Focus on Carlsbad Winter 2011

WINTER 2011

A Century in Carlsbad

1910 1920 1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010

from the editor

Welcome to a very special edition of Focus on Carlsbad!

As you’ve probably noticed by now, we try to adopt a theme for each edition of our magazine. The last edition was “Carlsbad Goes Green,” while the one before that was “Beating the Heat.”

Each edition, we try to do at least one history article.

One reason is because history was my favorite and best subject in high school and college. There were a number of occasions when I even managed to squeak out an A- in history. All lessons about being doomed to repeat history if we don’t know it aside, we’ve done some pretty neat things in the past. And that’s especially true in Carlsbad, New Mexico.

The state is celebrating its centennial in 2012, and a number of local events are planned. Carlsbad was first christened in 1888 and organized as a town in 1893, so we were a little ahead of our time.

One of my goals in planning this edition was not to get too caught up in reporting on the history of floods or dams. Such histories are well documented, and I felt we should go in a different direction. Instead, we decided to do a decade-by-decade breakout of the past 100 years in Carlsbad (1911 to 2011) with a feature highlighting a specific event or institution that represents that decade or just stands out for being remarkable.

We also tried to avoid topics we’ve covered recently, such as President’s Park or Carlsbad Caverns. WIPP and potash are both included, but we decided to save the oil and gas industry for a “Focus” of its own in the future.

The final story tally does have a little bit of a male flavor to it. In looking at the list, I’ve got two stories about explosive devices (1940s and 1960s), one story about cars (1950s) and one about baseball (1970s). Ladies, please don’t be discouraged, however, as these are some pretty interesting topics featuring some remarkable people.

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Focus on Carlsbad | WINTER 2011

This was probably my favorite “Focus” to write, partially because the ties between the present and the time periods I was writing about clearly remain strong. On one occasion, I was standing in a local business in Carlsbad as a woman who worked there was attempting to track down her husband, a retired baseball coach, so I could interview him. A construction worker handling a light fixture 15 feet above me overheard what I was talking about and stopped what he was doing. He, too, had heard the story about the longest home run ever being hit in Carlsbad, he said.

Then there’s Jed Howard. Any time you do a history piece in Carlsbad, you vow to try to leave Jed Howard alone, or at least not rely on him too much … and then you wind up relying on him twice as much. Jed is a treasure, and so is the remarkable historical society building where he does most of his work. It’s a sort of concrete-bunker with a timeless feel of Merlin’s laboratory to it on the inside.

All of the contents inside are organized in the strictest of ways, yet the entire room has a sort of disorganizedorganized feel to it. I can’t really explain any better than that, but I dig it. Special thanks also to the Carlsbad Museum & Art Center.

Bon appetit, reader. Enjoy the stories.

Marksteiner is Editorial Director of Focus Magazine.

Email him at editor@ad-venturemarketing.com.

WINTER 2011

From the Editor Focus on the 1910s

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Focus on the 1920s

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Focus on the 1930s

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Focus on the 1940s

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Focus on Mainstreet

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Focus on the 1950’s

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Focus on the 1960s

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Focus on the 1970s

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Focus on the 1980s

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Focus on the 1990s

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Focus on the 2000s

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Focus on the Future

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Images of the Past WIPP Historic Celebration A Decade Overseas Carlsbad - Population 50,000 Focus on the Chamber Focus Business Directory

About the cover: Main Photo: Colonel Etienne de Pelissier Bujac stands in front of the Eddy House in its original location in La Huerta in 1907. (Photo courtesy of the Southeastern New Mexico Historical Society) Additional photos on the cover are from this issue and are credited within.

Kyle Marksteiner, Editorial Director - Alyx Duncan, Advertising Director Photography by Kyle Marksteiner - along with submitted photos Special Contributors: Donna Birchell, Tom Bemis & John Safin Focus on Carlsbad is published quarterly by Ad Venture Marketing.

Ad Venture Marketing, Ltd. Co. - 866.207.0821 - www.ad-venturemarketing.com All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or part without permission of the publisher is prohibited.

Every effort was made to ensure accuracy of the information provided.

