Socorro CountyHistorical Society

Post Office Box 921Socorro, New Mexico 87801

Membership News • Spring 2018Printed periodically

SCHS Annual Meeting

In this Issue . . .Annual Meeting/Renewal time . . . . . . . . 2

The Solitary San Marcial Grave . . . . . . 3Story behind the Mary Featherston grave

San Marcial: Railroad Town . . . . . . . . . 7Back then, and remnants today

The San Marcial Bank Robbery . . . . . . 12Who robbed the San Marcial Bank, 1892?

The Last Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16King Tut’s tomb and scary volcanoes

C

The annual meeting for Socorro County Historical Society was held Saturday, April 21 at the 1880s built Garcia Opera

House. It was a good turnout with about 55 people in attendance with six new members.

Our guest speaker:Francisco Sisneros

The meeting began w i t h o u r g u e s t speaker, Francisco S i s n e r o s . H i s presentation on the h i s t o r y a n d genealogy of the village of La Joya wa s i nt eres t i ng , informative , and well received by those in attendance. H i s t a l k m o s t l y covered the formation of the town from its founding circa. 1800 to present, including the genealogy of some of the early families, the original land grant, the history of the church, and its location on El Camino Real. La Joya’s history is actually much older when you consider it is located about walking distance from the Sevilleta mission pueblo, or Tzelaqui pueblo, one of the occupied Piro pueblos visited by Juan de Oñate in 1598. Even after it’s abandonment during the 1680 Pueblo Revolt, the Tzelaqui and La Joya area remained a popular paraje (camping site) for caravans and travelers along El Camino Real. Following Francisco Sisneros, SCHS Board m e m b e r P a u l H a r d e n g a v e a s h o r t presentation on some of recent excavation

work at the pueblo b e i n g c o n d u c t ed under archaeologist Dr. Michael Bletzer. T h i s e f f o r t h a s located the 1620s b u i l t F r a n c i s c a n mission church at the pueblo – a significant archaeological and historical achieve-ment. Harden presented some ground and drone photos of the excavation and the mission church. Much of the excavation is being performed by volunteers, many our neighbors from the Valencia County Archaeological Society, a very active group.

The annual meeting was heldat the Garcia Opera House

Continued next page

Printed periodically

SCHS is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization

Page 2

New Website ItemsItems recently added or updated

to the SCHS website(Links on left side of the home page)

http://www.socorro-history.org

• Hammel family & museum – history & photos• San Marcial – history & photos• Socorro County Mines & smelters (mostly the Kelly mines at the moment)• El Camino Real – maps & photos

Annual Meeting (cont’d)

SCHS President Chuck Zimmerly gave a short summary of some of the activities of the Society over the past year, which included: • Our new archive storage unit • Donation by NMT of storage shelves and historic Chieftain newspapers by Hal Quinn • Cement work for Oktoberfest food service • Damaged Hammel roof repair completed • New safety steps for Hammel entrance • Various requests and tours of Socorro area historical features by others • “Boots-on-the-ground” historical research and tours conducted by SCHS members

No nominations for Board members or officers were received. Existing Board members agreed to serve another term, such that there were no changes to the SCHS Board of Directors or Society Officers.

OK, we didn’t exactly have an open bar nor did it last an hour, but following the meeting, many enjoyed our light refreshments, visiting with fellow members, old friends and new faces alike, with lots of discussions about local history. Six of those new faces became members of SCHS. All-in-all, a very pleasurable Annual Meeting and so good to see those in attendance. Our thanks to those that attendended and to our guest speaker, Francisco Sisneros.

Your SCHS Board of Directors:

President Chuck Zimmerly Vice President Dr. Peggy Hardman Treasurer Prescilla Mauldin Secretary Paul Harden

Board Members: Jon Spargo Roy Heatwole Kay Krehbiel Claudette Gallegos Bob Eveleth – Past President Ex-officio

Renew Your SCHS Membership

About half our membership have renewed their memberships as of May 20. If you are the other half, please consider your renewal. You can renew either by mail or via our website. Mail: Socorro County Historical Society P.O. Box 921 Socorro, NM 87801

Online: http://www.socorro-history.orgVery easy to renew online using your debit or credit card, or Paypal account. Give it a try.

We appreciate your continued support of SC HS. Our annu a l m emb ersh i p an d Oktoberfest are our primary fund raisers for the Hammel museum and our activities. Plus, you get this nifty newsletter to boot! Many thanks.

It’s that time again! Time to renew your SCHS membership. Annual dues (just $20) are due each year beginning with the Annual Meeting, valid from April-to-April.

Special San Marcial Issue San Marcial is a major chapter in the history of Socorro County. Once the 2nd largest town in the county, it was completely destroyed by the 1929 floods. Unfortunately, there is little history archived on San Marcial aside from the floods. As a result, several SCHS members and interested parties have recently been involved in researching the early history of San Marcial with “boots on the ground” field work, including Peggy Hardman, Paul Harden, David Love, Craig Hennies and others. Some of that research and field work is contained in this special newsletter issue we hope you’ll enjoy.

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of Mary A. Featherstonby Dr. Peggy Hardman

Photo: Paul HardenCurious visitors to San Marcial stop at the solitary grave and wonder, “Who was Mary A. Featherson?”

That lonely, solitary grave, nearly in the middle of the road leading to San Marcial, has been a curiosity to many. SCHS Vice President, Dr. Peggy Hardman, spent several months in research and tracking down the family to learn the story of Mary A. Featherston – partially solving one of Socorro County’s mysteries.

