Manuscripts
"Claims Against Southern Pacific Railroad of Mexico for Losses Incurred During Revolution of 1929." Terrific detail on this conflict. Letter of Dec. 5, 1931 details chronological events from March 3, 1929 ("Revolution started") to March 20, 1929. Rebels were burning trestles and holding up or taking refrigerated cars. Inclues lengthy, stinging letter from A.A. Burnand of Burnand & Co., dated 11/7/31. (They were packers and shippers located in L.A. and Tucson). "Mr. Titcomb seems to think he can treat his patrons about as he pleases and still enjoy their friendship and patronage with his affiliations -- this cannot be done. When we enter into an agreement we carry it out. ...If you have revolutionary losses there is no reason why we should bear any part thereof. If they burn a bridge from you and steal a truck from us, you certainly cannot be called upon to pay us part of the value of our truck anymore than we should pay for part of the repairs of your bridge. ...We have given this entire subject careful and fair consideration during the past two years while we have been trying to get a hearing. The more we think of it the more we feel we have been shabbily treated by your officials in Mexico. I know you have the reputation of being absolutely fair in all matters and I feel that you would approve an order of prompt settlement of our claim if you were fully acquainted with the entire file..." Some other great stuff here too! Including a letter to T.D. Boyd of the Mexico Arizona Trading Co. who had made similar complaints, i.e., letter from Shoup to Boyd dated 10/31/31: We value your goodwill... I do not feel, however, that we should be charged with the results of difficulties beyond our control, incident to the revolution, in which we lost perhaps more than any other private interest in Mexico. Let us hope better times come to us all." This in response to an earlier handwritten letter from Boyd to Shoup: "Please pardon script. I am in the field trying to plant tomatoes. All of letter is good; last paragraph is great illustration of stresses caused by revolution and of views of SPM: "We realize that you suffered many losses, and that you still are losing in your operations. Your revolutionary losses were unavoidable; whereas what we are complaining about was caused by useless, non-productive, unreasonable action by employes and officials in failing to carry out a simple, clear, and extremely important agreement, which you yourself helped us to make. I know that in the bottom of your heart you know we are dead right. Don't hesitate. Do what is correct in this matter and don't force Burnand and me to continue to fight the SPdeM. We don't want to do it, and I do not think you gentlemen ought force us." --Apparently a key issue was that the SPM wouldn't send several hundred empties into Nogales, or north of San Blas, which left the shipping company unable to ship their tomatoes [back into Mexio? or further north into U.S?] Boyd claims that "persistent, insistant, and earnest requests for empties are on record and also were verbally made." Etc. [SEE ALSO III:2, XIX:3.]
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Single item in manila folder marked "Tie Plates, SPM 341-041." Some detailed info (a little less than a quarter-inch linear) about railroad ties and tie plates used on the line, for renewal purposes later that year. Suggestion is to obtain ties locally rather than have them shipped in. Letter dated 9/27/32 from A.D.McDonald to Titcomb suggests using local ties rather than importing them from U.S.: "I hardly think we are justified, especially in view of prevailing financial conditions and the general situation in Mexico, in using treated ties for your tracks, and I suppose if you can obtain native hardwood for substantially all of your requirements, the question of using treated ties, and also the application of tie plates, will also disappear." Etc
Manuscripts
These materials, consisting primarily of correspondence but also including maps, news clippings, photographs, and blueprints, are arranged and bound by topic according to the Southern Pacific's internal organizational schema. There are 160 individual bound items in these 23 boxes. Each grouping is in reverse chronological order as it was originally filed by SP de México administrators. Collection has material in English and Spanish.
mssSPdeMéxicocollection
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"SPdeM Losses Due to Revolution." File No. 220.121/940, Part 1. From More on the Cristero Rebellion, but a very brief set of materials (eight items total)
Manuscripts
These materials, consisting primarily of correspondence but also including maps, news clippings, photographs, and blueprints, are arranged and bound by topic according to the Southern Pacific's internal organizational schema. There are 160 individual bound items in these 23 boxes. Each grouping is in reverse chronological order as it was originally filed by SP de México administrators. Collection has material in English and Spanish.