The publisher assumes no responsibility or liability for errors, changes or omissions.

on the

Date:

{1910}

C

1910s

Carlsbad Church Community Underway

harles Eddy may have founded what would become Carlsbad, but local churches laid the groundwork for what would become a lasting community.

By 1910, seven Carlsbad churches had established themselves in town.

Currently, Carlsbad has about 75 different places of worship, most of them Christian.

While the methods for encouraging people to attend church have certainly changed over the past century–there were no youth Christian rock bands in 1910–a fundamental emphasis on community has stayed the same.

According to Dave Rogers, minister of Carlsbad’s First Christian Church, the Episcopalians and the Baptists were the first to formally establish in the area. There may never be a clear gold medalist–the Baptists built the first church building, but the Episcopalians held the first formal dedication. Both groups, along with several other faiths, had been meeting informally for several years.

A contractor doing work for Charles Eddy, along with a group known as the

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Focus on Carlsbad | WINTER 2011

Women’s Guild, persuaded their bishop to establish an Episcopalian Church on April 13, 1890.

Their completed location, Carlsbad’s Grace Episcopal Church, remains one of the oldest buildings in the county.

“The newspaper reported ‘the first Episcopal services ever held in Eddy,’” Rogers said. “The bishop reminded the congregation of the distinctive nature of their faith and the importance of dedication to their local church.”

Just a few weeks later, First Baptist Church of Carlsbad began as the Eddy Missionary Baptist Church when its members met in an adobe schoolhouse on April 27, 1890. Baptist evangelists had been visiting the area for several

years. A church was built on the corner of Halagueno and Stevens and was incorporated in 1891.

Many of Carlsbad’s smaller Baptist churches began through the efforts of First Baptist Church. The church has also financially supported missions in Carlsbad and around the world, as well as having church members serve as missionaries.

Carlsbad’s Methodist Church actually laid the first church foundation in Eddy in 1890, but the project was delayed due to the construction of the Flume and courthouse, Rogers said. The Methodist Church building held its first worship service in 1892.

Catholic Carmelite fathers from Texas had also been offering sacraments to the community for several years, Rogers noted. An effort by Jesuit fathers to establish a Catholic place of worship in Eddy initially fell through due to budget problems. However, Rogers said, an Irish Catholic newspaper owner from Nebraska, who founded “The Current” in Carlsbad, really got things moving.

Photo Above: St. Peter Lutheran Church.

Photo Far Right: First Baptist Church.

Photo Right: A photo of a potluck at Saint Edward Catholic Church.

On Christmas Eve in 1893, a completed building on the corner of Guadalupe and Shaw streets was dedicated to St. Edward the Confessor. This original building is still in use by present day Saint Edward Church.

The First Presbyterians began meeting in 1894 inside the Baptist church.

They’d later meet inside the Methodist church and inside a tent until they established their own church building on Halagueno Street.

Two more churches joined the ranks early in the 20th century. By then, Eddy had changed its name to Carlsbad, and the town’s population was about 1,000.

Carlsbad’s rougher sister, the town of Phenix, was a hotbed for gambling houses, saloons and prostitutes. It was also where predominately white landowners forced Mexicans living in the area to settle.

“The priest of Saint Edward was able to secure the purchase of a plot of land between Eddy and Phenix that became a settlement called San Jose,” Rogers said. “Franciscan friars oversaw the construction of San Jose Mission Church and celebrated Mass there for the first time on Dec. 13, 1903.”

The following year, members of the First Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) completed their building on the corner of Canal and Stevens.

“Many of these churches have seen buildings and location changes over the years,” Rogers said. “But the legacy

of these seven congregations, all more than 100 years old, bears witness to the important role the Christian faith has played in Carlsbad since its pioneer days.”

Community Kitchen and Carlsbad Transitional Housing & Homeless Shelter, Inc., among other organizations.

A few other churches would join Carlsbad early in the 20th century, Rogers said, including Emmanuel Lutheran and First Assembly of God.

The next expansion, in terms of numbers of churches, began in the 1970s, when a charismatic movement laid the groundwork for a number of churches.

