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Student Theses, Papers and Projects (History) Department of History
2004
Making Tracks in Mexico
Katie Lane
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Part of the Latin American History Commons Katie Lane Research Paper HST 35I Winter 2004
Making Tracks In Mexico
The first railways were made of wood, using horses and wagons as their source of power. These were primarily used in mining, dating back to the sixteenth century. It was during the eighteenth century that the wooden rails were replaced by cast-iron. Then came the invention of &e steam engine, which revolutionized,the railways, giving the locomotive enough power to haul freight and passengers. Most countries in Europe, as well as the United States, started building their modern railroads in the early to mid- nineteenth centuryl.
The mountains would not prove to be the only obstacle in the path of the railroads in Mexico. An insufficient govemment was unable to obtain enough money to industrialize the country, and had to tum to foreign investnents. There wtre many failures by these foreign investors, but the railroads managed to come into existence.
Even once the lines were constructed, ttrere were problems with the Mexican economy that dictated whether the railroads were worth the money it took to run them.
Mexico's first railroad, from Mexico City to the port city of Veracruz on the Gulf of Mexico, was completed in 1873. The difficulty of building rails in Mexico came generally from a lack of capital and an abundance of morxrtains. The Mexican govemment recognized the importance of the railroad for Mexico's future, and looked to foreign investors for help. Over a twsnty year spar, between 1873 and 1893, the Mexican railroads grew from 572 kilometers of track to over 10,0002. Larcl2
The country of Mexico is 763,944 square miles3. There ae few navigable rivers,
making boats unfeasible for Mexican commerce. The Azfecs had created acanal system,
but this was confined to the area around Mexico City. The Sierra Madre Occidental and
the Siera Madre Orientat mountain ranges dominate &e middle of the coungr,
surronnding the capital. These mountains leave Mexico City 7,273 feet above sea level,
and difficult to get toa.
The silver mines had been important when the Spanish conquered tke cormtry as
well as while Mexico was a coloay. Most of what was mined was sent to Europe, making transportation as important as &e mines. In the sixteenth and reventee,nth ceirturies, &e
Spaniards built highways. Oae of these highways rNas built to connect the capital city to
Veracruz. The roads were traveled by mule trains, wagorts and carts. The highways were the only way of taveling long distances. After the Spanish lost control however, the highways were neglected by the Mexican govemment due to budget constaints artd were deterioratings.
The Mexican govemment saw the railroad as a mea$s to a more efficie*t and profitable eonomy. Mining had been one of tbe most profitable ventures in colonial
Mexico, but had declined after iodependence ftom Spein. Many mines had closed down due to damages or {rs a rcsult of the sfiict laws them. Il many areas, the extracting was done by natives witlrout modern equipment. Revivi*g the silver mi*es required foreip investors to buy modern quipmeut and cmtiag better meaas of transporting the extracted ore6.
Since the route between Mexico City and Veracruz was the most important for Lanel3 tade, this was the first route in Mexico to have a railroad. As Stephen Haber pohted out,
"The Mexican railroads, for example, were designed and buik by foreign technicians employing foreign technology, because Mexico had none of the necessary know-how."7
In the nineteeath century, Britain was concentrating its effsrts in Mexico to the construction of this railroad. This railrsad took over fog years to complete, due to many obstacles:
The first consfitction estimate for this line in 1833 was only 4,2OO,000 pesos, but before its completion forty years later the government alone was thought to have contributed well over 10 millionpesos and privafe capital much more, because of iaefficient operatioas, disturbed conditions dtring the civil u.&rs, and rmforeseen co*stucticn difficulties in the rugg€d motmtainss.
This project was finally completed and was inaugprated by President Sebastirin Lerdo de
Tejada on January 11 I 873e.
The benefits of this first railroad were seer quicklp and Mexico realized &at mor€ w€r€ needed. During the reign of Porfirio Diu"the railroad grid grew rapidly. In
1880 major concession$ wetre awarded to competing Ameriean companies to buitd rails from Mexico Ciry to the U.S. border. Toward the end of his time in of,fice, 19,000 kilometers of track had kn established in the country'o.
Tbr affect of this raihoad boom on the rest ofthe sonomy was exfiaordinaqf. Transport costs fell precipitously, stimulating the revival of mines, firr*rering the expansion of commercial agriculture, and uniting the internal marketll.
