In this Book
- Chasing the Santa Fe Ring: Power and Privilege in Territorial New Mexico
- Book
- 2014
- Published by: University of New Mexico Press
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.
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.
Table of Contents
- Title Page, Copyright Page
- pp. i-iv
- Illustrations
- pp. vii-viii
- Introduction: What Do You Know of Its Existence?
- pp. xiii-xvi
- 1: The Gilded Age, East and West
- pp. 1-16
- 2: A Ring Is Formed
- pp. 17-38
- 4: The Lincoln County War
- pp. 61-84
- 5: The Firm of Elkins and Catron
- pp. 85-104
- 6: The Business of Land
- pp. 105-130
- 7: A Progressive and Enterprising Spirit
- pp. 131-152
- 8: Fracture in the Ranks
- pp. 153-168
- 9: A Territory or a State?
- pp. 169-188
- 10: The End of an Epoch
- pp. 189-206
- 11: The Myth of the Ring
- pp. 207-222
- Appendix A: Who Was in the Santa Fe Ring?
- pp. 235-240
- Bibliography
- pp. 291-306
- Back Cover
- p. BC