The Borderlands
Anthony, TX, is a small farming town on the southern edge of the agricultural area straddling the border of New Mexico and Texas between Las Cruces and El Paso. Just south of the town the desert edges back closer to the Rio Grande and the fields and orchards disappear, replaced by mesquite and sagebrush. As has been the case for over a thousand miles, stark mountains rise immediately to the east of the river bed (which, as we now know, is dry this time of year). Traffic on I-10 gets more crowded and development starts to pop up along the freeway when a gap in the mountains appears to the south east. The mountains on the east, now called the Franklin Mountains, point like an arrow head darting south, with the Rio Grande on the left and the wide open Chihuahuan Desert on the right. At the point of the arrow the river bed takes an abrupt turn to the east and passes between two mountain ranges, one to the north in the United States (the Franklins), and the one (the Juarez) to the south in Mexico. The gap between the two is barely a mile. This is El Paso, “the pass”, the only reliable snow-free crossing of the Rocky Mountains in North America and the reason for the existence of the towns. I say towns because El Paso, US, is on the north side of the Rio Grande and Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, (twice the population of El Paso), is on the south. I say “river” using the name in the historical context because not only is the river dry, but for nearly 20 miles through the metropolitan area it is a concrete lined drainage ditch with the border fence on the north side marking the border between the two nations.
For the first couple of hundred years after the Spanish first arrived settlement was confined to the south bank of the river in present day Mexico as warring Apache Indians and re-occurring floods made the narrow plain on the north bank untenable for settlement. A great view of the metropolitan area is available from the Franklin Mountains, which rise immediately north of the downtown area. This picture is looking south down the mountain and across to Mexico at the narrowest part of the pass. Most of El Paso (approximate population 800,000) spreads out on the desert to the east. The tall buildings are central El Paso, just a couple of blocks north of the border. Ciudad Juarez (approximate population 1.3 million) spreads across the hills in the background. Turning to my left I take a picture of the view to the east, looking out towards Fort Bliss (a massive military installation housing approximately 30,000 personnel) and the eastern suburbs.
There is a great deal of road construction going on in the downtown El Paso area and that, combined with the fact that I am trying to drive a small truck through the crowded inner city, means that exploring the downtown area will have to take place on a future trip. I also forgot to bring my passport so going over the border to Ciudad Juarez is also not on the agenda. While it’s true that Ciudad Juarez has been the site of a lot of violence related to the drug trade, it is considered relatively safe for tourists who stay in the downtown area. Even though it goes through the middle of a metropolitan area of nearly 3 million people, the border cannot be missed. The river is now a concrete lined drainage ditch, the north side of the river is lined with the infamous border fence, much written and talked about these days.
The view above is looking south into Mexico and that’s NOT the river in the foreground, but rather a puddle left over from a thunderstorm the night before. The picture below (also looking south into Mexico) shows a damaged section of the fence being replaced (don’t know how the section got damaged so make up your own story of mobs storming the ramparts and insert here!) Those four “things” on the fence (according to a construction worker) are cameras and motion detectors.
A lot of people park on the American side and walk across the border (but not me!). Fortunately I find other things to explore, and the first is a little gem that most people don’t even know exists, the National Border Patrol Museum.
The National Border Patrol Museum
The origins of the Border Patrol actually go back as far as 1882 when Congress passed the Chinese Exclusion Act, designed to patrol the border between the United States and Mexico in an effort to bar Chinese and European illegals who had been denied entry at Ellis Island. The first troop of 74 mounted guards was formally stationed at El Paso in 1904 and efforts through the 1910’s continued to focus on stopping illegal Chinese immigration. Then two events happened which changed the magnitude of the problem. In 1917 Congress passed the Immigration Act which imposed an $8 fee for entry and more importantly, an English reading test requirement for each immigrant, forcing many to enter the country illegally. Prohibition in the 1920’s lead to an explosion of illegal traffic across the border. In 1924 the U.S. government officially established the Border Patrol. The U.S. /Mexican border was divided into three districts, supervised from Los Angeles, El Paso, and San Antonio. The Immigration Service officially established the El Paso Border Patrol Training School in 1937. Similar to the military academies, all border patrol agents for the entire country are now trained in El Paso. Here’s a picture of the first graduating class of agents.
Tucked away on the eastern slope of the Franklin Mountains in northeast El Paso, this unassuming little building combines a memorial to fallen members of the Border Patrol with a little museum.
Amongst the displays is a collection of various types of transportation used by illegals trying to get into the United States.
In 1994 four Cuban refugees landed at Tea Table Kay in south Florida, having survived a day and a half crossing from Cuba in this raft (right). The raft was constructed out of scrap metal, tire tubes, wood and a blue canvas tarp. An outboard motor salvaged from old Russian equipment powered the raft across the ocean.
Crossing the Rio Grande doesn’t take quite as complicated a boat. After water returns to the river east of El Paso, a series of dams creates a more consistent flow. This boat (left) was captured from smugglers near Laredo, Texas. It is made of two truck hoods welded together and there would have been a bench made out of wood across the middle. Each passenger in the boat paid $500 for their passage.
