Alamosa in Alamosa County, Colorado — The American Mountains (Southwest)
Maestas Case 1912-1914
Mexican-American School Desegregation
Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, July 11, 2025
1. Maestas Case 1912-1914 Marker (left panel)
[left panel] This is the site of the late “Mexican School” where Hispano-American students were forced to attend, separate from whites, despite being US citizens and being proficient in English. It is also here where Hispano Americans came together to fight for educational equity.
They formed the Spanish American Union, drafted a resolution, appealed to the Colorado State Superintendent, and held a 3-month boycott. All their efforts were denied.
Funds were raised with help from the SPMDTU to hire Raymond Sullivan, an attorney from Denver.
He argued that school officials were “making a distinction and classification of pupils in the public schools on account of race or color contrary to Article IX, Section 8 of the Colorado Constitution.”
[right panel] Most Hispanos lived in the lower left part of the map marked as “Mexican Dwellings”.
The Maestas family were the only Hispanos to live on the north side of the tracks according to the 1910 U.S. Census.
[image captions] Sanborn Map of Alamosa 1912
• Rendering of “Mexican School”
Erected by Maestas Case Commemoration Committee.
Topics. This historical marker is
this page online
Location. 37° 27.831′ N, 105° 52.221′ W. Marker is in Alamosa, Colorado, in Alamosa County. It is on Ross Avenue south of 8th Street, on the right when traveling south. The marker is located near the northeast corner of Zapata Park. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Alamosa CO 81101, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in Colorado’s San Juan Mountains and in the San Luis Valley. It is also in the American Mountain West. Globally, it is in North America, the Rocky Mountains, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once New Spain and also the Republic of Texas.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Educational Desegregation (here, next to this marker); Los Seis de Boulder (within shouting distance of this marker); American Legion Building (approx. 0.3 miles away); Alamosa Depot (approx. 0.3 miles
Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, July 11, 2025
2. Maestas Case 1912-1914 Marker (right panel)
Related markers. Click here for a list of markers that are related to this marker.
Also see . . . Maestas vs. George H. Shone (Wikipedia).
Excerpt: Francisco Maestas, his wife Margaret, and their children Miguel and Josie, lived at 117 Ross Avenue in Alamosa, Colorado. This required the younger Maestas to cross active railroad tracks, to attend the “Mexican Preparatory School,” located at Ninth Street and Ross Avenue, something his railroad worker father thought was dangerous.(Submitted on August 12, 2025, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.)In September 1913, Maestas tried to enroll his son at the school closer to his home, the North Side School, located at Bell Avenue and Main Street. The request was refused and he was told that ten-year-old Miguel had to attend the “Mexican School.” Maestas and other members of the Mexican-American community filed a discrimination lawsuit, aided by the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Denver and the Sociedad Protección Mutua de Trabajadores Unidos (SPMDTU).
District Court judge Charles C. Holbrook presided over the case. In March 1914, a ruling of unlawful race prejudice was delivered. Holbrook ordered the school board and superintendent “to admit the children to the public school most convenient to their homes.”
3. Marker detail: Miguel Maestas
Miguel Maestas and other Hispano children were denied enrollment in the public school of their choice.
4. Marker detail: Raymond Sullivan
5. Marker detail: “Mexican School” that once stood on Ross Avenue
Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, July 11, 2025
6. Maestas Case 1912-1914 Marker
Looking east across Zapata Park. This marker comprises the leftmost and rightmost of three related interpretive panels.
Credits. This page was last revised on August 12, 2025. It was originally submitted on August 12, 2025, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida. This page has been viewed 137 times since then and 29 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. submitted on August 12, 2025, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.
