Chasing the Santa Fe Ring: Power and Privilege in Territorial New Mexico

by David L. Caffey

Overview

Anyone who has even a casual acquaintance with the history of New Mexico in the nineteenth century has heard of the Santa Fe Ring—seekers of power and wealth in the post–Civil War period famous for public corruption and for dispossessing land holders. Surprisingly, however, scholars have alluded to the Ring but never really described this shadowy entity, which to this day remains a kind of black hole in New Mexico’s territorial history. David Caffey looks beyond myth and symbol to explore its history. Who were its supposed members, and what did they do to deserve their unsavory reputation? Were their actions illegal or unethical? What were the roles of leading figures like Stephen B. Elkins and Thomas B. Catron? What was their influence on New Mexico’s struggle for statehood?

Caffey’s book tells the story of the rise and fall of this remarkably durable alliance.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780826354433
Publisher:	University of New Mexico Press
Publication date:	03/15/2014
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	336
File size:	3 MB

About the Author

David L. Caffey has served as director of the University of New Mexico’s Harwood Library and Museum in Taos, director of Instructional Support Services at San Juan College in Farmington, and vice president for instruction at Clovis Community College.

Table of Contents

Illustrations vii

Preface ix

Introduction: What Do You Know of Its Existence? xiii

Chapter 1 The Gilded Age, East and West 1

Chapter 2 A Ring Is Formed 17

Chapter 3 Colfax County and the Maxwell Land Grant 39

Chapter 4 The Lincoln County War 61

Chapter 5 The Firm of Elkins and Catron 85

Chapter 6 The Business of Land 105

Chapter 7 A Progressive and Enterprising Spirit 131

Chapter 8 Fracture in the Ranks 153

Chapter 9 A Territory or a State? 169

Chapter 10 The End of an Epoch 189

Chapter 11 The Myth of the Ring 207

Chapter 12 Conquest and Consequence: Reflections on the Ring 223

Appendix A Who Was in the Santa Fe Ring? 235

Appendix B Profiles of Alleged Ring Participants 241

Notes 259

Bibliography 291

Index 307

Editorial Reviews

"This long over-due book-length study of the infamous Santa Fe Ring puts New Mexico's territorial politics in the broader context of corruption and politics in western states and at the national level during the Gilded Age. Caffey shows an impressive attention to detail, such as with his important appendix listing members of the Santa Fe Ring over several decades. A notable contribution to the study of the territorial period and the dynamics leading up to statehood in 1912."—Laura Gómez, Professor of Law, UCLA, author of Manifest Destinies: The Making of the Mexican American Race

"The Santa Fe Ring is the most maligned, least studied political and economic clique in New Mexico history. With masterful research and analysis, David Caffey has removed the veil of intrigue to reveal the Ring, its members, and its nefarious activities. This will be the definitive book on the Santa Fe Ring for decades to come."—Richard Melzer, coauthor, A History of New Mexico Since Statehood

"The most comprehensive examination of the Santa Fe Ring to date. Whether or not one agrees with the author's analysis and conclusions, he has succeeded in amassing a vast amount of information and sources that will provide scholars and general readers alike with enough food for thought to last a long time."—Robert Tórrez, former State Historian of New Mexico and author of UFO's Over Galisteo and Other Stories of New Mexico's History

From the Publisher