“But it was mostly a slow pause,” he said. “There really wasn’t a lot of church development until after World War II.”

A more recent example, Ranch Acres Baptist Church, located at 5403 Old Cavern Hwy, was formed in 1982 by 29 charter members under the name First Country Baptist Church. In 1985, members sought mission status. Help was requested of Pecos Valley Baptist Association’s mission director, and as a result, several families from other Carlsbad churches joined the small fellowship and FCBC maintained its church status. In 1986, the name was officially changed to Ranch Acres Baptist Church.

After the war, the growth in the number of churches matched the growth of the nation’s population.

As an example, St. Peter Evangelical Lutheran Church held its first worship service on October 15, 1961, in the Carlsbad Women’s Club. St. Peter was chartered in 1963, with 56 members.

During this time, the building site at 1302 W. Pierce Street was purchased.

The first building, housing the sanctuary, was completed and dedicated in 1966. On Reformation Sunday, October 31, 2004, members of St. Peter took part in the service for the blessing and dedication of the new Fellowship Hall and Education Wing.

St. Peter has been instrumental in the organization of the Carlsbad

Ministry to CARC clients and youth has been one focus on the church.

Currently, RABC is accepting resumes for a bi-vocational pastor.

With about 75 worship services going on in Carlsbad on any given weekend, there are probably at least a couple dozen potlucks taking place that afternoon. That’s something to think about.

WINTER 2011 | A Community Magazine

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on the

1920s

Carlsbad Hotels

Leave a Lasting Legacy Date:

{1928}

November 30, 1928 La Caverna Hotel opens

Is the heart of a small town located in its churches, its football field, its high school, its downtown square or its biggest hotel?

Hagerman Hotel began in 1890, and the two story hotel–featuring large verandas, a French chef and bell boys– was certainly ahead of its time.

That will likely always be a matter of debate, but it is certainly safe to say that much of Carlsbad’s late night social scene, at least, was centered in the banquet rooms and dining halls of the town’s three most prominent hotels. For close to 80 years, even before Carlsbad became a town, the Hagerman, Crawford and La Caverna hotels took turns being the place to see and be seen.

“The hotel was built before Carlsbad was a town, as part of what was basically a real estate scheme,” said local historian and retired teacher Jed Howard. “They were trying to convince people to come, so they built a large courthouse, a church, a bank and a large hotel.”

The Hagerman, naturally named after developer J.J. Hagerman, was built on the southwest corner of Mermod and Canyon streets, about where Carlsbad Insurance is presently located.

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Focus on Carlsbad | WINTER 2011

The First National Bank building was built in 1892. The idea was to build the infrastructure first and hope for the population to come. The town’s population, by 1900, was 963.

“It was meant to compete with the hotels in Denver,” Howard said about

Main Photo: Limousines park in front of the La Caverna Hotel, Carlsbad’s luxury hotel for most of the 20th century. (Photo courtesy of the Carlsbad Historical Society) Inset Photo: La Caverna’s steakhouse “La Cantina” was a popular hangout for Carlsbad’s professionals for many years. (Photo courtesy of the Carlsbad Historical Society) Photo Below: Construction of the Hagerman Hotel began in 1890. The building burned down in 1918.

(Photo courtesy of the Carlsbad Historical Society)

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the Hagerman Hotel. “It was very large and nice, but it was beyond the means of most people in the area.”

Still, the hotel served as the center of Carlsbad’s high-end social activity during several name changes. The Schlitz Brewing Company bought the hotel during its brief stint running a sugar beet factory. The Bates brothers then bought the Schlitz Hotel for $17,500 in 1912, added steam and heat and renamed it after themselves. It burned down six years later.

“When the Bates burned, it was the biggest fire of the decade, if not the century,” Howard said. “It was a large hotel, so there was a giant kitchen where the fire started.

There are stories of people going into other parts of the hotel during the fire to try to save furniture by throwing it out of the windows.”

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Carlsbad was a cowboy town, and the hotels during the time period were not without their share of action.

Howard said he read one account of Colonel Etienne de Bujac, one of Carlsbad’s pioneers, accidently setting off his revolver one night when he was sleeping at the Schlitz.