In 2009 Border Patrol agents caught three smugglers and 242 pounds of marijuana north of Road Forks, New Mexico. They had used this hang glider (right) to cross the border.
These home-made motorbikes were caught in 2003 near Ajo, Arizona, loaded with people. Though rough, they were prepared for crossing the desert. Special filters were installed on the gas tanks to keep out the sand and dirt, and even though the tires are really worn, each carried a tire pump.
While the site of El Paso itself was not initially settled by the Spanish, an area about 30 miles southeast of the modern city was a hub of missionary activity by Spanish priests. There are three settlements in the area, two of them missions and one a fort, all on the north bank of the Rio Grande (which is still dry in this area). This area is now called the “Mission Trail.”
The Mission Trail
The mission at Ysleta is the oldest mission in Texas. It was established in 1680 to serve refugees from the Pueblo Rebellion in northern New Mexico. The Tigua Indians had settled in the area and they continue to inhabit the area today. The original church was built in 1682. Floods in 1740 and 1844 destroyed successor buildings, and in 1851 this current structure was built on slightly higher ground. The bell tower was added in 1897. Again, this is a working church, not a museum, and has been lovingly maintained over the years.
Exactly one day after establishing the mission at Ysleta, the governor and priests traveled south to establish a second mission at Socorro (thus it is only a couple of miles south of Ysleta.) The same flood that destroyed Ysleta in 1740 destroyed the mission at Socorro, as well as a flood in 1829 that did not damage the mission at Ysleta due to the shifting channel of the Rio Grande. The current church was built in 1843 using the precious cottonwood and cypress support beams from the church that had been built in 1691 (remember, we are in the middle of the Chihuahuan Desert and trees are in very short supply.)
The pictures of the interior are dark because there are few windows set into very thick adobe walls, thus the primary source of light was coming from the open main door.
The third settlement on the mission trail is about 8 miles south of Socorro and is 100 years younger. San Elizario wasn’t established as a mission but rather as a fort in 1789 as part of a futile effort by the Spanish to hang on to their claims to the territory of northern Mexico. After Mexico won its’ independence from Spain in 1821 the military presence slowly dwindled but the area continued to grow in population and after it became part of the United States in 1848, San Elizario was the largest settlement on the north side of the Rio Grande and became the county seat of El Paso County. San Elizario was at the center of the “Salt War”, a 12 year long conflict between the locals and Anglo politicians and businessmen over control of the salt lakes at the foot of the Guadeloupe Mountains northeast of the area. The locals initially had the upper hand, including the capture of 20 Texas Rangers by 500 citizens at San Elizario in 1877, but the U.S. government sent in more troops and eventually the Mexican-American citizens lost the war and the salt lakes were allowed to be sold to private Anglo businessmen. Another consequence was that the county seat was moved to El Paso and then the railroads passed the town by so it settled into a slow decline. The Historic District is a couple of blocks surrounding the original presidio (fort), with most of the buildings being constructed in the 1850’s.
The town plaza was initially the interior square of the presidio. Today original buildings exist to the south, west and north while the east side is open to playgrounds used by the local elementary school.
The church dominates the south side of the plaza and can be seen in the background of the plaza picture. There never was a mission established at San Elizario, but the church has served the community since its’ founding in 1789. The site was plagued by floods (though not as frequently as Ysleta and Socorro), and the current church was built in 1887.
The west side of the plaza is defined by “Los Portales”. Built in 1850 by Gregorio Garcia as a personal residence, it currently houses the visitors’ center and a small museum. Part of the defensive perimeter of the plaza, there are no openings on the back or side walls. In 1870 the building was donated and used as the first school in the area before falling into disrepair.
The north side was the main entrance to the plaza and the opening is flanked by the Presidio Barracks and the Lujan Store.
The tall part of the Presidio Barracks is the original structure from 1789, which was also used as the town post office in the early 1900’s. The Lujan Store was originally constructed in 1855 and was used as a store and personal residence.
Across the street from the entrance to the plaza are two buildings that date from early in the settlement’s history. First is the Ochoa Buildings, originally a store and residence and now divided into a row of art galleries. Next is the Old County Jail, built in 1850 and used as a jail until the 1940’s. The legend of Billy the Kid includes a story that says that he broke INTO the San Elizario jail by posing as a Texas Ranger in order to free a friend.
Finally, behind the church (thus not facing the plaza) is a structure built in the 1840’s. Primary because of the need for defense against Indians and outlaws, the compound is surrounded by a wall with minimal openings facing out of the actual house. Later in the 1800’s this complex was used as a stage stop for San Elizario by Overland Butterfield stages on the way to El Paso. This house is not in original condition, having been restored in the late 1960’s and is currently used as a private residence.
I took the picture leaning over the front wall and looking into the courtyard.
This wraps up my stay in the Las Cruces/El Paso area and marks the apex of my travel south. I am now turning northeast and heading into unexplored territory (for me, at least), central and eastern New Mexico. Let’s see what life is like outside of the Rio Grande Valley!
Next up: :To Infinity and Beyond”…, Alamogordo and the Tularosa Basin
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