Douglas, AZ, to Silver City, NM, to Mesa, AZ(Hwy 80 to I-10 to Lordsburg, NM; Hwy 90 to Silver City, NM; Hwy 90 back to Lordsburg; Hwy 70 to Globe, AZ; Hwy 60 to Mesa)
A number of years ago the Lunch Box explored the Rio Grande Valley and eastern New Mexico but never quite got to the southwestern New Mexico. I decide to take a brief detour to the Land of Enchantment to visit Silver City, nestled in the mountains near the headwaters of the Mimbres River (which flows southeast to the Rio Grande). This is Apache country.
Leaving Douglas the road turns to the northeast, following a broad valley bordered by sharp, bare mountains. This is where Geronimo surrendured in 1886, effectively ending the conflict with the Apache. Crossing the Arizona/New Mexico border and leaving the interstate at Lordsburg, Hwy 90 begins to climb into more rugged territory.
Twisting and turning through low mountains that are now clothed with juniper trees, suddenly I curve around a massive multi-colored tailing from a copper mine and enter the narrow canyon that is home to Silver City.
Silver City is the center of mining country – gold, silver and especially copper. In fact, there are still two massive copper mines in operation, both within eyesight of Silver City to the east and west. When the Spanish arrived in the area in 1804 they found that Native Americans had been mining the plentiful surface ore for turquoise and copper for use in jewelry and arrow heads. In 1866 the army established Fort Bayard just west of present Silver City to secure the country against the Apache but the area began to boom in 1870 when silver was discovered about 50 miles southwest of Silver City near Lordsburg. The story is that the army sent a party to investigate and after examining the ore noted that “if this is silver, we have lots of it laying around back home.” By 1875 several rich mines dotted the hillsides on the west side of the canyon and a booming town developed along the narrow canyon floor on both sides of Broadway Street. On July 21, 1895 a devastating flood scoured the floor of the canyon, wiping out Broadway Street and souring a gash nearly 50 feet deep where Broadway Street used to run. Today this is called the “Big Ditch” and is a greenway through town. Modern Highway 90 runs on the eastern bank of the “ditch” and downtown Silver City runs along the west. The entrance to the downtown area is a left turn off Highway 90, through a decorative arch, and across the “Big Ditch.”
Perched on the west bank near a foot bridge to the visitor center on Highway 90 is the 1885 Warren House, the only surviving building along the old main street from before the flood.
The silver boom was soon eclipsed by the rich copper deposits that still form the basis of the mining economy today. A stable economy based upon mining, the presence of Fort Bayard about 10 miles to the east, and the establishment of a college in 1893 (that is now Western New Mexico State University) now continues to produce a vibrant little town. This is a happening place! There is not an empty storefront to be found, and the streets are full of people. Due to the narrow canyon all modern construction is found above the town on the hill to the east, the downtown area is a historic district of art galleries, retail shops, bars and restaurants.
The Palace Hotel anchors the main intersection with a restored lobby to greet the traveler.
Evidence of the vibrant art scene is everywhere, including on the tiled corners sides of the raised sidewalks around town.
Directly above the commercial area are blocks of homes from the late 1800’s, some restored, others not.
Anchoring the residential area is the St. Vincent de Paul Church, built in 1874.
Silver City isn’t all about preserving the past but more of adapting the past. Here’s a 1950’s motel that has been repurposed as a retail court of restaurants and shops. It was way more cool than the picture shows!
Silver City is not on the way to anywhere but it is a great little destination. Fun place!