The bullet went through the walls of Bujac’s room and hit a prominent local rancher in the posterior.

By the time of the Bates fire, Carlsbad’s hotel successor was already in place. A.J. Crawford, who had made a fortune in wool, decided to finance a major hotel, among other projects. The Crawford was completed in 1916 on what is now the corner of Canal and Mermod streets.

It was a location designed to take advantage of the nearby railroad. Crawford, trying to prevent a reincarnation of the Bates, bought the property where the prior hotel was located.

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The Crawford Hotel started out small, but it would grow over the years into a sprawling chain of buildings with a total of about 120 rooms. Weekly dances were popular for decades, and the Crawford would remain a hangout for cowboys and ranchers for many years. It was razed in 1971.

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WINTER 2011 | A Community Magazine

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on the

1920s

primary competition was La Caverna, a luxury hotel built on the northwest corner of what is now Canal and Green streets.

La Caverna, which initially offered between 40 and 50 rooms, was built

by Miles Johnson and sought to take advantage of the new booming tourism industry in Carlsbad, thanks to the 1923 creation of Carlsbad Caverns National Monument, which would become a national park in 1930.

La Caverna was considered the more upscale of the two hotels. During World War II, for example, enlisted men on leave from Carlsbad’s Army air base were expected to hang out at the Crawford, while officers got La Caverna.

Somebody apparently found that to be unfair.

“After about a year, there was a notice in the paper basically saying ‘enlisted officers are allowed (at La Caverna), but we hope you’ll stay away,’” Howard said.

Main Photo: The Crawford Hotel would dominate Carlsbad’s skyline for decades. The building was completed in 1916 and is pictured here during the early 1940s. (Photo courtesy of the Carlsbad Historical Society) Inset Photo: Interior of the Crawford’s lounge.

(Photo courtesy of the Carlsbad Historical Society)

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Focus on Carlsbad | WINTER 2011

The two hotels’ banquets and dances, along with Carlsbad’s beach, were places where the soldiers at the base during the war would go to meet girls.

There wasn’t much room for jealousy for Carlsbad’s native male population–most of them were also off fighting in the war.

“When we took it over, we had a contract with the railroad where the workers would all stay there,” Pineda said about La Caverna. “I remember, when tourists would stay, we’d pack sack lunches for them when they visited the Caverns.”

While La Caverna was known for its opulence, its actual guest rooms were not large enough to suit the increased expectations of guests during the second half of the century. A motel section of the hotel was later added to the facility to provide larger rooms. This allowed it to continue to compete with the popular Ramada Hotel, which sprang up at the corner of Lea and Canal streets.

Even though it was past its heyday, La Caverna in the 1970s had a swimming pool; held dances in its banquet room; and operated a hair salon, barber shop, bar, package store and two restaurants– including a popular evening steakhouse called La Cantina.

Howard said many other hotels came and went throughout the century, including one near the train station that was popular with rail workers and famous among locals for its Sunday brunch.

Mike Pineda, now 72, served as La Caverna’s general manager during its final few years. At the time, the hotel was owned by several Carlsbad businessmen, including long-time mayor Walter Gerrells.

Gerrells ran a clothing store, and Pineda helped there and at the hotel before he was offered a fulltime gig as La Caverna’s manager.

“A group of us lawyers used to meet there every evening,” recalled Carlsbad attorney Joe Gant about La Cantina. “It was a beautiful building.”

But the decades had taken their toll, especially on the hotel itself.

“The place did have a lot of problems because it was so old,” Pineda admitted.

“The hotel was the pink elephant. It just wasn’t the same standard as modern rooms.”

Pineda only ran the hotel for about four years, and then its owners decided the upkeep had just gotten too expensive.

“My boss, Walter Gerrells, didn’t want to demolish it because it was a landmark, but his partners outnumbered him,” he said. “It was a neat place, and it’s too bad it had to be demolished because of the costs.”

Pineda went back to running the clothing store. A portion of La Caverna’s motel section was preserved and is even still in use today by the Post Time Saloon for outdoor events. The Post Time’s predecessor, the My Way, actually used what had been La Caverna’s banquet hall.

