The Silver Magnet. Thirty Years in a Mexican Silver Mine

Shepherd, Grant

Edité par Crown, New York, 1938

A propos de cet article

Octavo, 302pp plus b/w photo illustrations. Wonderful first hand account of a Mexican silver mining town (and mine), located in Batopilas, deep in the Sierra Madre mountains and Copper Canyon country, state of Chihuahua, among the Tarahumara Indians. The author was the son of Alexander Shepherd, who came to Batopilas in 1880, bringing his large family with him from Washington, DC. "The silver mines of Batopilas were some of the richest in Mexico. In the 18th and 19th century both Spaniards and Mexicans gained great wealth out of the area. American John Robinson purchased an old claim in 1861 which turned out to have a large, hidden vein. He decided to sell the claim to fellow American Alexander Shepherd for $600,000 US in 1880. Alexander Shepherd was the last mayor of Washington, D.C. and had been ousted under unproven corruption charges. Once Shepherd moved his family to Batopilas, he filed over 350 mining claims and formed the Batopilas Mining Company. His mines became some of the wealthiest in the world at their peak. Noting the difficulty and time (over eight days) of transporting the silver ore to Chihuahua, Shepherd opened his own facilities and foundry along the river at his Hacienda San Miguel. Over 20 million ounces of silver were extracted from the mines, and this great wealth allowed Shepherd to bring cultural events and technological advances to this once sleepy town. Batopilas was the second city in Mexico to have electricty. His hydroelectric works provide the towns power still and he also built an aqueduct which is still in use today. So famous for it's wealth were Shepherd's mines that Pancho Villa once robbed a mule shipment of $40,000 US in silver bars. Alexander Shepherd died in 1902, leaving the mines to his sons who ceased operation in 1920, although other miners would later try unsuccessfully to restart the old mines. In 1938, one son, Grant Shepherd, wrote The Silver Magnet about life in Batopilas and Alexander Shepherd. It is an excellent description about this once world famous town." The book has been translated into Spanish and issued in paperback in Mexico. Dust jacket is mildly chipped top and bottom, but with no loss of text. Book itself is bound in crimson cloth, with publisher's decorative boards, and is fine. Quite scarce in the dust jacket. Very good, fresh copy in pretty good dust jacket.

N° de réf. du vendeur 6662

Détails bibliographiques

• Titre: The Silver Magnet. Thirty Years in a Mexican Silver Mine
• Éditeur: Crown, New York
• Date de parution: 1938
• Reliure: Couverture souple
• Édition: First edition.
• État de la jaquette: Jaquette
• Catalogues du vendeur:
  • Mining
  • Mexico
  • Tarahumara
  • Chihuahua