The Rodriguez Family Lineage
Early Map of Mexico
The Rodriguez family has lived in Mexico for generations. It is not established what year nor from where in Spain they came. The possibility exists they came from the Canary Islands. Nueva Espana was populated with Canary Islanders who received land grants from the Spanish Crown.
It is more likely the Rodriguez family arrived in Nueva Espana from the mother country and settled in the vicinity of Monterrey, estado de Nuevo Leon. Civil records and family tradition establish the family's long history in la Villa de Hualahuises, N.L.
First Generation (Documented)
Fernando Rodriguez and his wife Maria Estefana Perales were the parents of Catarino Rodriguez and were probably born in the 1790s or at the turn of the Century. They lived in Hualahuises, where the documented history of the family begins.
Second Generation
Catarino Rodriguez was born in Hualahuises, N.L. Mexico in 1821, and married Marcelina Villalobos. They had 5 children: Calexto (b.1842), Martin (b.1846), Regulo (b. 1849), Alejandro (b.1850), and Toribo (b.1853). all born in Hualahuises. Civil records and family history confirm that Catarino was married several times. His additional wives included Maria de la Merced Ramires, her sister, Maria Eligia Ramires and Porfina Mendoza, each of whom died in childbirth or from influenza.
Civil records of the village, verify that Catarino Rodriguez was the acalde or mayor of the village. All civil documents carry his elaborate signature. Catarino died in 1902, at the age of 81.
Third Generation
Alejandro (b.1850), son of Catarino and Marcelina, became a merchant. He married Maria Atilana Trevino (b.1860) also of Hualahuises. They had 5 children. Jose Alejandro (b.1878), Hermenegildo, Josefa de los Dolores (Lola, b.1891), Manuela (Maya, b.1894), and Maria Juana (Tana, b.1897). Lola, Maya and Tana, were sponsored by Maria and John Rothenbach and immigrated to San Antonio, Texas as adults.
Fourth Generation
Jose Rodriguez, son of Alejandro, was born in 1878 in Hualahuises. NL Mexico. Jose was a military man and rose to Capitan Primero de Caballeria. He had a child with Guadalupe Carranza in 1918. Due to an epidemic of influenza, Guadalupe fell ill and died in 1919. The child, Maria de Jesus was raised by her paternal grandparents as one of their own.
Jose married Victoriana Contreras (b.1886) in Hualahuises and they had 6 children. Guillermo, Maria de la Luz (Lucy), Micaella (Mica), Alejandro (b.1922), Pedro (b.1924), and Socorro (b.1926); all of Hualahuises. In his later years, Jose moved with his adult children to Monterrey, N.L where they became merchants, owning several retail outlets in the Mercado de Monterrey. Jose died the 9th of January 1954 in Monterrey, NL and was buried with military honors. His grave is in El Panteon de Dolores, the main cemetery of the city.
Jose's sisters, Lola, Maya, and Tana immigrated to San Antonio, Texas. Lola was a widow with one child, Gloria Ramirez. Maya never married and she lived with one of her sisters or her niece, Maria de Jesus. Tana, was a widow with two children, Maria de la Luz (Monina) and Leopoldo (Chacho) Cuellar. The three sisters are buried in adjacent plots in San Fernando Catholic Cemetery in San Antonio, Texas.
Fifth Generation
Jose Rodriguez's daughter Maria, married John Rothenbach in 1943 in Monterrey, N.L. and moved to Galveston, Texas. The hurricanes that hit the Gulf Coast were frightening to Maria who had been raised in a landlocked area. In 1945 the family moved to San Antonio, in Bexar County, where they purchased a duplex house close to Ft. Sam Houston. John's father Charles, lived next door. Helia, the eldest daughter, attended nearby Saint Patick's catholic school. After school she and Grandpa Rothenbach played chess and Chinese checkers.
In 1948, John and Maria purchased 6 acres of land south of San Antonio. Here John built onto an existing house, enough rooms to accommodate, their young family and Maria's sister, Maya who had immigrated from Mexico.
Maria's skills and talents provided her family with beautiful homemade clothes, delightful and flavorful cuisine, and a rich and colorful heritage. Maria was a professional seamstress, specializing in infant and young children's clothes.
John's skills extended to housebuilding, repairs, farming and assisting the children with homework. John was self-educated and took correspondence courses through the University of Wisconsin. john had a very curious mind and a wide range of interests. He was a mathematician, and an artist, using oil medium.
In November 1975, John (age 81) and Maria (age 57 ), boarded an orange colored Braniff airplane (B747), "Fat Albert" and flew from Texas to Hawaii. This was their first time on an airplane.
John died in 1977 at the age of 83. He is buried in Mission Memorial Park in San Antonio.
Maria continues to reside in the King Williams historical area and she is still involved with her cultural activities.
Sixth Generation
John and Maria have five daughters. The Rothenbach girls are Helia, Helena, Mary Teresa, Isabel, and Ana.
Seventh Generation
John and Maria have 11 grandchildren. Maria, Michael, and Earl Moore (Helia). Sean White (Helena). Helen and Sean Wood (Teresa). Corrine and Jason Powell ( Isabel). Gator, Donna and Justin Dodson (Ana).
Eight Generation
Great Grandchildren of Maria and John Rothenbach number 19 (as of 2010).