By the final third of the 20th century, the era of major hotels had mostly passed as motels became more popular for travelling families. Still, many of Carlsbad’s larger motels would pick up the legacies left by their predecessors.

In 1982, for example, Carlsbad’s Forrest brothers purchased the Stevens Motel and remodeled it into the Stevens Inn. It would remain Carlsbad’s largest lodging facility and one of its social and dining hubs to the present.

The circle may have been completed in 2007, when three Carlsbad investors bought the old First National Bank Building, completed at about the same time as the longsince-burned Hagerman Hotel, and turned it into the Trinity Hotel.

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on the

Date:

{1931}

1930s

by John Safin U.S. Potash Company makes first shipment

1925 was an age of black and white photographs. The average income was

$1,970 per year and a gallon of gasoline was ten cents. Calvin Coolidge was president, Babe Ruth was setting baseball records, and “Sweet Georgia Brown” was the country’s most popular song (even before it became the theme song for the Harlem Globetrotters). In Carlsbad, the Snowden and McSweeny Company was exploring for oil and instead discovered potash, a very valuable discovery.

chemical formulas for Carlsbad Potash are K2O, KCL, and K2SO4.2MGSO4…which is TMI–too much information. Look on a fertilizer bag and when you see a “K” on the chemical list, that’s some form of potash. It’s also used in the manufacturing of animal feed, glass, synthetic rubber, matches, and soaps. For the mad scientist types, potash is used in the manufacturing of gunpowder and dynamite. (NOTE: no more chemistry).

The potash supply formed around 300 million years ago, known as the Permian Age. There was literally an ocean covering eastern New Mexico, west Texas, Oklahoma, and Kansas. The water receded (as you are very much aware) leaving layers of all sorts of silt including salt and potash. That’s why Eddy and Lea Counties in New Mexico and several counties in Texas are known as the Permian Basin.

Back in the day, Germany was the only potash supplier to America. All that changes in 1910 when Germany cancelled agreements, raised prices, and forced the U.S. government to start looking for domestic sources of potash. Good thing, because World War I started in 1914 and all shipments of potash from Germany were cut off. So, when Snowden and McSweeny discovered a source, Carlsbad became the center of action.

A quick chemistry lesson: potash is a blanket word used for water-soluble potassium, sodium, chloride, nitrates, and other elements. The symbol for potassium is “K” and its atomic number is 19. The

Carlsbad’s first commercial potash shipment was made by the United States Potash Company in 1931. US Potash Company was the first of seven companies to start mining production in the Carlsbad

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Focus on Carlsbad | WINTER 2011

Main Photo: A loaded mantrip is used to shuttle potash miners to their work zones. Basically, a small train traveled along two rails, working as a cable car system. (Photo courtesy of the Southeastern New Mexico Historical Society)

Inset Photo: Linda Poitevint, Shelby Dunlap, Aidan Dunlap, visiting from Odessa, Texas, stand in front of the train commemorating Carlsbad’s potash industry at the Carlsbad beach area.

area. During the following three decades, they were joined by Potash Company of America, International Minerals & Chemical Corp, Duval Corporation, Amax Chemical Corp, National Potash Company, and Kerr-McGee Chemical Corporation.

At the time the potash industry started, the rest of Carlsbad’s economy was suffering. Carlsbad was primarily an agricultural and cattle ranching society and crop values were half of what they had been. The rest of the country was reeling from the Stock Market Crash of 1929 and surviving the “Great Depression.” Potash mining wasn’t immune to the effects of the Depression,

but due to its national importance, the industry fared better than most.

Working at a mine in the 1930s was very difficult and dangerous. The U.S. Potash Company drilled a 1,000-foot deep shaft to start their production and the first man lowered down was definitely courageous.

The miners used several types of hard wood to add structure and support to the shaft. A lift system was built to transport men and equipment to and from the surface. Also, two wide notches were dug on opposing sides of the shaft. On one side, electric and water lines were dropped to the bottom. The groove on the other side was wide enough to install a ladder allowing miners another way to get down to the work or up to the surface. A hard climb? Yup; it’s equivalent to climbing a tenstory building.

