Mahlon T. Everhart papers,
Collection
Identifier: Ms-0445
Scope and Content
The Mahlon Everhart Papers span the years 1823-1991. They include items related to Everhart Senior, The Hatchet Ranch, The Tres Ritos Cattle and Land Company, Albert B. Fall, Marshall Everhart, John and Mahlon Thatcher, and Mahlon Everhart Jr., who served on the White Sands Missile Range Land Condemnation Commission. The papers are arranged by series which include business papers, personal papers, correspondence, newspaper clippings, published materials, taped interviews, books, and photographs. The papers are most often arranged chronologically or alphabetically by subject. Every effort has been made to preserve Mr. Everhart's original order. Some items from the collection have been dispersed and a list is included.
Dates
- 1823-1991.
Language of Materials
English.
Access and Use Restrictions
This material may be examined by researchers under supervised conditions in the Search Room.
Copy Restrictions
Limited duplication is allowed for research purposes. User is responsible for compliance with all copyright and other applicable statutes.
All literary rights possessed in this collection have been transferred and assigned to New Mexico State University.
All literary rights possessed in this collection have been transferred and assigned to New Mexico State University.
Biographical Note
Mahlon Everhart was born on March 24, 1873 to Marshall Everhart and Mary Thatcher in Martinsburg, Pennsylvania. When he was twelve years old, his mother sent him west to spend his vacations on his uncles' ranches. His uncles were John A. Thatcher and Mahlon D. Thatcher, who established a mercantile in Pueblo, Colorado in the 1860s. The Thatchers' later founded the First National Bank of Pueblo, Colorado and created a financial empire that expanded into merchandising, banking, and mining . Over the years, they owned The Bloom Land and Cattle Company; The Diamond A Cattle Company; The Cresswell Land and Cattle Company; and The Hatchet Cattle Company. At one point their horses, sheep, and cattle could be found on eleven million acres of land stretching from New Mexico to Canada. 1 Everhart's aunt, Sarah Thatcher, was married to Frank Bloom. When Mahlon Everhart completed his education he made Colorado his permanent home.
In 1898, John and Mahlon Thatcher and Mahlon Everhart became partners in the Colorado Arizona Sheep Company based in Folsom, New Mexico. Everhart managed the investment on the range and drove the herds to a leased ranch near Springerville, Arizona. The company was sold in 1902 and the money was invested in the Hatchet Cattle Company. 2
The Hatchet Ranch had been purchased by Carl Stanley in 1884. It was in the far southwest corner of New Mexico close to the Mexican border and included 1.6 million acres of range mainly in the public domain. The ranch headquarters was in the Hatchet Gap between the Pyramid Mountains and Sierra Hatchita. In 1902, Stanley, Mahlon Everhart, and A.S. Booth (the secretary of Mahlon D. Thatcher at the First National Bank of Pueblo), incorporated and created The Hatchet Cattle Company. In 1905, Everhart and the Thatchers' bought Carl Stanley's land and cattle holdings in New Mexico and Colorado as well as his interest in the Hatchet Cattle Company. The company became a three- way partnership with Mahlon Everhart as president. The property which they purchased along the Muddy Creek in Pueblo County was also known as the Hatchet Ranch. The property purchased on the Greenhorn River was called the Red Top Ranch. The brand was the hatchet. 3
In 1909, Mahlon Everhart trailed to El Paso in order to support his foreman who had been accused of illegally transferring cattle back and forth over the border into Mexico. Albert B. Fall, a noted attorney was in attendance defending Wayne Brazel, for the killing of Pat Garrett. It was here, that Everhart met Albert and Emma Fall's daughter Caroline or "Carrie," who had been visiting her father. Later that year, on the steps of the Governors Mansion in Santa Fe, Mahlon proposed and the two were married that December. 4
The Hatchet Ranch became alarmed by increasing numbers of Colorado homesteaders and the Mexican Revolution, which had decreased available range lands. Albert B. Fall, Everhart's father in-law, had been buying land in Lincoln County, New Mexico and acquired the 103,000 acre Tres Ritos Ranch near the Mescalero Indian Reservation. In 1910, Mahlon Everhart entered into a partnership with Fall and his son, Jack. A.B. Fall was president and Everhart vice president of the incorporated Tres Ritos Cattle and Land Company. The Ranch was known as The Three Rivers Ranch or the "Three Rs." R brands were placed on the cattle's left shoulder, left rib, and left hip. 5
In 1912, the Hatchet Cattle Company purchased the Harris-Brownfield Bar W's deeded properties and water rights totaling about nine hundred thousand acres in the Tularosa Basin. The partnership, Thatcher and Everhart, operated the ranch using the Stroke Box brand. Everhart was the president.
