Truly a Texas treasure, the UTSA Institute of Texan Cultures’ sharecropper cabin is one of our most significant artifacts. In the summer of 1979, ITC staff and researchers visited the Brazos River Bottoms to find a former sharecropper’s home for an exhibition. They identified a two-room cabin from a farm in Navasota, which was donated after negotiations. San Antonio's H.B. Zachry company provided the labor and equipment to transport the cabin, which was cut in half to fit onto the museum’s exhibit floor. The Institute collected household items from descendants of sharecroppers and recorded interviews to enhance the exhibition's authenticity. In May 1980, after two years of research, the cabin was installed and opened in the ITC. The physical exhibit aimed to provide a more accurate and relatable depiction of sharecropping but still had shortcomings, including limited focus on the experiences of white and Mexican sharecroppers. Tending the Soil, the digital exhibit, aims to address these gaps while honoring the original work and offering a new perspective on the history.

Tending the Soil is a collaborative project between UTSA’s Institute of Texan Cultures, UTSA Libraries, and Special Collections.

Awarded in 2020, this virtual exhibit was made possible by a generous grant from the Texas State Library and Archive Commission (TSLAC) to digitize an exhibit of significant cultural heritage.