Anyone visiting San Marcial, New Mexico, sees and wonders about this solitary grave. The stone tells visitors

rests here. Who was this woman and why resting in such an isolated spot? More questions than answers exist as to why this particular location. Floods destroyed San Marcial several times before the community faded (see Paul Harden’s “San Marcial Floods” article on the SCHS website); there are three nearby San Marcial cemeteries that escaped the floodwaters (barely) and all in a sad state of disrepair. Why was Mary’s body not buried in one of the nearby cemeteries? Did the land she rests on once belong to her family? Perhaps those answers will be discovered one day, but for now, it will be enough to know who this woman was, why she died in 1883, and

24, 1832, Margaret gave birth to a daughter, Mary Ann (the Minerva part of her name is often shown in parentheses, sometimes left out). On March 2, 1834, a brother arrived, James Barnett Appleby. Sadly, Mary’s sister, Margaret Elizabeth, born July 29, 1836, died at age three. Another family, also from Tennessee, by way of Virginia, lived in Waldron, Scott County, Arkansas, the Featherston family.

remains in San Marcial, alone. Her name was Mary, –

, nee Ap p l eby. H e r f a t he r l e f t Tennessee for Arkansas, but returned to the Volunteer State, claimed his bride, and took her back to Arkansas. Hezikiah Appleby married Margaret Herron. Beyond the fact of his Tennessee roots, not much is known about Hezikiah, other than he served in the War of 1812, and as many did in his time, moved West hoping to become a successful farmer in new and fertile land. In Washington County, Arkansas, on October

W i l l i a m G r a n d i s o n Featherston (hereafter referred to as William G.), patriarch, was one of the original four families who settled Scott County. A community leader, William G. participated in local, county, and state politics, owned businesses, including a tavern, and extensive land in the county. On May 28, 1846, he was appointed Post Master, and in 1862, County Treasurer. The first court session in Scott County is said to have convened in his barn. It seems likely his staunch support of the Confederacy, and his various civic and political duties would

Photo: Peggy HardmanMary A. Featherston’s grave,

San Marcial, New Mexico

On February 17, 1851, George’s courting of Mary proved successful, and the couple married. For most of their married life, the couple lived in Arkansas, and there Mary gave birth to eight children: Robert Barney (1851-1933), Isabelle Jasper (1854-1892), William H. (1856-1925), Mollie Moore (1861-1956), Emma Catherine

Photo: Featherston familyMary Ann Minerva

FEATHERSTON

Photo: Featherston familyGeorge Washington

FEATHERSTON

Page 4

put him in contact with Hezikiah Appleby and his family. Hezikiah also supported the Confederacy, and like William G., attended a meeting to discuss secession at least once. By 1834, William G. and his wife, Isabella (also spelled Isabel and Isabelle) had two sons: George Washington, born November 5, 1829, and his brother, Robert M. William G. married at least three times, outliving each of his wives. During the Civil War, William G. moved his family to Arkadelphia, Arkansas, for safety; the Union army occupied their Scott County home. Likely, this episode prevented Wi l l iam Grand ison Featherston from changing his attitude toward the Union. (The Featherston Society relates that William Grandison Featherston, as late as 1870, still refused to swear an oath of loyalty to the US). It is not known what Hezikiah Appleby did during the war, but records indicate he owned one slave (nothing found thus far indicates the number of slaves, if any, owned by the Featherston family). But, his daughter, Mary, met the dashing young George Washington Featherston and presumably found him worth notice. G e o r g e w a s educated, practiced law, and farmed the family land in Scott County. Records indicate he served as a Chaplain in the Confederate army, likely something else that attracted Mary to him.

(1862-1930), Charles Henry (1867-1923), Georgia Anne (1869-1942), and Martha Edward “Eddie” (1873-1964). The couple and their children lived in Arkansas, Texas, and New Mexico. As adults, the children had careers and married lives in New Mexico, Texas, Oklahoma, and California. Whether or not George and Mary Ann lived in San Marcial is not clear, but they certainly visited family members who settled there. Sons Charles H. Featherston became one of the owners of the Rosedale Mine and William H. “Billy” Featherston lived in the area. Records indicate Billy and F. W. Keith owned a grocery store in San Marcial. George’s brother, R. M. Featherston lived in Socorro proper, as did Robert Barney Featherston, another of George and Mary’s sons. A growing community, situated on the Santa Fe rail line, San Marcial offered the Featherston men opportunity in Socorro County hard to pass up. Apparently, the Featherston clan was well-respected in San Marcial; locals called George Washington, “Major” (likely a reference to his CSA army days). The San

Marcial Bee referred to him by that title in 1885. Around 1881, George and Mary Ann moved to Texas, settling in either Clay or Wichi ta County; she was 49 ye a r s o ld . 18 8 0 C e n s u s r e c o rd s indicate the couple lived in Wichita Falls as did son, Robert

Barney Featherston (Genealogy Magazine.com reports Robert Barney lived in Henrietta, a small community outside of Wichita Falls, Texas; he owned 1800 acres of land and raised beef cattle, so it is not unlikely that the Clay and Wichita County lines blurred at Census time, or his abode was inside Wichita County). Robert Barney had moved from New Mexico to the Lone Star state following

Mary Ann Featherston (cont’d)

an interesting career in Socorro, although he appears to have retained business connections in Socorro until 1887. He was proprietor of the Arcade Restaurant when that establishment was on Manzanares Avenue in 1886 and owned several pieces of property in Socorro and Socorro County. Robert Barney also is reported to have served a stint as a city marshal in Socorro, and had connections to the sheriff’s office in the county. Mary Ann Minerva Appleby, always listed in official records as a housekeeper (with eight children, that label seems inadequate, but was quite common in census data of her time), must have missed the sons who remained in New Mexico.

