Christi after the war. Longoria's remains were repatriated in 1948, and his widow Beatrice received a telegram requesting a burial site. In Jan. 1949, she met with the owner and undertaker of Three Rivers' only funeral home (at this site) to discuss arrangements. The men refused to host a wake in the funeral home chapel, suggesting Longoria's family home would be more suitable. The decisions was widely interpreted to be racially based; at the time, separation between Anglo and Mexican-American citizens was commonplace and codified by state and federal laws. Beatrice and her family turned to Dr. Hector Garcia, who had formed the American G.I. Forum in Corpus Christi the previous year to promote rights for returning veterans. Garcia contacted state and federal officials and members of national radio and news media for assistance. U.S. Senator Lyndon Johnson arranged to bury Longoria in Arlington National Cemetery; family members and government officials from the U.S. and Mexico attended his funeral there on Feb. 16, 1949. The "Longoria Affair" received widespread coverage in the U.S. and international press and brought an official investigation by the Texas Legislature. The American G.I. Forum and Sen. Johnson gained national recognition and remained at the center of civil rights causes and politics in the ensuing decades. Ultimately, this local and private event affected the national conversation on civil rights, politics and patriotism. (2009)

Felix Longoria is a historical marker in Three Rivers, Live Oak County, dedicated in 2009. It is one of 19 historical markers documented in Live Oak County in the Texas Historical Commission Atlas, among 34 historic sites cataloged across the county.

The site sits at 28.4585, -98.1805 near Three Rivers. The nearest cataloged historic site is Early Schools in Live Oak County (historical marker), about 0.3 miles away. Others within a short drive include First State Bank Building, Three Rivers, and Three Rivers Glass Factory, Site of.

This record corresponds to Texas Historical Commission Atlas #5507016279. Use the map below for its exact position and turn-by-turn directions.