Fall added to his ranch holdings in 1915 and the Tres Ritos Cattle and Land Company and the Hatchet Cattle Company were so large that they were only separated by the railroad's right of way. This meant that when all of the ranches and companies were included, the partnerships controlled a range of over a hundred miles along the Tularosa Basin encompassing over a million acres. 6
In 1921, President Harding appointed Fall Secretary of the Interior. Fall sold an interest in the Three Rivers Ranch to Harry Sinclair of Sinclair Oil and he also borrowed money to help pay ranch debts. This financial agreement with Sinclair and a subsequent loan from Ed Doheny of Pan American Oil led to accusations of impropriety in the handling of naval reserves; later to become the Teapot Dome scandal. Mahlon Everhart was subpoenaed in 1928 to appear before a Senate Committee to explain his part in the controversy. 7
Mahlon Everhart had a long and prosperous career as president of The Hatchet Cattle Company; partner in Thatcher & Everhart; vice president and manager of Tres Ritos Cattle and Land Company; a director of the First National Bank in Pueblo, Colorado; and as a director of the First National Bank in Florence, Colorado. During the 1930s, he became the director and treasurer of Ruidoso Realty Company. Everhart controlled his ranches and financial interests from the First National Bank in Pueblo, Colorado. He died on April 13, 1955 at the age of 82.
Carrie Fall-Everhart died in 1918 during a flu epidemic. She left three surviving children, Jack, Jouett (born in 1912), and Mahlon Jr. born (June 19, 1914). The Everhart children were raised in Colorado and in New Mexico at the Three Rivers Ranch of their grandparents. 8
Marshall Everhart, Mahlon Everhart's father, lived on his son's ranches from about 1905. He was a bookkeeper and homesteaded the home ranch. He also wrote many letters describing daily life on the ranch. His correspondence makes up a significant part of this collection.
Mahlon Everhart Jr. attended Yale University and Harvard. He received his law degree from the University of Denver. In 1936, he became a cattle rancher and was involved in the commercial production of Hereford cattle at the ranch in Hachita, New Mexico. His ranch included about 250 square miles of range. 9 In the 1970s he was named a commissioner on the White Sands Land Condemnation Commission. He died in a Las Cruces hospital December 4,1994 at the age of 79. Mahlon Everhart Jr. donated the majority of materials in this collection.
In 1898, John and Mahlon Thatcher and Mahlon Everhart became partners in the Colorado Arizona Sheep Company based in Folsom, New Mexico. Everhart managed the investment on the range and drove the herds to a leased ranch near Springerville, Arizona. The company was sold in 1902 and the money was invested in the Hatchet Cattle Company. 2
The Hatchet Ranch had been purchased by Carl Stanley in 1884. It was in the far southwest corner of New Mexico close to the Mexican border and included 1.6 million acres of range mainly in the public domain. The ranch headquarters was in the Hatchet Gap between the Pyramid Mountains and Sierra Hatchita. In 1902, Stanley, Mahlon Everhart, and A.S. Booth (the secretary of Mahlon D. Thatcher at the First National Bank of Pueblo), incorporated and created The Hatchet Cattle Company. In 1905, Everhart and the Thatchers' bought Carl Stanley's land and cattle holdings in New Mexico and Colorado as well as his interest in the Hatchet Cattle Company. The company became a three- way partnership with Mahlon Everhart as president. The property which they purchased along the Muddy Creek in Pueblo County was also known as the Hatchet Ranch. The property purchased on the Greenhorn River was called the Red Top Ranch. The brand was the hatchet. 3
In 1909, Mahlon Everhart trailed to El Paso in order to support his foreman who had been accused of illegally transferring cattle back and forth over the border into Mexico. Albert B. Fall, a noted attorney was in attendance defending Wayne Brazel, for the killing of Pat Garrett. It was here, that Everhart met Albert and Emma Fall's daughter Caroline or "Carrie," who had been visiting her father. Later that year, on the steps of the Governors Mansion in Santa Fe, Mahlon proposed and the two were married that December. 4
The Hatchet Ranch became alarmed by increasing numbers of Colorado homesteaders and the Mexican Revolution, which had decreased available range lands. Albert B. Fall, Everhart's father in-law, had been buying land in Lincoln County, New Mexico and acquired the 103,000 acre Tres Ritos Ranch near the Mescalero Indian Reservation. In 1910, Mahlon Everhart entered into a partnership with Fall and his son, Jack. A.B. Fall was president and Everhart vice president of the incorporated Tres Ritos Cattle and Land Company. The Ranch was known as The Three Rivers Ranch or the "Three Rs." R brands were placed on the cattle's left shoulder, left rib, and left hip. 5
In 1912, the Hatchet Cattle Company purchased the Harris-Brownfield Bar W's deeded properties and water rights totaling about nine hundred thousand acres in the Tularosa Basin. The partnership, Thatcher and Everhart, operated the ranch using the Stroke Box brand. Everhart was the president.