The corcessions awudd to the Americans were not the only ones gmnted in 1880. Plans
were made for rails to be built zrcross the Istlrmus of Tehuantepec, in the hope that it Ixurte/4
would become the preferred route from the Atlantic to the Pacificl2. These plans
rapeatdly feil though. Other plans were made to put doum rails betweeu Mexico City
and El Paso, Mexico City to Laredo, and from Sonora to the Gulf of Californial3.
The main lines were the {irst to be developd, followed by a grid of b,ranc}r, or
feeder, Iines. These shorter lines would attach to the main, or trur* lincs. While Diaz
was in office, befir'een 1876 and 1911, he gave concessions to build without cenaally planning the end product. The fmal praduct managed to result in a well-integrated system that linked nearly all of the major citiesla.
Many Americans deeided to try business in Mexico, in mining, oil, and railroads.
Amoag them was forsrer U.S. President {Jlysses S. Grant, who urivd in Mexico in 18t0 to build arailroad in southern Mexico, which failed due both his o\rm inexperience in finances and his son's bank failingts. Another pnomoter, before Crrant, was Edward Lee
Plumb, who began his career in Mexico promotiug mines rather than railroads. His greatsst succgss in Mexico was not amilroa4 as he had intend€d, but the standardization of the rail gauges, after frghting with another prcmoter, ltlilliam s. Rosecrars.
Rnsecrans, aformer civiluar general had hmnendorsing narrow gauge tracks, and
Plumb supported the standard gauge. It was during Benito Jui{rez's presidency t}rat
Plumb would win this argumentr6.
Apparently the basic mistake of the promoters was that they oversimplified fheir problem aaddi&er minimized or completely ignored certain serious obstacles. For one thing, they consistently underestirnated ca*sffirction difficulties and costs, with the result that ttry were always app@llngto the Mexican gov€mlmentto exterd theirtime hmits17. Lanel5
It is possible that only two ofthe fow trunk lines that tinked Mexico City to the
U.S. border, if run efficienfly, would have been enougfu. These lines were not always planned with the largest possible arnormt of producing and mark*ing &rees, tn the soutlrern part of Mexico, where there was a corrsidembly higher amount of raw production, there were not enough lines. The American prromoters involved in the creation of the superfluous northem lines apparer$ly rranted to b sure to draw Mexican trade away from Europel8.
Notevery American venture ended in failure, though it may have seemedto have beenheadedintlratdirection. TheMexicanCenralRailrcadwascreatedasabranchof an Amedcan compny, tlre Archison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railrcad in 1880. The
Mexican Central Railroad became the imabackbooe of Mexico, ttith tines ftom Mexico
Clty to both El Paso and Tampico, on fhe Gulf of Mexico. Ilfheir one of the lines opened in Guanajuato, eighty thousand people had gathered to celebmte with a fty that lasted fortwo duyr". In 1S5, the Mexican C€ntral conbolld 3,500 rniles of rail linefo, After the main trmk lines, Mexicaa Central had cleated a grtd ofbramch lines to sry'ply the truok lines with cargo. Aft€r tecoilfng aa independe,nt company in 1889, while it was an unprofitable compny, which w&.s soon to change2l. It became the largest business enterprise in Mexico, bmsting a monopoly of the rail lines to the nortlrem border and
from Mexico Crty to the Pasifie Oe*e#.
The MexicanNational Railroad was given its concessionby Porfirio Diazin
1880, to lay a track ftom Mexico City to [,aredo, alorg the U.S. borde/3. h took eight Lanel6 years to complete, including the three years when the company had to stop construction due to lackofcapital. This ftrror,vgauge railroad was constructed in sections, ulhich proved to be the most effective method of constnrction2a. The MexicanNationat acd
Mexican Cenfal Railrcads wene combined in 1909 by the Mexican government to crEate the National Railurays of Mexico, or Ferrocsrriles Nacionales de M6xicor.
The Morelos Raikoad was a company which began as a Mexican enterpdse. This compimyusednmrowgaugetracks,anditstrelscelrtirr€, te.tlinermbet*remYsrc:nrzte
Acapdco, ufiich ran through Mexico City. This line nms parallel to an old road that had been in use for centtries near Puebla The Marelos Raikd oeend i* Jrme ef l88t:
A wek latsr a most terrible accident occurred at the
barranca of Malpis, caused by the washing away oftlre
f,oundations of a bridge, by ulhich nro hrmffi persons,
principlly soldiers, were precipitated deiv,m a ravine, ad
trs cars,loadedwithlime andrum, took firs, enveloping
the victirns in flamef6.