Mary and George Featherston visited San Marcial in 1883. There, Mary fell ill with fever and died on May 30th. No death certificate has been located, but her great-granddaughter shared that George and Mary Ann did travel to San Marcial “to visit family.” While visiting, Mary Ann Minerva Appleby “came down with a fever and died.” At the time, a fever often called Tonto Fever or Crazy Fever, was prevalent in the Southwest, and cases had been noted in New Mexico. Maybe Mary succumbed to that scourge.

At this point, some questions still cannot be answered fully. Was it Tonto Fever that killed Mary, and why was she buried where she rests today? Did the Featherston sons own the land where she is buried (quite likely), or was she relocated from a San Marcial Cemetery? It is not known who erected the headstone or built the fence (originally a wooden picket fence) around her grave, but in the time period, families erected fence enclosures around burial sites, particularly those independent of formal cemeteries; so most likely, the Featherston family put up the fence, and the headstone. In the 1980s, the Bureau of Reclamation fortified the conveyance channels now slicing through the San Marcial townsite, and the storage yard near Mary’s grave. It is believed the BOR placed today’s metal fence around the grave to protect it, rather than attempt to relocate the grave. Without all the answers, in many ways Mary Ann Minerva Featherston remains a woman of mystery in San Marcial, Socorro County, New Mexico.

Following Mary’s death, the San Marcial Bee reported in 1885, that George W. and his daughter, Georgia, returned to visit his brother, Robert M,

HezikiahApplebee

1798-1863

JamesBarnettAppleby

WilliamGrandison

Featherston1807–1873

MargaretElizabethAppleby

(maiden nameunknown)

1807–1835

Isabel

Mary AnnMinervaAppleby

1832–1883

GeorgeWashingtonFeatherston1851–1903

Robert M.Featherston

MargaretHerron

1793-1865

Robert Barney FeatherstonIsabelle Jasper FeatherstonWilliam H. FeatherstonMollie Moore Featherston

Emma Cathertine FeatherstonCharles Henry FeatherstonGeorgia Anne FeatherstonMartha Edward “Eddie” Featherston

Children

Page 5

The Featherston Family Tree

Mary Ann Featherston (cont’d)

George Washington Featherston lived and work as a lawyer in San Marcial, but no corroboration of that has been found). Sometime after that, the Featherston brothers left New Mexico for good. Robert Barney Featherston gave up his New Mexico holdings and moved to his land and home in Texas. His brother, Charles H. lived with him off and on until he moved to California. Both William H. “Billy,” and Charles H. lived out their lives in Los Angeles County, California. George Washington Featherston, Mary’s husband, moved with his daughter, Martha,

Page 6Mary Ann Featherston (cont’d)

Mesa del Contadero(Black Mesa)

Plaza Viejo(Gonzales)Cemetery

San MarcialCatholic

Cemetery

San MarcialMasonic

CemeteryMary

Featherston’sgrave

San Marcial townsite

B.O.R.Storage Yard

To I-25

Google Earth image

Map of San Marcial and Cemeteries

0 1/2 mi.

As a result of researching this family story, descendant Norman Buckley recently traveled to Socorro and San Marcial to visit the gravesite and expressed gratitude to Peggy Hardman and SCHS for keeping Mary’s rememberance alive.

Some of the references used in this article:Ancestry.com (subscription services)US Census Records 1850-1920Featherstone Society http://www.featherstone.one-name.netSouthwest Business-Directory at: http://www.nmahgp.geneaologyvillage.comGenealogyMagazine.com Robert-Barney-Featherston biography at: https://www.genealogymagazine.comNewspapers.com (Arkadelphia, Arkansas)The Southern Standard 05 Sep 1885, p. 3. (1885), various issuesSan Marcial Bee (Socorro, New Mexico) The Socorro Chieftain 09 Feb 1901, p.1.Tennessee Death Records (1880-1908)

Special appreciation to Norman and Betty Buckley (great great grandson and great granddaughter of Mary Ann Minerva Featherston)

and likely, Mary A n n ’ s g r a v e . George seems to have remained in t h e a r e a w i t h Robert M. for a time as the Socorro Chieftain reported on February 11, 1887, that G.W. Featherston had begun practicing l aw aga in (one repor t sugges t s

Photo: Peggy HardmanMary Featherston’s great-great-grandson, Norman Buckley, visits the grave with the author in 2018. Norman lives in California.

(known to all as “Eddie” – a source of great confusion researching the Featherston family) to Stephens County, Oklahoma; George W. died there October 12, 1903. He rests near family and friends in the Marlow Cemetery, Marlow, Oklahoma, but Mary Ann, his wife of so many years, sleeps alone in the New Mexico ghost town of San Marcial.

San Marcial: Railroad Town

• Why San Marcial? • The distance from Topeka, KS to Los Angeles, CA was right at 2,000 miles. The Santa Fe railroad decided they needed a major maintenance facility at the half way point. That was San Marcial, NM, located at milepost 1005 on the Santa Fe line. Upon their arrival in June 1880, not much happened at first. Once the line reached Deming the following year, crews were sent to San Marcial to begin building their facilities near the small Hispanic farming town of San Marcial. This included the depot, shops and a roundhouse for maintenance and rebuilding the locomotive engines, a turntable for turning trains around, the headquarters offices for the New Mexico Division of the AT&SF, plus housing for the engine crews, the section crews, and other employees. A major rail facility.