Fall added to his ranch holdings in 1915 and the Tres Ritos Cattle and Land Company and the Hatchet Cattle Company were so large that they were only separated by the railroad's right of way. This meant that when all of the ranches and companies were included, the partnerships controlled a range of over a hundred miles along the Tularosa Basin encompassing over a million acres. 6
In 1921, President Harding appointed Fall Secretary of the Interior. Fall sold an interest in the Three Rivers Ranch to Harry Sinclair of Sinclair Oil and he also borrowed money to help pay ranch debts. This financial agreement with Sinclair and a subsequent loan from Ed Doheny of Pan American Oil led to accusations of impropriety in the handling of naval reserves; later to become the Teapot Dome scandal. Mahlon Everhart was subpoenaed in 1928 to appear before a Senate Committee to explain his part in the controversy. 7
Mahlon Everhart had a long and prosperous career as president of The Hatchet Cattle Company; partner in Thatcher & Everhart; vice president and manager of Tres Ritos Cattle and Land Company; a director of the First National Bank in Pueblo, Colorado; and as a director of the First National Bank in Florence, Colorado. During the 1930s, he became the director and treasurer of Ruidoso Realty Company. Everhart controlled his ranches and financial interests from the First National Bank in Pueblo, Colorado. He died on April 13, 1955 at the age of 82.
Carrie Fall-Everhart died in 1918 during a flu epidemic. She left three surviving children, Jack, Jouett (born in 1912), and Mahlon Jr. born (June 19, 1914). The Everhart children were raised in Colorado and in New Mexico at the Three Rivers Ranch of their grandparents. 8
Marshall Everhart, Mahlon Everhart's father, lived on his son's ranches from about 1905. He was a bookkeeper and homesteaded the home ranch. He also wrote many letters describing daily life on the ranch. His correspondence makes up a significant part of this collection.
Mahlon Everhart Jr. attended Yale University and Harvard. He received his law degree from the University of Denver. In 1936, he became a cattle rancher and was involved in the commercial production of Hereford cattle at the ranch in Hachita, New Mexico. His ranch included about 250 square miles of range. 9 In the 1970s he was named a commissioner on the White Sands Land Condemnation Commission. He died in a Las Cruces hospital December 4,1994 at the age of 79. Mahlon Everhart Jr. donated the majority of materials in this collection.
Paul Patterson and Joy Poole. Great Plains Cattle Empire. (Lubbock: Texas Tech University Press, 2000), xv.
Ibid., 160.
Ms. 445 Mahlon Everhart Papers. Archives and Special Collections, New Mexico State University Archives and Special Collections.
Patterson and Poole, 161
Ibid., 161.
Ibid., 162.
Patterson and Poole, 162 and Gordon Owen. The Two Alberts: Fountain and Fall (Las Cruces: Yucca Tree Press, 1996), 455.
Mahlon Everhart Jr. Interview with David Townsend and Austin Hoover, November 11, 1991, Hatchita N.M. RG-T353.1. Archives and Special Collections. New Mexico State University Archives and Special Collections.
Mahlon Everhart Jr. Interview, undated. RG-T459.2. Archives and Special Collections. New Mexico State University Archives and Special Collections.
Sources
- . Race With the Wind. El Paso: Novio Books, 1989.
- Mahlon Everhart Papers. Ms.445. Archives and Special Collections. New Mexico State University Archives and Special Collections.
- Mahlon Everhart Jr. Interview, undated. RG-T459.2. Archives and Special Collections. New Mexico State University Archives and Special Collections.
- . The Two Alberts. Las Cruces: Yucca Tree Press, 1996.
- . and . Great Plains Cattle Empire. Lubbock: Texas Tech University, 2000.
Extent
14.75 Linear Feet
Abstract
Mahlon T. Everhart was a successful southwestern cattleman/businessman who was president of the Hatchet Cattle Company and owned property in New Mexico and Colorado. He was a partner in Thatcher & Everhart; vice president and manager of Tres Ritos Cattle and Land Company; a director of the First National Bank in Pueblo, Colorado; and director of the First National Bank in Florence, Colorado. In the 1930s, he became the director and treasurer of Ruidoso Realty Co. He was widely known throughout the west and was associated with a variety of early prominent New Mexico and Colorado businessmen and politicians.
Acquisition
General
Contact Information
- Archives and Special Collections
- New Mexico StateUniversity Library
- P.O. Box 30006
- Las Cruces, New Mexico88003-8006
- Phone: (575) 646-3839
- Fax: (575) 646-7477
- Email: archives@nmsu.edu
- URL: https://lib.nmsu.edu/archives/
General
- Title
- Inventory of the Mahlon T. Everhart Papers, 1823-1991
- Status
- Edited Full Draft
- Author
- Processed by Leslie Bergloff
- Date
- © 2000
- Language of description
- Undetermined
- Script of description
- Code for undetermined script
- Language of description note
- Finding aid is in English
Revision Statements
- June 28, 2004: PUBLIC "-//New Mexico State University::Archives and Special Collections//TEXT (US::NmLcU::Ms 445::Mahlon T. Everhart Papers)//EN" "nmlcu1ms445.sgml" converted from EAD 1.0 to 2002 by v1to02.xsl (sy2003-10-15).
- Monday, 20210524: Attribute normal is missing or blank.
Repository Details
Part of the New Mexico State University Library Archives and Special Collections Repository