Shafter, Texas

History

Tucked in the Chinati Mountains on Cibolo Creek, 18 miles north of Presidio, Shafter was once a bustling mining town with a population as high as 4000, in 1940.

In 1880 or 1881, John Spencer found silver deposits near this location. Capt. (later Gen.) William R. Shafter, stationed at Fort Davis, and Spencer collaborated to establish the mining operation. This operation consisted of the Cibolo Creek Mill and Mining Company and the Presidio Mining Company, both of which were consolidated as the Presidio Mining Company. The Mina Grande orebody was producing by 1883. The ore, 30 ounces of silver per ton, was treated in a 50-ton pan amalgamation mill. Annual production from 1898 to 1913 was 20,000 tons. In 1913, a 200-ton cyanide mill was added. Annual production from 1913 to 1926 was 84,000 tons, with 10 ounces of silver per ton.

When an assay commissioned by Colonel Shafter confirmed profitable amounts of silver were in Spencer's ore samples, he brought in two of his military associates, Lt. John L. Bullis and Lt. Louis Wilhelmi, to join the venture. Each would contribute, first, by acquiring acreage around Spencer's discovery. In all, four sections of land, or 2560 acres, were acquired. Spencer and they agreed they would all share equally in profits from the venture.{{Cite web | author = Smith, Julia Cauble, Handbook of Texas Online, Texas State Historical Association.| title = Shafter, TX | quote =| url =http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/hns37

The American Metal Co. of Texas acquired the property in 1926. Operations ceased from July 1930 until 1934 due to low silver prices. By 1940, the quality of the ore was 10.7 ounces of silver per ton. The recorded production of the Presidio Mine between 1883 and 1940 was 30,972,286.15 ounces of silver. Production from 1927 to 1940 alone was 11,809,163.8 ounces of silver, 5,406 ounces of gold, and 7,678,049.8 ounces of lead.

United States Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia died at nearby Cibolo Creek Ranch on February 13, 2016.

Geology

At the Presidio Mine, which started operation in 1880, the Permian Cibolo limestone formation is overlain unconformably by the Presidio formation, a massive dark-grey Cretaceous limestone. The Shafter limestone rests unconformably on the Presidio formation. Ore deposits are found in the Permian limestone and consist of supergene replacement minerals argentite and cerargyrite along the bedding. Veins and replacement mineralization are present in the overlying Cretaceous beds. Lodes in the Permian limestone include Manto ore deposits and thrust fault deposits, while those in the Cretaceous rocks are steep veins along normal faults. Smaller mines have operated in the district at various times, but the Presidio remains the largest and most continuous.

Decline

In the 1940s, faced with increased production costs, a shortage of miners, and an attempt to unionize those who were employed, the American Metal Company simply shut down its operation.

Even so, as the businesses established there also catered to the two military bases in the county, Marfa Army Air Field and Fort D.A. Russell, Shafter continued to support a population of some 1,500. When Marfa Air Field closed in December 1945 and Fort Russell in 1946, Shafter went into rapid decline.{{cite web | author = Smith, Julia Cauble, Handbook of Texas Online, Texas State Historical Association.| title = Shafter, TX | quote =| url=http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/hns37

Today, Shafter is home to only a few families, and over the past several decades, has registered a population ranging from 11 to 30 persons.

Education

Shafter is zoned to schools in the Marfa Independent School District.

In popular culture

Part of the 1971 film The Andromeda Strain was filmed on location in Shafter, which featured as the fictional ill-fated village of Piedmont in New Mexico.

The opening scenes of There Will Be Blood were filmed at the Presidio mine in Schaffer.

References

References

1. {{GNIS. 1380523
2. {{NRISref
3. [https://maps.oag.state.tx.us/colgeog/colgeog_online.html# Texas Attorney General Colonia Data]
4. MacCormack, John. (November 11, 2012). "Water concerns temper elation over Big Bend silver mine". Houston Chronicle.
5. [https://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/stockhead/content/stocktake-james-bay-snaps-up-highgrade-silver-project-in-texas/news-story/ The Australian:Business:Stockhead: Stocktake, James Bay snaps up high-grade silver project in Texas]
6. (1943). "Geology and Ore Deposits of the Shafter Mining District, Presidio County, Texas". US Government Printing Office.
7. "The Andromeda Strain". [[AFI Catalog of Feature Films]].
8. "30 Interesting Facts About There Will Be Blood".