Kristin,

You're absolutely correct, this forum is a GREAT place to start. Apologies for my inability to read! I did post a general query on Mexlist to see what info will turn up there. I'll send you a private message if anything interesting develops...of course, feel free to post any of those findings here if you like.

Jim Tatum.

Started this thread some years ago, sorry for delay in getting back with more info. I did meet up with one of the mexlist guys (sorry forget your name) and let him photograph it, and I know he put those photos on the mexlist site, but cannot find them. I would like to find more info on this item, but am not finding any in depth history (online), wondering if anyone can point me in the right direction, or has more info.

The inscription reads:
Ferrocarril de Chihuahua al Pacifico
Inauguracion de los trabajos
Padrino senor Gral Luis Terrazas
Chihuahua Marzo 25 de 1898

Thank you

hmm, keeps telling me file too large, I'll see what I can do.

Are there any good writings of the formation and construction of the Chihuahua al Pacifico? Online, book form, out of print book form, in spanish? I am not sure where to look for more info.

Thank you.

It's English, but: https://www.amazon.com/Destination-Topo ... B0006BW77W

The KCM&O is one of my favorite railroads, and my late Spanish-speaking father loved the ChP. I'd be interested in trying to buy that spike, if I could afford anywhere near what it's worth!

CD

Ms Silver Spike,

Jim Tatum has given you solid gold advice on the silver spike.

I'd suggest the National Museum in Puebla, BUT I must caution you that while national patrimony laws are indeed scrupulously enforced by a majority of honorable public servants, the politicians are a different matter. The reason that I have a number of Latin American steam era artifacts is that the railroaders would rather see them with me, than have them end up on the coffee table of some crooked politician....

I have ways to contact the National Museum in Puebla, and can communicate in Spanish if I can't get an English speaker for you. Please contact me by private message function of this website if you would like my help.

Asking on MEXLIST ought to do it however. I suggest that you sign up to be notified of all posts by direct email ---- negotiating their website through the Yahoo portal is a non stop deluge of cyber sewage, unfortunately.

Best of luck to you.

Creeping Death (what a name), thanks I've ordered that book, not sure it will have the info I seek, but I love reading history anyway. For me it was mom's side of family, I remember spending summers in Mexico way back when, sad to see how things are today.

QJdriver, I've re-read Jim's posts and failing to see the gold, the museum in Puebla is out of the question because it is in Mexico, and since Mexico has not honored its promises from 100 years ago, I doubt they would honor a promise made today. The rest of his post is critical, but then he was going by completion, and I was using wrong name. Both names are part of family history, so sorry I was confused.

At this point in time my only interest is finding the story on the spike, hopefully it is out there somewhere. Recently found the following thesis, it tells story of Luis Terrazas driving a silver spike at international rail crossing in El Paso in 1881? "The Railway Invasion of Mexico", page 89 https://books.google.com/books?id=fagyAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA89&lpg=PA89&dq=mexican+railroad+silver+spike&source=bl&ots=rBdT8m-xHO&sig=ACfU3U2oSpre6WkrsBGQeRe5KKba3tJpbA&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiL-rmkmKngAhUBMqwKHeURA74Q6AEwFHoECAsQAQ#v=onepage&q=mexican%20railroad%20silver%20spike&f=false

In this document, Sonora, Sinaloa, Chihuahua Railroad, on page 281, there is the line " Creel had, in 1897 and 1898, along with Alfred Spendlove who was president of the Chi-huahua Mining Company, incorporated the Ferrocarril Chihuahua al Pacífico, extending the few miles of track built west of Chihuahua City by Young (the Chihuahua and Sierra Madre), as far as Miña-ca"https://www.degruyter.com/downloadpdf/j/jbla.1975.12.issue-1/jbla-1975-0109/jbla-1975-0109.pdf


.

Searching this evening I found the following document, the relevant part translated reads " In March of 1897, this concession was transferred to Enrique C. Creel and Alfred A. Spendlove reducing the obligation to build a line from the south of Chihuahua, passing by Sonora would reach pacific coast. The works began on March 25 1898, and on the 13th of April it was constituted(incorporated?) in New Jersey USA the Chihuahua and Pacific Railway to execute the rights obtained by Creel and Spendlove. In March of 1900 they finished the first 200 kilometers between Chihuahua and the town of Minaca heading to the gulf of California.https://www.chihuahuamexico.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=5075&Itemid=1

The date of March 25 1898 matches date on spike, guess I need to find a way to search Chihuahua newspapers to find more of the story, hopefully it was a grand event with the fiesta going into the wee hours of the night on the plaza:-)

It's a 'handle' I've used 20+ years, comes from a Metallica song of the same name, and was a joking reference to a Dodge M37 truck I had that wouldn't do more than about 50 MPH and we thought would kill us all.



My late father spoke fluent Mexican Spanish, when I was a young kid we went to Matamoros and Nuevo Laredo countless times - we wouldn't do that today!

It sounds like you really have your work cut out for you, glad to see history being researched and preserved!

CD