• The San Marcial Shops • The extensive maintenance shops is what put San Marcial on the map. Steam locomotives require frequent maintenance. The Federal Railroad Administration requires a complete engine overhaul every 1,472 days of engine use – based on the number of days the engine is under steam pressure, not calendar days – a rule still in effect today. This requires a complete rebuild of the boiler, flue pipes and other engine components every 12–18 months of service to

There were two San Marcials. The first took hold shortly after the Civil War, a small village near Mesa del Contadero. Taking advantage of the

fertile farm land in the area, other farming villages were soon founded, such as Geronimo, La Mesa and Valverde. In 1880, the railroad arrived. At first, modest rail facilities and a small town were built on the banks of the Rio Grande. This San Marcial was often called “New Town” with the original town, called La Plaza Viejo or “Old Town,” less than a mile away. New Town was destroyed in the 1929 flood; Plaza Viejo was destroyed in the 1937 flood. Though hardly a thing is to be seen today, the cluster of towns was once a bustling area and the second largest city in Socorro County.

• The Santa Fe Railroad • The Atcheson, Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad (AT&SF), often called the Santa Fe , was formed to build a second transcontinental overland rail route to compete with the Union Pacific railroad (UP). Seeing the difficulties and extreme costs of keeping the UP line open during the winter months, they decided to bypass the mountains and heavy winter snow regions at all costs. Their route went across the Great Plains into Colorado, then south into New Mexico, more or less following the Rio Grande to Hatch. then to Deming for the last leg into California. This became known as the “Southern Route.” The only mountainous terrain to tackle along this entire route was Raton Pass on the Colorado–New Mexico border. Construction began at Topeka, Kansas in 1870, reaching Trinidad, Colorado, Raton Pass and Las Vegas, New Mexico during 1879. Crews extended the rails into Socorro and San Marcial in 1880, with freight and passenger service soon following. The rails reached the Southern Pacific railroad at Deming on March 8, 1881 to complete the line into California. Some 550 miles of track from Trinidad, CO, over Raton Pass, and into Deming were completed in only two years. By 1882, the AT&SF Chicago-to-Los Angeles Southern Route became the nation’s second transcontinental railroad .

Photo: Kansas City Historical SocietyThe standard engine in AT&SF service on the transcontinental route through San Marcial from 1880–1910 was this 4-4-0 type engine.

Page 7

Now BNSF railroad. Burlington Northern and AT&SF railroads merged in 1994.1 Today, BNSF has 32,500 miles of trackage and three transcontinental routes, much of it the former AT&SF.2

by Paul Harden

Page 8

ensure the steam engine is operating properly and safely. Those engines, pulling freight and passengers across the country, is what made AT&SF their money. The San Marcial shops were extensive with the best lathes, milling machines, forges, and other machinery of the time. These machines fabricated engine components, casted metal parts, remachined axles, bearings and drive wheels, boiler work, plus tool and die making, all to support the maintenance needs of the railroad. Often, the shops were manned 24-hours a day to keep up with the maintenance demands. San Marcial remained the main maintenance facility for the AT&SF in New Mexico until 1910. It was then that the Belen cutoff through Abo Pass was completed to relieve the bottle-neck traffic over Raton Pass. AT&SF also opened it’s second transcontinental route from Belen to California through Kingman, AZ. The large maintenance shops in Albuquerque were built 1912-1920 to meet the growing maintenance demands due to the increased rail traffic through New Mexico.

Photo: SCHS, Ralph Lane CollectionSan Marcial shops and roundhouse, ca. 1919

Photo: NMSU Photo ArchivesInside the San Marcial machine shop performing

an engine boiler rebuild, ca. 1918

San Marcial: Railroad Town (cont’d)

From 1910 until its 1929 demise, San Marcial remained a busy place servicing the numerous daily freight and passenger trains still using the Southern Route, and along with it, a growing small city.

• A Town Is Born • The railroad became a godsend for some towns and the kiss of death for others. When the railroad arrived, that town flourished; towns that were bypassed generally died. We see this in Socorro County where the railroad passes through Polvadera, Lemitar, Socorro and San Antonio, for example, viable towns today. The towns bypassed by the AT&SF rails, such as La Joya, Las Canas, Bosquecito, San Pedro, Paraje and others have died or nearly so as people and commerce flocked to the railroad towns. San Marcial was a unique case. The railroad arrived and built their facilities along the river where there was no town. A town needed to be built – from scratch. It didn’t take long before enterprising people and investors arrived to build housing, stores, restaurants, and let us not forget saloons. Starting in 1881, a town was born. As the town began to grow, about 250 men worked at the San Marcial shops, depot, section crews, and the AT&SF Division offices. These men, and their families, needed a place to live. The railroad built housing for the Division staff, train crews, and other staff. Still, many of the workers and their families, at first, lived in tents awaiting housing to be built. San Marcial had gone from about nothing to a decent sized town in about two years. By 1883, it had a growing business district and housing with plans to build a school and a Protestant church . The rail yards and shops were in full operation. Then the first dose of bad luck struck New Town. An early morning fire destroyed several businesses and the depot. AT&SF quickly rebuilt the depot, the new one a large structure to also contain the Division offices on the second floor. This also inspired the town to form a volunteer fire department and a pump house for a small fire hydrant system.

The Catholic church for San Marcial was located in nearby La Plaza Viejo on the Camino Real, served by a priest 3from the Socorro Parish. In 1887, San Marcial became a Parish church to serve the growing population in the area.

Photo: SCHS, Ralph Lane CollectionThe new San Marcial Depot and District offices,

after the first depot burned to the ground in 1883.