This incident lrould sewe to *arn Americans aad other investors to learn wtrether there is any annual flooding in areas where &sy wish€d to lay track3?.
In tlrc eightser$h s€nhry, before it could atroril to take possession of these
companies, Mexico was forced to depend of foreign capital for development of railrcads.
In tlrc 1880s, Mexico oured on rnrmy loans ftom Ewope, making it more di:fficult to raise
capital ftom abraad. Mexico's northern rreighbuq on tk oths had, wae willing to risk
ttrcir money, although as busiress own€rs rarlpr ttran lendersa" Walter CroHeank of the LanelT
University of California observed, "If rails weie to be developed quickly, they would have had to be largely under U.S" control.2$'
In 1910, Americans had provided approximately 70 percent of the $2 billion invested in Mexico after 187d0, and more thar 60 peFcent of this was invested in railroads3t. Areciprocityheafyestabtished in 1880 btweenthe United States and
Mexico created numerous duty fue products betrveen the cotmties, including cofree and teather" Sixtypffi€rrt of Mexico's expor8 ure goiag to flre Unit€d Statss at this time32.
Railroads rnade the export business farmore effieientttra* ithad beefi wlren there were fewdeenthighways:
The primary purpose of the railways was to move ra\r' materials to the coast or to the northern border for expcrt to foreign rtrtets brfi th€ sheernurnbErof feeder lines e;veduolly gave rise to ao interconnmted gnd that linked inteffal markets as well as the mining reas and th* pottt''.
The Armiwts arld Mexisr ounpanies involvd in building tfo railroads had different manners of constrrrctiesr. Tk Arnericaas would sffit brdlding at the more convffii€ut plw, u&sre npplies ooutd be asily &lirrerd. Ttre lvlexicans begrr their consBuction at the farther md ofthe rcute, makirrg me ofthe native labm. Tbis would take longrr ard co* more ibart *s Americas $xay, but also avoid offcrding drc local mule owners by suddenty makirrg tkir rervicee unmessart'a.
Tttffs werc signifieut conssqlr€nc€s of bringing th€ railsad into ffte Mexican couatryside. For asriculture, there was commercialization that had tlot boeil seart befotr, which evenamllyled to rebellions by&e farm€rs aad villagers. Th€ gov€$uuent gain€d
an rmparalleled level of power. The govermnent's ccrnrRrrricrytion systrn Ssird & new Lane/8 efficiency, giving them more information about rebellions, and mobilization ageinst rebels before they could gain too much $pport. Ttre new level of efficiency of the military was also found to have negartive effects for the same rieason tbt it had positive effects. Shile &e boops urcre able to arrive to stop rebellioas quickly withthe raihoads, if the rebols had destroyed thc trek" the rnilitary became htplesss.
Xailuay fuelopmcnt $ras for tkm both the concret€ basis of wido-raagiag gmvth ed tb very spabol of progress. But as the reil lincs tid tlrc re*ion tqdte gsog@rielty, th€y pffiiitted mcrrE thmugli exploitatian, amd thrx *s intensificdioa of social tonflict36.
Bo& natiml governmcat d toel societf r*rcrc effertd by the raihods. Citicg ffrsd fu fu fiikd €filsrgd drcir madrets' lrrrkiilg possible fu grow{r of 7. Tk merchamfis in Mer.ico City rvae ghts tk WIy oer tr&o ui&irtr @ Hbffi ffi for a wrtrry by fu Ssrton Refonns, Risiry lad prices came with tk raitrd, uitich fiEk di ortd trd dis*rihnio* Tk lou.€rckss wEG
Sreu uwbility, ald mry ofttcpoorrr ss*Srrn3tatss sawfuirpeople migrale to the more prcspercus rcrthenr $tates or tk Udted $dq#.
