Put Him In My Pocket

Have ever met someone that is so interesting that you forget to ask him his name? I had that pleasure in Silver City New Mexico. We went to their museum and I overheard him talking about maintaining his grandfather’s gravesite. Of course I had to ask him where the cemetery was located and that is what led me into this wonderful conversation about the history of Silver City.

I heard the tale of how the town founder, John Bullard was killed by an Indian. He was shot in the chest with an arrow which made him go down in a sitting position with the most surprised look on his face. Seconds later he just toppled over backwards dead.

I heard about Catherine Atrim, Billie the Kid’s mother and what a delightful person she was. She came out west for her health, she had TB and during the time she was well enough to get out of bed she proved to be a “delightful Irish lady.”

I heard about his grandfather, Tom and the family feud that led to the killing of his Uncle.

Of course the story was completed by a story of a delightful lady, Millie. She came to Silver City and started a “cat house.” Back in 1940 when he was a youngun he met her and asked her if she knew his father. Thanks to her, he had stories of his father. Like Sadie Orchard, she was generous to a fault and helped the community.

For an hour the west came to life for me and driving home I saw the country in a whole new perspective.

I was hoping to find some pictures of stories of old Tyrone New Mexico, a ghost town that I did not try to find. I found some pictures of the town but no stories. I feel the website Ghosttowns describes it better than I could so I will quote them.

Tyrone occupies a singular position in the history of New Mexico ghost towns. Nowhere else will the ghost town visitor gaze upon what once was a display of rococo mansions patterned after the imposing Mediterranean-style homes of Spain. All this was the idea of Mrs. Dodge of the giant Phelps-Dodge Corporation. It was her dream to make Tyrone into the most beautiful mining town in the world. She first engaged the services of the well-known architect Bertram Goodhue, the same Goodhue who designed the buildings of the Panama-Pacific Exposition in San Diego in 1915 and the Capitol building in Lincoln, Nebraska, to come to New Mexico. He did and the same fundamental plan was adopted for Tyrone. The town was built including a business section, a residential section, a school, a hospital and palatial residences at a cost of over one million dollars. The project was completed in 1915 and ready for occupancy. Except for the ravages of time, Tyrone today is not much different than it was in 1915. The reason? There were rumors being circulated that the rich copper deposits were not as rich as once believed and who would want to move into a failing operation. Rumors became fact in 1921when the mines closed and people moved away. Submitted by Henry Chenoweth.

One word of warning about this website…. Turn off your sound.

It is moving on day. I still can’t post my pictures because of the slow internet. Hopefully at the next park.

Location:  Silver City