Fortunately, Congress repealed Prohibition in 1933 and a man could have a cold, refreshing beverage after a hard day of mining–if he could afford it.

Drilling and blasting were the contemporary methods used in mining. The only formal federal regulation for the mining industry was issued in 1891covering ventilation requirements and preventing operators from employing children under 12 years old. It was the Federal Coal Mine Safety Act of 1952 that placed federal regulations on the mining industry.

the United States, more than 70% of the U.S. production.

McCutcheon noted, “The Carlsbad potash basin contains over a hundred years of mineable reserves. We are fortunate to have potash producers in Carlsbad who understand the importance of potash and who are committed to its future.”

Approximately twenty percent of the Eddy County workforce is employed by a potash company, earning an annual total of over $70 million. The potash companies contribute millions of dollars in sales, property, and royalty taxes. Mosaic Mining and Intrepid Potash each contribute significant financial and other resources to many of Carlsbad’s nonprofit organizations.

Snowden and McSweeny Company had been looking for oil.

What they really discovered was the path for the Carlsbad community to make a contribution to the history of our country and a prosperous future for everyone.

About the author:

John Safin has a background in business operations, marketing, event planning, and public relations. Originally from Upstate New York, John moved from Glendale, AZ to Carlsbad, NM, which he now calls “home.” www.johnsafin.com

Conveyor belts move the potash ore up to the surface. Once topside, it’s time to start transporting it across the country. The railroad system was expanded from northern New Mexico and other areas of the country to include a rail spur–a track for loading and unloading cargo–at the potash mines. Trains were still the primary means for cross-country transportation for cargo and people. Carlsbad’s potash industry would have never developed if it weren’t for the railroad. Go to the Carlsbad Beach Park sometime. There’s a restored locomotive on display as a tribute to the men, women, and children who worked at the potash mines and railroad companies. Back then and like today, about 80 percent of the potash leaves Carlsbad by railroad.

Over the years, the original seven companies changed names, merged with each other, dissolved, or were purchased by bigger conglomerates, or otherwise evolved. The American Potash Company eventually became Intrepid Potash, and that first mine shaft is still in use today on their West Facility. IMC Global, parent company to Mosaic Mining, extracted its first haul of Carlsbad potash in 1940. Efforts of the early mining pioneers are felt even today.

“World populations are increasing and arable lands are decreasing. High yield agriculture, necessary to feed world populations, requires potash and other essential nutrients for plant growth,” said Steve McCutcheon, Chairman of the Potash Association of New Mexico. “The future of potash in New Mexico is bright.”

Let’s brag! New Mexico is the largest producer of potash in Top Photo: This 1946 photograph taken from the top of the hoist shows the mining operation of the Potash Company of America (PCA).

(Photo courtesy of the Southeastern New Mexico Historical Society)

Bottom Photo: A undercutter in action, as it slices into the potash ore along the face. The vertical lines along the face are blasting holes.

(Photo Courtesy of the Southeastern New Mexico Historical Society)

WINTER 2011 | A Community Magazine

13

on the

Date:

{1943}

1940s

Bats, Buildings & Mystery on an unknown day in 1943

It doesn’t look like much. The land stretches out flat and dusty almost to infinity. The meager grass growing here doesn’t seem to want to interfere with the view and remains low and sparse, waving quietly in the breeze.

All that rises above the flat landscape are the occasional dust devil and the foothills of the Guadalupe Mountains, off in the distance.

The only clues to the bizarre history of this place are a few concrete and steel foundation posts on one side of a rough, two-track dirt road that crosses the area and broken bits of tarmac on the other.

The particularly observant eye may pick out the occasional fleck of yellow paint on a few pieces of the asphalt.

This yellow was the center line of the runway.

The Carlsbad Auxiliary Air Field was built to lessen the load on the main airfield about 5.5 miles to the northwest as AT-11 bombing trainers flew in and out to drop their concrete practice

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Focus on Carlsbad | WINTER 2011

bombs on the huge array of training targets in the area during World War II. The pilots and bombardiers using the auxiliary field probably never saw or knew of the odd little contingent with which they shared the field. They probably never saw the plane fly in and out from time to time while they weren’t using the field, and they definitely never saw the odd looking bomb with perforated sides loaded on board. They probably did notice one day, however, when they flew in to the field and the tower and few buildings lining the runway were missing.

