Santa Anna in Life and Legend

The Benson Latin American Collection holds the handwritten memoirs of Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna. It also holds various other primary sources that add voices to Santa Anna’s questionable account of Mexico’s history. "Santa Anna in Life and Legend" presents a curated digital collection of such items. The exhibit includes a narrative that highlights a few of these collection items, in the context of four themes that recur in scholarship on Santa Anna. It also poses questions that invite viewers to contemplate his legacy, using the highlighted primary sources as a springboard for analysis. Through an interactive map component, viewers can browse all collection items in a temporal-geospatial context. The map presents each item at a relevant location and in connection to periods of Santa Anna's life.