Page 9San Marcial: Railroad Town (cont’d)

After the depot, AT&SF built the “Railroad Hotel,” a luxurious 2-story hotel and restaurant. Once completed, San Marcial became the dinner and rest stop for the Southern Route passenger trains. This hotel became the Harvey House in 1885. The second spell of bad luck came in May 1884 as the Rio Grande swelled from a heavy spring runoff and sent 2–3 feet of water down the town’s streets and washed out about two miles of track north of town, isolating the town and halting rail traffic for several days. An omen of things to come? If so, nobody seemed to notice. While San Marcial was intended primarily as a maintenance hub, its sudden popularity with nearby interests surprised the railroad. Demands from the nearby Diamond A Ranch and other ranchers as a cattle shipping point forced the railroad to build a large stockyard south of the roundhouse in 1885. Loading shoots were also built for shipping ores to the smelters in El Paso from the Rosedale mines. It just seemed the popularity, growth and prosperity in San Marcial had no end. The following year, August 1886, the Socorro Chieftain reports a major flood along the Rio Grande, causing severe flooding and damage. In Socorro, the depot was damaged with water on Manzanares Avenue all the way to the plaza. San Marcial suffered about the same. Once again, track crews kept busy repairing the washed out tracks and bridges to get the Southern Route open again to rail traffic.

By 1890, the railroad employed over 400 men with a $20,000 monthly payroll . San Marcial was clearly a major railroad town. The population was now about 1,200 persons and growing, making it the 2nd largest community in Socorro County, only a few hundred people behind Socorro. Socorro’s “boom day’s” were coming to an end as the area mines and smelters began to close, driving hundreds of people to look for work elsewhere. In late 1891, AT&SF removed the rails to the now abandoned Billings Smelter in Park City. With Socorro’s population on the decline, talk arose to make San Marcial the County Seat. The problem: the prominent businessmen in town preferred to keep San Marcial as an unincorporated community and thus not bound to Territorial municipal control. In 1891, another flood strikes San Marcial, washing out more tracks and causing an engine to tip over in the mud, though quickly repaired and placed back into service. Then in 1920, the largest flood so far inundates the area, flooding several thousand acres of farm land near San Marcial, La Mesa and Valverde, including widespread damage to the railroad shops and roundhouse. The economic loss to the area farmers was devastating. This was the tipping point for San Marcial. The railroad and residents realized the Rio Grande needed to be tamed. Silt from recent floods had raised the river bottom to an elevation equal that of Valverde and San Marcial. Residents built levies and a flood control ditch from Valverde to San Marcial while the railroad built substantial levies to protect the city and their facilities. Articles in the Socorro Chieftain indicate the Santa Fe railroad was, for the first time, considering relocating their shops to either higher ground or elsewhere. In either case, this would be a huge expense to the railroad moving the numerous shop buildings, roundhouse, turntable and all operations to another location. But, where?

$20,000 in 1890 is equivalent to about a $558,000 monthly payroll in 2018. A 20% reduction in shop staffing 4occurred around 1910, reducing the monthly payroll to about $12,000, though still significant for a town of 1,500 people

• The 1929 Flood • The infamous 1929 flood was actually two floods. caused massive damage in San Marcial on August 13 when the levies were breached and flooded the town with 3-4 feet of water and silt. The town was unlivable and came to a standstill – including the railroad. The levies intended to save the town now prevented the flood waters from draining, converting San Marcial into a giant bathtub. The town remained submerged for a month. Finally, residents and railroad workers made a break in the levy on the south side of town, near the roundhouse, to allow the waters to drain from the townsite into the river. This worked! The flood waters finally began to recede from the town.

San Marcial sat in a lake for months as Elephant Butte filled to capacity. Adobe walls began to melt; houses collapsed under the weight of their roofs; the town slowly disappearing into the muck. The following was reported in the Nov. 2, 1929 Socorro Chieftain newspaper:

AT&SF has made the decision to abandon San Marcial. This means the stock yards, maintenance shops and the round house will be abandoned and not be rebuilt. All of the workers are being assigned to either Belen or El Paso, a payroll loss to Socorro County of $12,000 monthly.

This was the kiss of death for San Marcial. Without the Santa Fe railroad, there was no incentive to rebuild. San Marcial was a railroad town. Without the railroad, there was no San Marcial.

Photo: Paul HardenSan Marcial today

Photo: SCHS, Powell CollectionAT&SF roundhouse being swamped before its collapse by the levy break during the second flood.

Page 10San Marcial: Railroad Town (cont’d)

Photo: SCHS ArchivesThe downtown area following the first flood

struck September 23 after three days of heavy rains that caused the swollen Rio Grande to exceed flood stage once again. While the levies held, the flood waters gushed through the break made in the levy to flood the town. The torrent of water from the levy break was so great, several of the shop buildings collapsed – even the rock walls of the roundhouse.

1929river bed

Present dayRio Grande

AT&SF Shops& Roundhouse

San Marcialtownsite

(New Town)

Plaza Viejo(Old Town)

Railroadbridge Mesa de Contadero

(Black Mesa)0 ½ mi.SCALE

• San Marcial Today • Many people have visited San Marcial and came home without seeing a thing. There are a few things left to see, if you know where to look. In general, the town is completely gone. The conveyance channel runs through what was once the downtown. A portion of the roundhouse still stands. Map and photos on the next page.

San Marcialsiding

Machineshop

Coaling

Stockyards

AT&SF (BNSF)Mainline track

Google Earth image

Coaling& sand chutes

Turntable Foreman’sshack

Stockpens

0 1000 ft.SCALE

RoundhouseNortheast wall

Stall #1

Wall remnant ofthe Foreman’s shack

Photo: NMSU/Herbert Yeo Collection [image #00940131]Roundhouse was destroyed in the 2nd 1929 flood. Appearance of ruins in 1937, looking south.

