Pioneer History
from the Federal Writers' Project, 1936 to 1940

•  "I was on my way home from Las Cruces..."

Extracted from a report written by Marie Carter, of Anthony, New Mexico, on March 29, 1937. Mrs. Carter interviewed and then this oral history of Mrs. E. V. Gardner. Mrs. Carter was an author working for the Federal Writers' Project, active from 1936 to 1940. The goal of the Project was to collect and preserve histories of early pioneer citizens. This manuscript is now archived at the Library of Congress.

I was on my way home from Las Cruces, or "The Crosses", to Anthony driving over U.S. Highway 80. I decided to stop and call on a friend whom I had not seen for some time, Mrs. E. V. Gardner. When I drove up she was standing on the front porch of her charming little ranch house.

"Won't you come in and visit awhile?" she asked, in her low cultured voice.

"That is my intention," I assured her, "to visit and to chat."

As soon as we were comfortably seated in her sunny living room, I said, "Won't you tell me something about the early days of the Rio Grande Valley? (I told her I was writing about Picacho Mountain and treasure hunting.)

"Certainly," was the gracious reply. "For I love to talk about the early days. Also to recall how thrilled I was when I first saw this Great Southwest. But, then, I was only thirteen The world looks pretty rosy at that age."

"Indeed it does," I agreed. "What year was that?"

"The year of 1885 was when we moved up the valley from El Paso and I first saw Picacho Mountain.

"Father told me, since time unknown, men have lost their lives, searching for gold. Some of the old-timers in this vicinity firmly believe there is many a buried treasure in the caves of our mountains, waiting to be unearthed by men.

"There are current stories about hidden by the early Spanish Explorers; gold hidden by outlaws, and by Indians. We all know that the story of a find is much like a chain letter--the more it circulates the larger it grows, until finally we begin to question its verity. Take El Picacho, or Picacho Peak, for instance.

"I see it this moment from my north window, clearly etched against the blue of the sky. Not so very long ago, two young men while exploring Picacho, unearthed a brass pot filled with coins. By the time the discovery had been relayed from one person to another, the money found, had become a fortune. When I asked one old-timer if the cache, or treasure was very large, he exclaimed, 'Large! I'll say it was. The sheriff had to protect it with an armed guard till the truck arrived.'"

This is an oral history as told by Mrs. E. V. Gardener who was born in Columbia, Missouri, March 15, 1872 and who moved with parents to El Paso and then moved up the Rio Grande valley in 1885 to Linden, New Mexico (now Berino). Her father was L.C. Harkey, cattleman; mother was Eleanor Virgina Harkey. She was the first school teacher between El Paso and Las Cruces.

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