The El Paso Salt War
by Bob Miles
Photo courtesy: Vicki Gibson
Site of El Paso Salt War
Resentment over private control of the Salt
Lakes in this region, often called
Guadalupe Lakes, in 1877 led to the
El Paso Salt War which entailed the
loss of many lives and much property.
S
alt, long used in seasoning and
preserving foods, is a necessity for
the health of humans and ani-
mals. Obtaining salt, however, led to
the El Paso Salt War, one of the blood-
iest chapters in the early history of the
El Paso area. The war actually took
place in the town of San Elizario, then
the largest settlement in the El Paso
valley. By 1877, a combination of fac-
tors had escalated into a volatile pow-
der keg. Political rivalries, drought,
crop failures and Apache raids all com-
bined with friction between Mexicans
and Anglo-Americans. The Mexicans
found themselves in a strange and con-
fusing world of these newcomers, now
in control of their country after cen-
turies of Spanish and Mexican rule.
Some 70 miles to the East of San
Elizario near the Guadalupe
Mountains lies a vast salt flat which
Spanish law said belonged to every-
one. The poor farmers could always
rely on the salt in times of need. Under
the new American laws, the salt
deposits were claimed as private prop-
erty by Judge Charles Howard for his
father-in-law. A fee would be charged
to gather salt there. Howard’s former
political ally Luis Cardis, an Italian
immigrant who had served in the
Texas Legislature, and Father Antonio
Borrajo, stirred up the population of
San Elizario and vicinity (many from
the Mexican side of the Rio Grande) in
opposition to Howard.
After several fist fights between
Howard and Cardis, Howard shot
Cardis in the chest with a shotgun as
he sat in a rocking chair in Solomon
Schutz’s store in El Paso, thus lighting
the fuse on the powder keg. At the
time, there was no military presence in
the area. The nearest army posts were
at Fort Davis and at Fort Bayard in
New Mexico. A hastily recruited
Texas Ranger force, Company C of
the Frontier Battalion, was put togeth-
er. The available recruits were not
ideal choices by any means, but some
law enforcement body was needed.
Under Lieutenant John B. Tays, they
occupied an adobe house in San
Elizario.
Howard was determined to prose-
cute a group of salt gatherers who had
failed to obtain his permission or pay
the required fees. He went to San
Elizario on December 12, 1877, under
Ranger escort. That night a growing
mob attacked and killed Charles Ellis,
a storekeeper and friend of Howard’s.
The next morning, the mob attacked
the Rangers’ house where Howard
was being held for his protection,
killing one of the sentries and firing on
the house. The siege continued for four
days.
Word was sent that if Howard
would surrender and give up his claim
to the salt, no harm would come to
him. Howard agreed to speak with the
leaders of the mob, despite protests
from Lt. Tays and Howard’s friends
John McBride and John Atkinson. Lt.
Tays accompanied him to the home
where Chico Barela, leader of the
mob, waited. Atkinson joined them as
a translator. An agreement was
reached and Atkinson returned to the
Rangers to inform them of the agree-
ment. They, too, joined Lt. Tays and
Howard, where they were locked in a
room, becoming the only Texas
Ranger body to ever surrender.
However, Barela had lost control of
the mob and Howard was escorted
outside to a vacant space between two
houses. Five men, all Mexican citi-
zens, formed a firing squad. When
Howard realized that further talk was
useless, he himself gave the command
to fire. One of the mob, a known horse
thief, ran forward to finish the job with
a machete, missed and cut off two of
his own toes! Others hacked at the
body. Again over Barela’s objection,
McBride and Atkinson were taken out
and shot. The mutilated bodies were
dragged away and thrown in an old
well. Fortunately for the Rangers,
Barela regained control of the blood-
Cenizo
thirsty mob and they were released to
return in disgrace to El Paso.
Colonel Edward Hatch took charge
of army troops brought from Forts
Bayard and Davis.
Sheriff Charles Kerber assembled a
posse of hard characters, mostly from
Silver City, New Mexico, to help
restore order. Heading for San
Elizario, the posse committed rape and
murder en route. They remained in
San Elizario until Christmas, “quarrel-
ing among themselves and shooting at
each other when no better prospects
for homicide were available.”
A congressional investigation board
met in El Paso in January of 1878.
They estimated that some $12,000 in
property damage had been done, but
others put the figure at $31,000. An El
Paso County grand jury indicted
Chico Barela, Sixto Salcido and four
other leaders of the mob, but they lived
out their lives safely and peacefully on
the Mexican side of the river. Little
was made of the international aspects
of the affair, even though many mem-
bers of the mob were known to be
Mexican citizens. The incident did
lead to the reestablishment of a mili-
tary post at El Paso. A new agent was
appointed for the salt flat property,
permission was sought by the salt gath-
erers and required fees were paid.
Peace came once more to an often
troubled border, but the wounds were
slow to heal.
Third Quarter 2014
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