August 21, 1910 – La Musa Texana Dies at Age 29

On August 21, 1910, Sara Estela Ramírez, known as “La Musa Texana,” passed away in Laredo, Texas at the young age of 29. Born in Coahuila, Mexico in 1881, Ramírez moved to Texas as a teenager and became a transformative figure as a poet, journalist, teacher, and political activist. She fiercely supported the Partido Liberal Mexicano and became a pioneering voice in Mexican feminism, using her writings to challenge both the dictatorship of Porfirio Díaz and restrictive ideas about women’s roles in society.

Ramírez published her poems and essays in influential Spanish-language newspapers of South Texas, such as La Crónica and El Demócrata Fronterizo, and founded two literary periodicals, La Corregidora and Aurora. Her works, including powerful poems like “Surge!” (“Rise Up!”) and “Diamantes Negros” (“Black Diamonds”), urged women to rise, take action, and embrace their strength. After her death, the journalist Jovita Idar eulogized her as the “Texas Muse,” capturing Ramírez’s enduring impact on Texas letters, the Mexican Revolution, and Latina feminism.

Though only 21 of her poems and essays survive, Sara Estela Ramírez’s revolutionary spirit lives on as a foremother of Chicana/o art and literature. To experience her legacy, read her poems, including English translations of “Surge!” and “Only to the Stars,”

To experience her legacy, read her poems, including English translations of “Surge!” and “Only to the Stars,” here:

• Two Poems in English translation
• “Surge! / Rise Up!” with commentary

#TexasHistory #LatinaHistory #Poetry #MexicanRevolution #WomenInHistory