Document text
Marie :,‘arter
Anthony,
New Mexico
Anthony
Old Timers Dictionary
In
Detail
1,000 words
There is no doubt, that to -day and not to -morrow, is the propitious time
to collect and preserve some of the true stories of this Great Southwest. For
there are not many of the early settlers or old-timers left. Many, who were
the pathfinders for us, have passed away, leaving no records of the heroic
parts they played in the historical drama of our country.
Take one old-timer for instance --one of the oldest pioneers of our community.
Her house is old, too, but it has not withstood the ravage of time near so well
as she. When I asked her how long she lived in Anthony, she laughed and replied:
"Gracious, child! Why don't you ask me how long I've lived in New Mexico?
'Cause if you get any sense out of my story I'll have to start from the begin-
nin; over in Lincoln County, where we located before comm' to Dona Ana."
"What year was that?"
1881. de moved to Anthony in 1897. My first husband had been out in this
country before, but as I told you, Lincoln County. Before he went to Lincoln,
tho, he drove a freight train across the plains from Kansas to Colorado.
Carter -2
It was slow travel, too, 'cause they drove ox teams in them days. Besides; if
they wasn't watchin' for Indians, they was a slowin' up to let the buffalo go
by."
"And where were you at that time?"
"Back in Missouri a waitin' and when he come back home we was married, and
started on our honeymoon. After visitin' some of his kin folks at Farmington,
Missouri we bought us a covered wagon for the rest of the trip."
That must have been exciting," I said.
"Yes, it was. The first thing we run into, after passing the Navajo Indian
Reservation a little ways, was about three hundred redskins on horseback, and I
guess the only reason they didn't scalp us was the fact that they was too drunk
to see us. Them that could still drink was a reelins from side to side, and
them that couldn't hold anymore were asleep on their horses' neck. They was the
real thing too --feathers, blankets, bare legs and moccasins. Some of them wore
little aprons for pants.
"What tribe were they?"
"Navajos."
"Were you afraid?"
"I didn't flinch. And when they passed on my husband patted me on the
shoulder. I guess he thought I was pretty brave."
"You certainly were," I said.
"We had to be in them days. And on the upper Feneasco, where we first
settled, every man and women faced the same problems. Then we moved a little
lower down, to ayhill, New Mexico, the town my father, Henry ayhill, homestead-
ed. I was the first postmaster. Mayhill, is in Otero County. So is the Mes-
calero Indian Hi.eservation. We had lots of Indian scares and never knew what them
Carter --3
wild Apaches were goin'to do next. I hated the old squaws. Sometimes they'd
knock at my door, and when I'd open it, there they'd be, all wrapped up in
blankets. They alwa s traveled in pairs. They wanted water but they couldn't
understand me, and I couldn't understand them. So they'd grunt away down in
their throats, open their mouths, and point at the hole in their faces."
Mary Coe Belvins was the wife of Jim Coe, a man who knew Billy the Kid and
liked him. She gave birth to the second white child on the upper Peneasco, a
creek, sometimes called a "river." The upper and the lower Peneasco was seper-
ated by a dry basin for about twelve miles.
The Coes moved to Anthony, New Mexico in the year of 1897. They home-
steaded a ranch Northeast of Anthony, where they lived for forty-fi,ye years.
It was a stock farm, and they pumped their water with a steam engine, which
Mrs. Coe ran, while Mr. Coe cut wood to feed it. After their homestead was
proved up they moved into town. In 1909 they sold their ranch to the govern-
ment for a target range. Mary Coe is now Mrs. Blevins, and is seventy-five
years old. The was born in iiissouri in the year 1837, June the 1st.
The other day I drppped into our local drygoods store to chat with a friend,
and old-timer, who has lived in our community since the year of 1901.
"That," I inquired, "did Anthony look like when you located here?"
"Lordy, me!" she exclaimed, "I wish you could have seen it. All this business
section on th' highway was jest a wagon road. de drove horses 'n' buggies in them
days, 'n' wagons, of course. It took us a whole day to get anywhere --south of
El Paso, or north of Las Cruces. S-cuse, me." SHe opened the stove door to
expectorate; then explained; "It's stuff. Bin chewin' it for twenty years, 'n'
ain't got used to it yet."
Carter -4
I waited, until my friend had reclosed the stove door, then resumed my
quizzing;
Where was the principal business street when you located here?'
West of th' Santa Fe Tracks. Guess how many houses was on that street?"
I see you can't guess," she added quickly, so I'll have to tell you. There
was five. I run a little notion store, 'n' Charley 'Miller run a store next door.
He sold whiskey but had to quit, 'cause the Mexicans would get drunk in his
place 'ne start fights. One day he got so mad that he took all his whiskey
barrels 'n' dumped 'em in th' street."
I suppose land was cheap," I said.
I'll say it was. Good valley land ranged from eight to ten dollars
an acre," she said. "TWenty-five dollars was fancy price."
The street referred to by this old-timer, in 1901, was a mere country
lane, with narrow trails branching off in different directions. One trail
turned north to the town of 'Mesquite. A second trail turned west to the
Rio Grand and Bosque, or low land.
To -day, the ranch land known as the "Dairy Farm," commands a top price,
but in 1901 it was bought by a ir. Howser for six dollars an acre.
L'Ir•
Howser levelled the land and sold it to C. F. Carpenter for twelve dollars
an acre. Mr. Carpenter made some improvements and sold it to the El Paso
Dairy Farm Company. This company bought the ranch to raise alfafa and grain
to feed their cattle. At the present time the principal crops are cotton and
sugar -beet seed. The seed is shipped to Colorado to grow sugar beets.
In the early days of this town the chief amusements were picnics and
barbecues. The men usually barbecued the beef. Sometimes they remained up
Carter -5
all night preparing, cooking, basting, and turning it on the spit. As one
old-timer commented, "ye cnalt hurry barbecue."
Mrs. O. C. Story, born 1872, Lietropolis, Ill.
Came to Antony, New Mexico in a covered wagon. In the year of 1901. Mrs
Story is a successful business woman.