It all started innocently enough. Dr. Lytle Adams, a Pennsylvania dentist, visited Carlsbad Cavern and stayed for the evening to watch the bats exit the cave. He heard the ranger talk about those mysterious little creatures and

by Tom Bemis

their nocturnal habits. He paid close attention as the ranger discussed some bats’ ability to hibernate, and he listened with great interest as the ranger talked about their quickness to take shelter in buildings if caught out in the daylight.

He also learned about their ability to fly while carrying relatively heavy loads, as evidenced by their carrying their newborns for the first few days after birth. He apparently was not told of, or did not listen to, the discussion of the myriad benefits of bats.

Not long after the bombing of Pearl Harbor, Dr. Adams remembered his visit to Carlsbad and started formulating a plan. The plan soon culminated in a letter, which through Dr. Adam’s friendship with Eleanor Roosevelt, quickly found its way to the desk of FDR. The letter read, in part: “The lowest form of animal life is the bat, associated in history with the underworld

and regions of darkness and evil. Until now, the reasons for its creation have remained unexplained. As I vision it, the missions for bats, that for ages have inhabited our belfries and tunnels and caverns, were placed there by God to await this hour, to play their part in the scheme of free human existence, and to frustrate any attempt of those who dare desecrate our way of life.”

Roosevelt responded by forwarding the letter, accompanied by a brief note: “Memorandum for Col. William Donovan, U.S. Government, Coordinator of Information “This man is not a nut. It sounds like a perfectly wild idea, but it is worth looking into. -FDR” This brief endorsement was all that was needed by Dr. Adams. He gathered together a collection of bat biologists and other specialists and explained what he had in mind.

At first the biologists were uncomfortable with the plan, but their love for bats was outweighed by their love for America. They joined the project, dubbed Project X-Ray, and began working for the Army.

directly to the bats’ chests. This also alleviated the biologists’ environmental concern about releasing non-native bats on the other side of the world, since the bats would be incinerated along with the device.

Collecting the bats was not easy. There were several colonies with millions of bats in south central Texas, but catching the highly maneuverable mammals was hard. This was solved by building a giant funnel from a cave entrance directly into the back of a refrigeration truck.

The bomb casing itself was filled with egg-carton like spaces, one for each bat.

When the bomb was dropped the bomb casing opened, releasing the bats and starting the time delay fuse.

The incendiary device was developed by the Chemical Warfare Service, who enlisted the help of Dr. Pfeizer, the inventor of napalm. The device utilized a time delay fuse, activated when the bat took flight. At first, the tiny bombs were tied to the bats so that once the bats landed they could chew them loose and escape. This proved impractical and soon the devices were being glued

Testing of the bombs was done in remote areas near Carlsbad. Wooden structures were built and the bombs were dropped. Test results showed that the bat bombs were approximately 74% more accurate and effective than conventional incendiary bombs. This is because while conventional bombs fall indiscriminately, bats seeking shelter place the bombs in areas where they are much more likely to cause damage.

Bat bombs showed great promise in becoming the world’s first “smart”

On face value, his plan was simple: {1} Collect a million bats. {2} Cool them to force them into hibernation. {3} Attach a tiny incendiary bomb to each bat. {4} Drop the bats over a Japanese city about an hour before sunrise. {5} On their descent, the bats will warm and take flight. {6} The bats will take shelter in homes and buildings. {7} The tiny bombs will ignite, burning the structures. {8} The ensuing firestorm will strike terror in the heart of the Japanese people, weakening their resolve, and helping to shorten the war.

Main Photo, Left Page: Little is left to mark the spot near Carlsbad where one of World War II’s more unusual experiments took place.

Right Photo: The buildings of the Auxiliary Air Field, located to the northwest of the main airfield, caught fire in 1943 when a few bats, outfitted with tiny bombs, took cover from the sun in the buildings.

Inset Right Photo: This container would have held numerous tiny bats, each attached to a small explosive device.