Photo: Paul HardenPhoto of roundhouse and foreman’s shack ruins today in January 2018, the area exposed during the 2017 San Marcial bosque fire.

Photo: Paul HardenSCHS members investigating the roundhouse wall on a recent mapping and survey trip to the site. Note water stain on wall showing the 1929 flood depth.

Photo: SCHS ArchivesRed lines show origin of existing remnants

Page 11San Marcial: Railroad Town (cont’d)

RoundhouseNortheast wall

Wall remnant ofthe Foreman’s shack

Stall #1since

collapsed

1937 Photo: Roundhouse ruins

2018 Photo: Roundhouse ruins

For More Information . . .http://socorro-history.org/HISTORY/smarcial/pg.html

http://socorro-history.org/HISTORY/smarcial/sanmarcial_railroad.pdf

The SCHS website on San Marcial history and photos here:

More detailed report on San Marcial rail operations & photos here:

San MarcialRoundhouse

RemnantRailroad Ave.

Machine shop& power plant

Depot &water tank

• The San Marcial Roundhouse – Flood Remnants •

Storage house& Tool shed

Page 12

The Great San Marcial Bank RobberySCHS was recently contacted by historian David John Taylor of San Diego, California. He is researching an outlaw named Taylor, possibly a distant relative, that robbed the San Marcial Bank in 1892. Since so little history is known about San Marcial, other than the 1929 flood, this was an incident we had little knowledge of. It obviously peaked our curiosity. David Taylor was very gracious in sharing his research and knowledge about the bank robbery and the young outlaw prior to the publication of his book, for which we extend our sincere thanks. Plus we did some research of our own.

Here is the previously unknown San Marcial story.

In 1880, the Santa Fe railroad arrived at the small village of San Marcial and transformed the area into a bustling railroad town. “New Town,” as it

was called, grew with people, railroad workers and merchants. One of those merchants was Jasper Broyles , opening a grocery and furniture store in 1886. The railroad made an arrangement with Broyles to build a bank into his store to safeguard their growing payroll. Businesses serving as a bank was common practice at the time. Broyles built the small bank in the corner of his store and installed a large fire-proof safe behind the single “cashier” window. San Marcial finally had a bank, opening for business in June 1892. It quickly became popular with not only the railroad, but area residents from Valverde to the Rosedale mines.

• The Robbery • On November 23, 1892 around sundown, Jasper Broyles and six men were huddled around the store’s stove, staying warm from the chilly autumn evening air. A lone gunman entered the store; the scarf across his face hid his identity. Waving his pistol, he ordered the six men to stand against the wall, handed a bag to Broyles, and ordered him to fill it with cash. Suddenly,

a customer entered the store, identified as Bass Allen. With the point of a gun, Allen was directed to stand against the wall with the other six men. What happened next is not precisely known. Perhaps the unexpected customer spooked the robber to hurry up and finish the job. The masked man retrieved the bag Broyles was filling with cash and noticed a pile of coins. In an absent-minded act, he removed his mask to wrap up the coins on his way out the door. Some accounts claim Broyles filled his bag with money from the cash drawers only, never opening the safe. This may be true, as it was reported he had two guns of his own in the safe to use just in case of a holdup. Had he opened the safe, he would have likely used one of the pistols to defend his bank. After all, the robber was outnumbered seven-to-one at this point, the hostages just waiting for the right moment to make their move. It is not known if any of the other men were armed, or if they were ordered to disarm . Regardless, the robber took his booty and escaped into the night without a shot being fired. The amount of money stolen was reported to be somewhere between $900 and $1,500 — not a large haul considering the amount of money and railroad payroll likely in the safe .

1 Jasper Newton Broyles arrived in San Marcial 1881 as a ticket agent and telegrapher for the Santa Fe railroad; in 1883 he started a freight delivery service before starting his grocery store in 1886. By 1908, he had also built a pharmacy, a grist mill and the electric light company for San Marcial, becoming one of the town’s most prominent citizens. He died in El Paso 1938 at age 78. 2 In 1886, New Mexico passed “An Act to Prohibit the Unlawful Carrying and Use of Deadly Weapons.” By 1892, “packing a gun” in public was falling out of favor, and firearms were not allowed on railroad property. The hostages may have been unarmed. In 1894, Broyle’s bank was listed as having $25,000 in deposits and $20,000 monthly railroad payroll on hand.3

name Will Mason (Mason being Taylor’s middle name). Arriving a day or two earlier, the stranger was easily spotted in the small Mormon town as being well armed with a good mount and plenty of money. Apparently, James Taylor was no stranger to Greer or Sheriff Little, the San Marcial bank robber also suspected of crimes across Apache County. The closest thing to a lawman in Snowflake was

San Marcial Bank Robbery (cont’d) Broyles, and the seven other men, were criticized for not taking any action to overpower the robber. They answered that the lone gunman appeared to be no novice and decided best to comply. Broyles did not know the man by name, but when he removed his mask to carry off the coins, he was recognized by the men as a familiar face seen around town with a reputation for being a “bad man.”