mssSPdeMéxicocollection
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"Investment in Southern Pacific Railroad Company of Mexico -- Agreement Between Mexican Government and SPRRCo. of Mexico -- Notes received and claims against Mexican Government." File No. 1083, Part 6. From "Related Files: Copies of Mexican Income Tax Law and Regulations of the Income Tax Law -- translations in envelope at back of File 78; Also See File 1797-A." (~1/25" thick). [Cárdenas took office during this period, on 12/1/34]. Miscellaneous financial wranglings, including discussion of SP's owing SPM $3 million and what to do about this debt. Includes good letter from Hale Holden to Walter Douglas, dated 4/3/34. It begins: "Referring to your letters of March seventh and March thirteenth in which you gave reasons for anxiety over the future course of the peso and have concluded for the time being to retain your pesos in Mexico rather than convert them into dollars and to open two new bank accounts in Mexico City for that purpose: We are somewhat puzzled to understand the reasons for your conclusions..." Good content follows re: SPM policies and thinking
Manuscripts
These materials, consisting primarily of correspondence but also including maps, news clippings, photographs, and blueprints, are arranged and bound by topic according to the Southern Pacific's internal organizational schema. There are 160 individual bound items in these 23 boxes. Each grouping is in reverse chronological order as it was originally filed by SP de México administrators. Collection has material in English and Spanish.
mssSPdeMéxicocollection
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"Lease of Cars." Single folder with single item in it: letter from unknown [J.A. Small, President?] to A.T. Mercier, Chairman of the Executive Committee for SPdeM, in San Francisco. Notes that cash balance after converting pesos to dollars is $660,000 U.S. Notes a number of items owed: to parent SP company; to Ice Plant; to Pacific Fruit Express; etc. Final sentence notes: "As soon as the railroad is returned to us, as I wrote you, I will personally discuss with the President and endeavor to get his assistance for the rehabilitation of the line."
Manuscripts
These materials, consisting primarily of correspondence but also including maps, news clippings, photographs, and blueprints, are arranged and bound by topic according to the Southern Pacific's internal organizational schema. There are 160 individual bound items in these 23 boxes. Each grouping is in reverse chronological order as it was originally filed by SP de México administrators. Collection has material in English and Spanish.
mssSPdeMéxicocollection
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"Santiago River Bridge." File No. 331.1-973-S, Part 1. From Perhaps 50 pieces (quarter-inch linear). Mostly dated There is regular reference throughout the collection to the "revolution" in the late 1920's. Some correspondence from Sproule [SP de México President] on 3/9/26 that is quite useful; he notes that trackage is in poor condition in general; and "it is an unbalanced program which puts so large an amount of money into bridges while the track remains in condition that does not represent the Southern Pacific standard or Southern Pacific ownership. ...Have therefore concluded that we should increase our expenditures on track this year and cut down the amount for bridges." Etc
Manuscripts
These materials, consisting primarily of correspondence but also including maps, news clippings, photographs, and blueprints, are arranged and bound by topic according to the Southern Pacific's internal organizational schema. There are 160 individual bound items in these 23 boxes. Each grouping is in reverse chronological order as it was originally filed by SP de México administrators. Collection has material in English and Spanish.
mssSPdeMéxicocollection
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[in manila envelope with Item 2 below] "Proposed Construction by Mexican Government of Railroad from Terminus of Inter-California Southern Railway to the Gulf. Possible Sale Inter-California to Mexican Government. Possible Abandonment I.C.S." File No. 080-2, Part 2. From (~1.25"). Mexican government apparently wanted to buy this line from the SP, but didn't have cash. SP proposed a trade of Mexican fuel oil, enough to meet the SPM's 700,000 barrel-per-year needs, for some period of years, in exchange. It appears that govt. finally decided to take line in exchange for paying 2% of gross receipts to the ICS (and thus to the SPM), after several other creative (and apparently unsuccessful) proposals. Apparently labor issues were a key factor in the relinquishing of this line, and considerable railroad labor discussion and detail is included herein. Other items include a letter from Walter Douglas to Obregón about the ICS, dated 5/13/39; a curt letter from Walter Douglas to A.D. McDonald in NY that notes that "Mr. Guy Shoup seems to be disturbed over the fact that the ICS has no right of way through the Andrade Lands, title to which seems still to be in litigation... I can see no reason for going to this expense at this time. So far as the Southern Pacific of Mexico is concerned, our tracks pass over hundreds of kilometers of lands to which we have no legal title, and I don't see any reason why in the case of the ICS any additional cost should be incurred by purchasing a right of way from which we will probably never be disturbed. We have written to Mr. Shoup to this effect...." Very rare to see this kind of candidness from the SP in any of published material on them! Most of their corporate records have very carefully excised or hidden this type of admission... and one reason the SPM's records are such a great hook into the parent SP corporation
Manuscripts
These materials, consisting primarily of correspondence but also including maps, news clippings, photographs, and blueprints, are arranged and bound by topic according to the Southern Pacific's internal organizational schema. There are 160 individual bound items in these 23 boxes. Each grouping is in reverse chronological order as it was originally filed by SP de México administrators. Collection has material in English and Spanish.
mssSPdeMéxicocollection