Photos and article by Mary Alice Murphy
SC Museum Territorial Charter Day 021316
SC Museum Territorial Charter Day 021316
Signatures approving Silver City Territorial Charter on Feb. 15, 1878.
SC Museum Territorial Charter Day 021316
Brothers John and James Bullard discovered silver setting off the development of Silver City.
SC Museum Territorial Charter Day 021316
A map of Silver City in 1874 shows the beginning of the city.
SC Museum Territorial Charter Day 021316
A map of Silver City in 1883, shows its growth in nine short years.
SC Museum Territorial Charter Day 021316
Silver City Museum Director Tracey Spikes points out the copies of the charter that people could read.
SC Museum Territorial Charter Day 021316
Silver City Mayor Michael Morones talks about the early history of Silver City.
A resolution passed by the Silver City Town Council recently led to a celebration on Saturday, Feb. 13, 2015, at the Silver City Museum, to honor on the Saturday closest to Feb. 15 each year, the unique territorial charter on which Silver City was founded and continues to use.
Silver City is the only municipality in the state of New Mexico to have kept its original charter and to be able to work under its rules.
Grant County and Silver City had wanted to be recognized under the state Legislature. However in 1876, the governor refused to consider aspects of state government that the area in the southwest corner of the state wanted, and cut representation from the area. The Grant County Rebellion was born, and the area tried to become part of the state of Arizona.
Silver City Mayor Mike Morones, who spoke at the celebration, noted that people from Silver City had started mines in Morenci and Safford, Ariz., so the idea that the area should become part of the Arizona Territory was not that far-fetched.
When the state saw that it might lose the resource-rich area, it gave in on aspects of government and incorporated Silver City under a territorial charter, which was officially bestowed in 1878. Grant County had a champion in Juan Patron, who represented Lincoln County and saw that the issue was approved.
Congress later passed the Springer Act, which stated that no municipalities could have territorial charters with their powers, but Silver City's was grandfathered in.
"For instance, the mayor can call people to arms," Morones said. "We have taxing authority beyond what the state allows. The first tax levied in Silver City was to operate a school district and to build a schoolhouse. The mayor can call able-bodied men to work three days of public service each year.
"We have had a suggestion to add snippets of the charter at the beginning of council meetings, so people know what our charter allows," he continued.
"We are much more powerful than state-controlled home rule," Morones said. "Our charter still has republic-like rules."
He said he was excited "to get this ball rolling for future and growing celebrations for our territorial charter. The resolution we passed is to create a holiday in perpetuity honoring the charter."
Councilor Guadalupe Cano, a native of Silver City, said her great-grandfather, Perfecto Rodriguez, was a marshal, and the first law enforcement official killed in Silver City in the line of duty.
Councilor Cynthia Bettison said: "It is good we will have a celebration to remind people what we have and want to keep."