I do have a little tale to tell that will amuse many of my readers. Being a delicate little flower like I am, when I travel I only use bottled water for cooking and drinking in order to preserve my digestive system. In addition, because I don’t like to have to pull out the water hose and hook up every time I stop, I usually fill up the Lunch Box’s 35 gallon water tank and use it for the toilet. I shower in RV park showers. Just a little system that I have worked out over time that works for me! Unfortunately, every now and then a problem arises with my process and between Bisbee and Silver City I had a little self-imposed drama. Before leaving the RV park in Bisbee, I filled the water tank and emptied the waste tank. Throughout the course of that day, I used the toilet and the kitchen faucet. After lunch I thought I smelled rotten eggs. The odor got stronger throughout the afternoon so I thought I had a propane gas leak somewhere. That could be a problem! When I stopped in Silver City I looked (and sniffed!) everywhere and found nothing, not even the smell. Over the course of the next couple of days the odor came and went. Gas leaks can be a big deal so I got more and more concerned. Then it occurred to me that I couldn’t have a gas leak around the stove because the gas was turned off at the tank, I hadn’t used the stove for days. Duh! That’s when I realized that I might have a problem with the water. I turned the kitchen water on and stuck my nose near the faucet, sure enough, the water that I had filled up with in Bisbee reaked of sulphur! I had to sanitize my water system, which means I drained the water, filled the tank with Silver City water (which passed the smell test with flying colors!), dumped a quart of bleach in the tank and drove around for a while. After running the bleach water through all the faucets, I then had to drain the tank again and then fill it up with good water. Fortunately I can report that the process worked just fine and the Lunch Box is again odor free! Every now and then I have to remind myself that I am driving my “house” around on wheels and things happen! Reassured, I charge on, heading ten miles east to visit Fort Bayard.
Fort Bayard
Fort Bayard was established in 1866 in the center of Apache country, designed to help bring safety and stability to the area. By 1879 it was a thriving Army post, home to the 9th Cavalry of Buffalo Soldiers, one of the army units made up of freed slaves and black free men. Originally referred to by the government as the “Negro” cavalry, the Apache gave them the more colorful nickname of “Buffalo Soldiers.” The surrender of Geronimo in 1886 ended the active native resistance but Fort Bayard lived on as a station on the “Heliotrope Network.” In the sunny southwest the heliotrope (a round mirror mounted on a tripod) was an effective means of long-distance communication via Morse Code and heliotrope stations were established on mountain tops across the southwest allowing messages to be sent quickly across great distances. But the decision in 1899 to establish a hospital at Fort Bayard as a sanitorium for soldiers with tuberculosis laid the foundation for the continuation of the military presence in the area, which continues today at the newer VA hospital down the hill from the historic fort site.
Present day Fort Bayard is not a pristine preserved installation. Instead it is in various stages of gentle decay. A monument to Corporal Clinton Greaves, awarded a Congressional Medal of Honor in 1879 for his efforts in saving a small group of people from an Apache attack, sits in the center of the old parade grounds, the moldering administrative building to the north and the condemned 1922 VA Hospital (currently being demolished) to the south.
To the west of the parade ground are the remnants of officer row.
The commandant’s quarters (middle above) are open and staffed by volunteers, displaying period furnishings.
In 1922 a modern hospital was built south of the parade grounds, this is the facility that is being currently demolished.
Surrounding the old hospital and officers row are acres of housing for workers and patients, all slowly decaying under the hot New Mexico sun.
Looming above the nurses’ quarters on a hill to the north is the old water tower.
Just below is the national cemetery at Fort Bayard.
As I turn and head back to the highway I can see the newer VA Hospital in the distance.
Once I reach the highway I turn west and return to Silver City. I crest the hill above the canyon and see the campus of Western New Mexico State across the way. Downtown Silver City is hidden in the narrow canyon below.
Again, Silver City is a great place to visit but it’s time to move on. My next destination is Mesa, AZ, across the desert to the west. Leaving Silver City the highway descends to the flat desert about 40 miles southwest of town.
The road traverses a wide plain, bordered by mountains on both sides, eventually reaching an area of agriculture around Safford.
The highway weaves through rugged terrain and at the town of Globe we turn southwest towards the Phoenix area. A massive mine dominates the area just southwest of Globe as the mountains get more rugged.
Finally we emerge from the mountains and out onto the Valley of the Sun where Mesa, an eastern suburb of Phoenix, is the next stop on “Sun, Sin and Saguaro.”
Next up: The Valley of the Sun
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