Explore a historic mining and land grant in northern Sonora, with rich veins, water power, and farming potential.
This volume presents the 1866 special report on the San Juan del Rio ranche, a large land grant along the Yaqui River. It details location, survey work, mineral wealth, and the practical feasibility of developing a large-scale mining property in a volatile era, offering a snapshot of how such ventures were planned and documented.
- Location, access, and surveying: how four leagues of land were identified, mapped, and measured, with attention to water, timber, and transport routes.
- Mineral wealth and ore technology: descriptions of the veins, silver, lead, copper, and the potential for profitable extraction with advancing metallurgy.
- Water power and timber resources: the Yaqui river power, dam possibilities, and the Heurigo forest as a key asset for charcoal and construction.
- Agricultural and neighboring resources: fertile valleys, bottom lands, and crops suited to the region, plus nearby mines that could benefit from a centralized operation.
Ideal for readers of 19th-century mining history, land grants, and the development of Sonora’s resource economy during this period.