• Hot on the Trail • Socorro Deputy Sheriff William Goodwin (or Goodwyn) responded to the bank robbery. It is not known if he was the resident deputy for San Marcial, or arrived from Socorro later. From the description provided by the hostages, Deputy Goodwin seemed to know the ruffian to be outlaw James Taylor, possibly alias Billy Fox, alias Will Mason, and perhaps a host of others. Western historian John Tanner Jr., and others, also identify him as outlaw Newt Harold, originally from Missouri. We’ll refer to him as “James Taylor.” Deputy Goodwin tracked Taylor to south of town about two miles where he had spent the night. This was probably the home of family or friends in the village of Contadero. From there, the trail continued down the Rio Grande to Cuchillo Negro where Taylor headed west towards Luna — obviously fleeing to Arizona. Goodwin stayed on his trail. Once in Arizona, Taylor was tracked to Springerville and through St. Johns with an obvious trek to Holbrook. Then, the trail went cold. Unbeknownst to Goodwin, Taylor had veered to the south where he hunkered down for a few days in the town of Snowflake, south of Holbrook. Loosing the trail, Goodwin continued on to Holbrook, the county seat of Apache county. There he found the sheriff’s office to be a bit “short staffed” with Sheriff O.B. Little recuperating from an injury and the undersheriff unavailable. He met with William Nathaniel “Nat” Greer, the temporary acting Sheriff.

Photo: Greer Family GeneologyCowhands on the Greer ranch near St. Johns 1888, Nat Greer in the center.

Presumably with an arrest warrant in hand, t h e t w o l a w m e n discussed the matter. Greer seemed eager to help. In turn, Greer telegraphed nearby communities with the desc r ipt ion of the wanted man. An answer from the small community of Snowflake indicated a s t r a n g e r i n t o w n seemed to match the description using the

4 Little information on Deputy Goodwin exists in Socorro County records, though his involvement in this incident is well documented in period newspapers. San Marcial was an unincorporated town with no requirements to keep municipal records. Apache county was divided to form Navajo county in 1895. Holbrook is now county seat of Navajo county.5 6 Historic arrest warrant records exist for Socorro County; the search for this warrant is ongoing for evidence of the legal name used for the outlaw by Deputy Goodwin and the judge issuing the warrant. The unusual named town was founded by Mormon missionaries Erastus Snow and William Flake, and called the Snow-Flake 7

settlement, shortened to Snowflake in later years.

Photo: Flake Family GeneologyCharles L. Flake and wife Cristabell (Hunt) Flake.

30–year old Justice of the Peace Charles L. Flake, the son of one of the town’s founders. Greer sent a telegram to Flake informing him the stranger he identified was suspected of robbing a bank in San Marcial, New Mexico Territory. Sheriffs Goodwin and Greer would soon be enroute to Snowflake. In the meantime, the t e leg ram r eque st ed

also operated under several aliases, Billy Fox being

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Flake to arrest and hold the stranger and await their arrival. Greer continued with a description of Taylor: “Upper lip curled up slightly. Small keen black eyes. Has Winchester forty-six and no scabbard. Has white handled six-shooter, forty five, always carries it in waistband of trousers and shoots left handed.” Two years previous, Taylor and his younger brother, then going by the names Billy and Frank Fox, stole three horses in Arizona. On March 31, 1890, a posse caught up with the two on a cattle drive in Carrizo canyon near San Diego. The Arizona deputy sheriff disarmed Frank Fox by grabbing the pistol out of his scabbard. A scuffle ensued resulting in Frank being

Photo: Dave Taylor and Jon LarsonThe grave of Frank Fox in Carrizo canyon, killed for being a horse thief. Frank was the brother to James Taylor, the San Marcial bank robber.

shot in the back. B i l l y ( J a m e s Taylor) watched as his brother fell to the ground – dead – at only 15 years o l d . Fo r t h a t r e a s on , Tay l o r n e v e r u s e d a scabbard again, always carrying his revo lve r in h i s t rousers . James Taylor, the surviving brother, was arrested for his role in stealing the horses. He was found guilty of grand larceny and sent to the Arizona Penitentiary at Yuma on June 15, 1890 under the name of William Fox, prisoner #0664.

• Deadly Pursuit • Greer concludes his telegram to Justice of the Peace Charles Flake with a warning: “He is a dangerous man. Be sure to have assistance enough to arrest him, if he is the party wanted. You will be paid one hundred dollars if he is the man.” On December 8, 1892, heeding the warning, Charles solicited the help of his brother, James. The two normally unarmed men went to their homes for their guns. They found the wanted man where they suspected, at Mrs. Hall’s boarding house, only a few

houses away from Charles Flake’s house. The two brothers approached Taylor and engaged him in simple conversation, noting his white handled six-shooter in his trousers and other features as described by Greer in the telegram. After a little chit-chat and convinced he was the wanted man, Charles informed him he had the authority to arrest him for suspicion of bank robbery in New Mexico. The two inexperienced brothers were no doubt stunned as Taylor instantly drew his pistol and shot at James, grazing his ear. Less than a heart-beat later, Taylor swung around and shot Charles through the neck. James responded by shooting Taylor, the bullet ripping through his mouth. James shot again, striking Taylor in the head, killing him instantly. All this at close range in a matter of a second or two. At Taylor’s side lay his pistol, with seven notches carved into the white pearl handle. One of those notches was supposedly for killing his own brother when James Taylor was only 13. The sound of several gunshots in the quiet town did not go unnoticed. Several people arrived to see what all the commotion was about, seeing James tending to his bloody brother. With the help of several, they carried Charles Flake to his home, where he later succumbed to his wounds, leaving a wife and four children. That evening, Deputy Goodwin and acting Sheriff Greer arrived in Snowflake and learned the news, inquiring what went wrong. There was plenty of blame to go around. Greer, with little law enforcement experience, should never have asked Charles Flake to confront a known outlaw killer. They could have simply kept an eye on Taylor until the two lawmen arrived. And the fault of the Flake brothers? In their servitude to their community, they naively had no idea who they were up against.

• Back To San Marcial • Deputy Goodwin took Jim Taylor’s body to Holbrook to board the train back to New Mexico. Arriving in San Marcial, Jasper Broyles and several of the hostages identified the dead man as the bank robber – no doubt a huge relief to Deputy Goodwin.