ThE Msxiffir hniffie$ ryt*ch < in cxprts ure,lrc far more profitable than those wtrich deatt in dorrstic production. The dorc*ic market faited ta gow at a
sisilar rate s {p e}rport ffirlfft. pepenArce on rxpo*ing uras dangerous, since
Mexico's economy thcn deee.mded m,ore on tk ecomies of ek ecmrtries, lvfusc
kebitiry led to Mexis's rxffi iss*ility, E&i$$ fro&lstion atd tk consumer
ma*ct dn'eloped, two ffiluiremefts of capitatim, uem ffi in Msr(fu3*. Tk
gtursing sfrrcts ofacapihlist rconomy:wsrs sm intbe formof both prcfitad lossa0. Lanel9
Along with booms in mining and agriculture, the Mexican population found the
gap betrreen tlre poor and rich widening. The class srr*ggle that resultd woutd lead to several suikes. The raihd wotkers, {/tto hd ben inflrrnd by ttre Americans involvd in labor tmions acrsss the bor&r, begffi to orEmiae br IstT. One oftrese gffirps, &e CEn LiSa de f€rdcanilerffi Mexicanos, had fi&trn ihousaad members by
1908. In 1906, ttrere was a ba*le betrveen American and Mexicm railrcd woulcers that result€d h ihe dtffis of cighteen people in Crffie,rasa'. Ore complaint by tk railroad wor*ers was that tk Americru @ wuM with were ffiriiry higkw*Sss sd shrt€r wo*dryt. Tlrse aild ofu stikcs by wo*ers ir o{tler occupdioffi seur to have rosts in the decliqrng enpffit hriress. A stikc itrtk mining offierat Cmlea in lgffi M $ix
Americans ad &irty Mcxicans deed42.
As a meams of trying to grasp stab{Iity, fu Mtricffi gsvctffifit resolved iE Iffi to mmlid*c& mt impoffid lirffi, irckdiug rb Meximn Cffhal and Mexican
Natioml, iffia fu Hdimat Rsilsrst$ ofMd€o. Utrilil fuq &hos dt laiho& qrsc ryerd b lt*pe*ent mpmies. In 1914, tk goverreat mimalizad fu lgt of the railr* d oe€resd ikm fqfumlrdq md6mrc*rrd ry lincstc privan
?k liffi Std had My hffii M*xlsffi M a!il l{srdcmfi*ionsl rerndrled un&r gov€rnnledcmfist e,{ren sftfftte !* M bee* rM Oprive orym(* In 193?, tk govamt clffi nlorc @ed its mid md mimlird all raiMsry&43.
Irt 1913, befme fic firs re*isffilffi offu raikds, a civil mr bm*a out in
Mexico, which ted to ttrc disnrsion ofmoc* ssctiorns ofthc q,sromy. The raiMq Lane/l0 which were so important for trade, stopped carrying cttrgo and was used gimarily by the military, for troo'ps ard srryplies. Many barle$ of the y{*r \r{stefought nan rail cer$ers, and resultd irl fu destrtlctio$ ofmmy mks. Orre ofttr cocsqtletffi afthis krrctiffi $ras ail fuffiase ia ths old traditioa oftanryortation by mules d donkeyse.
The Mexican ffirffiy would strer for ry yerc milil ah** IS33, rlilffi tt* U-$. M effirpd finm its DcFessioa as rycll, atdrr enrm@c rf ttow @rt or tk U.S. makct Mcnrim *iII wass.
TIF ailsds ofMexi€o brgur rs ruany r{$rriting *r cryital, Mexico
City, tc tk irdtgiet wnters, the pmtq d *te U.S. b&. fhe corymie wsfiil $trer ffiarry &lays ryd fid& pn&le*ns Tkerere talo fiffiffitain lailgps in their ray, but they mreed to laf thoffisrds cfmik aftrd. Tk tiqc$ ffiihtizod fu mirtitry bnsiffi d srryauihtl fu exprrt fudrr#y fu furhmed Mexiso's ffistny. Tbe$€ raikods werc rxd frr mititary F rposff as $nqII reciviHm trse, tikctkir etltffi€rputs amNmd tlrc world. ENDNOTES I-anelll *taikCId," 1. The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth edition,2001,
2. Stcptwn H. Elaber, Iruk*try $$d Undsr.levelopmsnt ($tanfor{ CA.: Stanford University Press, 1989), 15.
3. Harrison Boyd $ummers and Robst E, $w*nrq$, Ttw Rattrouds (Ne*, Yor&: The H.W. Wilscu Compmy, 194*>,1W -
*Ciudadde 4. Mexi
5, Haber, 13
6. rbi4 15.
7. Ibid,30.
8. David M. Pletcher, Raits, hfrrres, and Pragress: fuvea Aenericon hwneters in Mexico, 1867-191I (Port \Yashi*gtstr, N.Y,: Keffiikat Press, 1958), 3S2.
e. rbi4 23.
10. Hab€r, 15.
11. Ibid, 16. *Ttp 12. AB R. Surez, Prscious, tk kicelets Bight of \Vay acrCIss the Isthmus of T*huanrep' {184&1349};' Js*wl af Pop*lx Cul*xe 35 {2001): 156.
