In this episode Project Archivist Xaviera Flores meets with Chicano/a Research Collection Curator Nancy Godoy and introduces us to a very special collection that is available to the public for the first time: The Alianza Hispano Americana Records Collection.

Alianza Hispano Americana was established in 1894 and was the first Mexican American Mutual Aid organization. The main goal of this organization was to provide health and life insurance to the community, and its members also promoted civic virtues and acculturation and provided social activities. The Alianza Hispano Americana Records collection includes membership files, which have rich information for genealogical research, as well as some photographs and artifacts, which we see samples of in the video.

The Alianza Hispano Americana Records Collection is part of the Chicano/a Research Collection, the largest Mexican-American archival collection in the state of Arizona.

The project is funded by the Andrew W. Mellon foundation and administered by the Council on Library and Information Resources (CLIR)

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Interested in learning more about the Chicano/a Research Collection? Get guided help with our library guide or schedule an appointment with Nancy. You can also connect with the Chicano/a Collection on Facebook.

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Each episode of Hidden Treasures explores the artifacts, images, collections and unique gems of the ASU Libraries you didn’t even realize were available.

Host: Xaviera Flores
Guest: Nancy Godoy
Produced and Directed by Matthew Harp and Jennifer Duvernay
Editor: Mindy DuPonte