#dallascounty

"Tejas Warrior" by Allie Victoria Tennant - a beloved treasure at the fairground in Dallas' Fair Park. More about the model, Austin Barbosa, who Tennant used. He was of Mexican parentage and was named Austin Hernandez Barbosa. Barbosa was a Dallas actor, model and athlete. It is unknown exactly how Tennant and Barbosa first became acquainted. Barbosa was likely selected model because he was fit and he also lived and worked in the area. Barbosa was born in Austin around 1909 and his birth name is believed to have been Agustin. His parents were Mariano and Francesca Hernandez Barbosa. Austin was the third of at least seven children (the first to have been born in America) and had moved to Dallas along with some family members between 1920 and 1930.

His father Mariano was working as a barber in his own shop in West Dallas. Unfortunately, Mariano lost his life after being struck by a car near the former Eagle Ford Road and Chihuahua Street on March 4, 1943. Today, Eagle Ford is known as Singleton Blvd and Chihuahua intersects with it about midway between Sylvan and Hampton. A newspaper account of the accident said that Mariano was walking across the street to catch a bus in front of his shop to go home. Francesca predeceased him in 1924 while the family was still living in Austin.