13, \Hatttr L. G$ldftffik, -ffs Ambignity oftrnfffirtrteture: Railrocds in Pretevol*ioary Merdco." Studies in tomprative International Development 11 (1976)1 7.
14" Ilabsr, 15
15. Pletek, 150.
16. Ibid,62
17. Ibid,302.
18. Ibid,303. Lanel12
19.'Early Days of tlee Mexican Railway: Central,- 20-20 Site, ZA0Z, 20. Sandrff Kuntz Ficksr, "Economic Backwsrdrsss fftrd Firm Str*trgy: An Americaa Rail$ad Company itr Niaete€oth-ceatury Mexico," Hispanic American Eistorte*l Repier* S) (}Iey ?tX)0): 26y27e. 21. lbrd"293. 22. tbil&,am. 23. Pletcher, 100. 24.'fuly Days ofthe Mexiem Railunary: Nafrffil,* ?&ftsre. r0st, 25. Pleteher,30l. 26. "Etrty kysof*k l&xfum Enilway: L,forrrh," Z*X Site, Zffi\ 27. tbid. 28. fstdfranlq 9 29- I&,ia. 30. }Iaber,12. 3I. Pleeher,23. 32. Sardn Eduardo Ruia Triut Wrr{ srrd Tragedy, (New York: W'W, Norton & Compny, IWZ),276. 33. Ha&Fr, t5 *Eady 34. Deys of the Mexican Railway: Morel,os." 35. Goldfranlq 22. 36. Ibid,34. Lane/l3 37. Ibid,4. 38. Fitnz,227. 39. Haber,Z7. 40. Rutz,292. 41. Ibid,303. 42. rbid,304. 43. Summers, 107-108 44. Haber, 134 45. Ibid, 170. BIBILIOGRAPTT Lanell4 "Ciudad de Mexico .* Global Gazetteer Yersion 2.2fi04.+ttp:/ mrw.calte.comlworldl! (28 February 2004) "Early Days of the Mexican Railway: Central," 20-20 Srte. 20A2' *ErylyDays of *r Mexi€an Railxay: lvlorelos.* 20-2A Siu. 2ffi2. +ttp:l/E'ww-2020 site-+rglfiIsxicar:rsihvay/urorelos'hel> {28 February 240q. *Early Days afttlr Mericfis Rallway; Hstiffial.' 2*-20 $rts. 20f2. *ttp:ffurxw2ffi* site.org/rnexi nrailumyla*ioaal-htrr> {28 Febnlary 20S4). Fisllt Seaffif: Amric*n Ficker, Smlre Ktffi. "Ecsrssic Bccenrs,&rm* ffi* "a* Reilrod Caanpry in Nia*e*nth,Ce*trry Mexico." Itirywrzie Amertcs?t t*isrrult*d *stdry 80 {il{sy ?000}: 2{1'W9. Govc, BE$ R, h,fggqrd hfict*mc d As! t Naffilcwicu. Attos af trortd Ge*grry+ty" U.$.A: Ird McNa!$ & {}o., ?0$3' *T116 Go11&aa*, Waikr L. A$it'igsiiy rrf lrrfi'a*trrs;tise; Raili.'#s{ts ilr Prerevdilutiolury Mexicc." Sndies in Corry*rattve lnternaiarral De:selopmenr 1l (Ifi$: 3-2-5. ll6er, $r@ fl. fery ad {Wlry*. $affi*d, **4; $uM Utivtreity 9msc tO*Q I t?re, -Jv,' Plctckr, nfrvkt Mt f,ertr, I#nes" N hogrosx: $even Anrrlticrl* Ilrulraotsrs in Mexiett, q58. i'847-I % t. Port W#hingt*n, X.Y-: Kermiket lrress, t *fiaiim:x[" Tl*e C{tlwilbitt Erxy*lalxtii{a Sixh *litia*, 2SS3. kuir, *a*r H&rmdo. Trirrryd* n d@ady ldcn'York tr tr. ltl{rts & Compny, 1992. S6acA Atr6R 6ilrkciotl$,th#Fricctcssftighcf Way trKts*tk fghtft,$ of Tehr4le' (rsff6.lf#iglj' Janr**l af ?apul*r (.)altasre 35 plxJ}):l53-16I- Srarrncm, Il;*ri*arr Bof.1 *rxi Ri,b*lt E 3r*r$rrrers. 'frw ktitrcsd* H*w Y***: ?he H'W' Wilson Comparry, l9rf$.