Hide Article Text (OCR)
This mine is located at the western base of the Organ moun tains, about fifteen miles north east of Las Cruces. The Organ mountains have been formed by the upheaval of the igneous rock, granitee and porphyry, which by volcanic agency has been forced up through the limestone. The igneous rock towers up in jagged cliffs and peaks with the lime stone, lifted from its horizontal stratified position by the break ing through of the igneous rock, leans against both bases of the latter and forms a series of brok en hills rising above the plain several hundred feet but falling far short of reaching the tops of the jagged peaks which have shot up through it. The lime stone of the Valley, with the opsum near Mesilla, is more or ess altered by the igneous rocks. The mine is only a few hun dred feet from the igneous rock and about four hundred feet above the plain stretching out from the base of the mountains to the river. At the highest point of the outcroppings are six prin cipal veins and some smaller ones, and the limestone hills here and all along the base of the mountains to the north are inter sected by deep ravines ,which are very favorable to the econ omical working of the mine by tunnelling and stoping instead of by the more expensive pro cess of hoisting from deep shafts. The mine is known as the “Stephenson” from its discov erer, the father of the present clerk of Doha Ana county, who found it while searching for the lost ** Padre Mine,” which ac cording to an old tradition was worked near this Valley by a Spanish po of El Paso, who extracted from it fabulous wealth. Mr. Stephenson worked his mine in a very primitive way, extract ing only the argentiferous lead ores which were easily reduced by smelting in small adobe blast furnaces by the same process still in use by the Mexican min ers in old Mexico. None of the ore was ever worked by amal gamation although by far the greater part of it is better adapt ed for the latter process. About the year 1871 a California miner who had worked in the mines and mills of the Comstock suc ceeded by practical test in work ing the ore by amalgamation and by the same process as that used in Washoe. Mr. Stephenson worked his mine for several years in his rude way and took out some fifty thousand dollars in silver there from. In 1857 he sold it to a company called the Stephenson Silver Mining Company, com posed of officers of the United States army s rationed at Fort Fillmore, about six miles below Las Cruces, for $12,500 and after various delays this company purchased machinery which cost, laid down in this Valley, be tween forty and fifty thousand dollars, with the intention of working the mine on a large scale. This machinery, or a part of it, arrived here just at the breaking out of the war, when everything was topsy-turvy with excitement. Some of the officers who composed the company had gone south and joined the Con federacy and others had been ordered by the government to different points of the compass. The Confederates shortly after wards took possession of the country and the machinery was seized and confiscated as the pro perty of enemies in arms. At the close of the war those members of the company who still survived again interested themselves in the mine and be gan the negotiations for a sale to an English company for $250, 000. However, on coming out to the mine with an expert sent out to report on the property, it was found that it had been re-located by Mr. H. Lesinsky and others. Litigation resulted and continued some three years, preventing either a sale or the working of the mine. At the expiration of that time a compromise was ef facto and a new company formed called the San Augustin Mining Company. The capital stock was increased from three thou sand to six thousand shares and divided between the old owners and the jumpers, and the mine was soon afterwards patented, being the first patented mine in New Mexico. Since that time nothing has been done on the property, the owners having de cided to await the entry of rail roads into the country before resuming work.
Newspaper Details
Las Cruces Newmans Semi Weekly
Las Cruces, New Mexico, US
Wed, Apr 20, 1881
Page 2
Full Page
Clipped by
Anonymous
USA 05 Feb 2026
Other Publications Near Las Cruces, New Mexico
Las Cruces Daily News
Rio Grande Republican
Thirty Four
Rio Grande Farmer
Mesilla Valley Democrat