See “The Killing of Frank Fox” by Dave Taylor at: http://www.authorsden.com/visit/viewarticle.asp?id=687058

Perhaps due to his young age, James Taylor (Wm. Fox) was pardoned by Gov. Irwin and released from Yuma on April 10, 1891.9

San Marcial Bank Robbery (cont’d) Page 14

Goodwin had searched Taylor’s body, belongings, and his boarding house room, finding no money save $12 and some change. Some believed he may have buried the money somewhere along his trail down the Rio Grande anticipating a return. If such is the case, that money is now underneath Elephant Butte Reservoir. On the other hand, Flake reported he seemed to have “plenty of money” during his stay in Snowflake. Regardless, the stolen bank money was never recovered. It is reported that the San Marcial bank robber was buried at San Marcial, likely in the predominantly Protestant Mason Cemetery. With no money and no known or reported family, Deputy Goodwin probably had him buried in the “pauper graves” at the cemetery, likely with only a small wooden marker, if one at all.

• Never Ending Story • Though James Taylor was killed and buried 126 years ago, there still remains mysteries about the outlaw – the reason SCHS was contacted by author David Taylor. Mainly, what was the true identity of the bank robber? Was he from Missouri, was his legal name William Fox, James Taylor, or something else?

To assist the author, SCHS members Peggy Hardman and Pa u l H a r d e n conducted some loca l research with few results. N o n e o f t h e assumed names are listed on the known cemetery records; a visit to the San Marcial cemetery revealed no grave; death records at the Socorro County Courthouse begin in 1904; arrest warrants are archived in several places, though not yet located. All period newspaper stories of the event refer to the rogue outlaw as James Taylor and the name Deputy Goodwin knew him by. Therefore, we can only assume that was the name he was known by – and died by – in this previously unknown story.

One of the newspaper reports of the San Marcial robber, clearly identified as , as repor-Jim Taylorted in the Sierra County Advocate (Kingston, NM) Dec. 16, 1892

Today’s view of the San Marcial Masonic Cemetery.

Most of the cemetery, scarcely used since the 1929 flood, has fallen into disrepair. Most of the old wooden markers are no longer readable.

An area in many cemeteries is set aside for the “pauper graves.” At San Marcial, it appears the south side, where rotted wood markers or stones, overgrown with bushes, are all that indicate grave sites.

San Marcial Bank Robbery (cont’d) Page 15

The Last Page: Miscellaneous items of questionable interest Page 16

NO HIDDEN CHAMBERS INKING TUT S TOMB’

, the boy king, became Pharoah King Tutankhamunat age 10, married his half-sister, had two still-born children, and died at 19 years old. Everything about King Tut seems shrouded in mystery. How did he die? Was he assassinated? For such a short reign, why does he have such an elaborate tomb and that iconic solid gold mask? What happened to his wife Ankhesenamun?, or his stepmother Queen Nefertiti? Where are they buried? A long-held belief by Egyptologists is that King Tut’s burial chamber in Egypt’s Valley of the Kings may contain undiscovered and secret rooms stuffed with ancient treasures. Egypt has never permitted the beautifully decorated walls of the tomb to be disturbed to look for secret doors, passageways, or the undiscovered tombs of his wife and stepmother. The legends lives on. Th es e be l ie f s have finally been put to rest. With new technology, l i ke laser scanners and improved ground penetrating radar, King Tut’s tomb has been fully scanned by t he Egypt i an Ministry of Antiquities. No evidence of hidden doors or chambers were found, ending a century of speculation and myths since Howard Carter discovered the tomb in 1922. Now to figure out the gig with that “King Tut curse” thing.

Photo: Smithsonian MagazineScanning King Tut’s tomb

World’s Oldest Spider? This was all over the news recently: the world’s oldest spider died at 43 years old. The female trap-door spider lived so long because she almost never left her burrow. Not really sure of the significance of this except revealing being a couch potato has some obvious benefits. We thought you’d like to know.

Don’t like volcanoes?then don’t live here

•Kilauea, Hawaii ranks among the world’s most active volcanoes. Kilauea is actually small in size, a mere bulge compared to nearby dormant Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa. However, Kilauea has been in a constant eruptive state since 1984 with unpredictable outbursts as we’ve recently seen on the news.•Iceland - that icy island is actually home to 30 active volcanoes, most with names almost impossible to pronounce. There is a fear of a massive eruption from one of several showing recent activity that could cause massive destruction from the lava, melting ice, and mud flows.•Mt. Vesuvias, Italy is famous for its 79 A.D. eruption that buried two cities and petrified 16,000 people of Pompei. It continues to rumble with earthquakes and erupts every 20 years or so. Scientists are concerned a massive eruption may be due. The problem is three million people now live within striking distance o f Ves u v i us to d ay, including Naples.• is a city of 450,000 that sits on the Pasto, Columbia eastern slopes of the . Like the Mt. Galeras volcanoVesuvius of South America, it brings concern of massive destruction and loss of life should the active volcano have a major eruption.• Colima, Mexico experiences eruptions from the nearby 12,000 ft. high volcano. Volcán de FuegoAbout 700,000 people live within the danger zone with increased volcanic activity since 2016. Even worse is the active that Popocatepetl volcanothreatens nine million people in Mexico City only 35 miles away.• is the world’s largest super-Yellowstone Calderavolcano – one capable of an exceptionally large eruption. The caldera is the size of the National Park. The last eruption was 640,000 years ago which dumped ash as far as Ohio. Since 1965 an increase in earthquakes and caldera movement has generated concern if Yellowstone is getting ready to blow again, though nothing imminent.

Mt. Vesuvius and Naples, Italy