WINTER 2011 | A Community Magazine

15

bombs.

After an unfortunate incident in the field, the army became wary of the unpredictability of the bat bomb as a weapon and soon dropped the project.

While the army was dubious, the marines were impressed, and they quickly grabbed the project and moved it to El Centro, California. A large order was placed for incendiaries, but the order was soon cancelled due to lack of funding. It seems that another top secret project in New Mexico was receiving the bulk of the research and development money. That project was also developing a bomb, but one with much greater incendiary potential.

The pilots and bombardiers in Carlsbad were never told what happened to the buildings at their auxiliary airfield on a unknown day in 1943. All they ever knew was that they had burned, there was no tower to guide them in, and there was no shade for miles.

They didn’t know about the military dignitaries that came to see how Project X-Ray was progressing. They didn’t

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Focus on Carlsbad | WINTER 2011

Photo: This aerial photo shows the area, about 5.5 miles northwest of the airport, where the “bat bomb” tests took place in Carlsbad.

know about the Army Signal Corps photographer’s request to photograph a few of the bats with their bombs. They didn’t know about the bats being left in the sun a little too long, warming, and taking flight in the direction of the buildings in the area. …They didn’t know that the army had gotten scared but a marine major who witnessed the mishap was impressed. If you had told them, they wouldn’t have believed you.

About the author:

Carlsbad native Tom Bemis is a 30 year veteran of the National Park Service at Carlsbad Caverns. Now retired, he spends his time researching area history and coordinating search and rescue statewide for the New Mexico State Police.

References

BBC Radio Broadcast- Eric Abraham- Nov. 23, 2005 “Bat Bombs: World War II’s Other Secret Weapon” by Jack Couffer Personal Research

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Model Home: 1809 Hays

WINTER 2011 | A Community Magazine

17

on mainstreet

Cattle Drive Will Highlight Local Centennial Celebration

by Amy M. Barnhart

New Mexico is about to hit a major milestone.

January 6, 2012, will mark the centennial anniversary of its statehood. But the centennial celebrations have already begun, Amy M. Barnhart kicking off at Las Carlsbad MainStreet Cruces’ Salsafest Executive Director at the end of August and continuing all over the state until December 2012.

As part of the state centennial celebration, Carlsbad will play host to a number of local centennial-related projects and events, such as chautauquas, a Pony Express ride reenactment, museum exhibits, the release of digitized historical photos, and much more. Additionally, several events that are already annual traditions, like the Mescal Roast at the Living Desert & Gardens State Park and Christmas on the Pecos, will be tweaked to have a centennial focus.

One of the more ambitious events of the celebration is a cattle drive. The local centennial committee, in partnership with the Hobbs centennial committee, has spent the last year brainstorming, planning and now fundraising for a centennial cattle drive. May 9th through 12th, 100 head of longhorn cattle will travel from a Jal area ranch to the Eddy County Sherriff’s Posse Arena. The first three days will be on the trail and the fourth day will consist of festivities at the posse arena. While on the trail, live cowboy music will be performed by musician Michael Martin Murphy and others.

There are several ways for the public to experience the cattle drive. Those who want the most authentic experience possible can spend the entire three days on the trail–riding along on horses with the cattle during the day, eating from the chuck wagon in the evening while listening to live music, and sleeping under

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Focus on Carlsbad | WINTER 2011

the stars. This is for experienced riders.

Another option for experienced horsemen and women is to ride along with the wagon train for one or more of the days. And for those who want the Old West experience with all the modern conveniences of their own homes or hotels, there are buses available each evening to transport people to and from the campgrounds for a chuck wagon dinner and live musical entertainment under the stars. The last option is available for $75 per person.

The fourth day at the sheriff’s posse arena will feature a number of events, among them an auction of the longhorns from the cattle drive, all of which will feature a special centennial brand. There will also be entertainment throughout the day and into the early evening, as well as vendors featuring Western goods and food. Stay tuned for more details on a possible concert later that evening.

There is still time to get involved with the centennial celebration and there are a variety of ways to do so. To learn more about the events happening all over the state or how to register your event or project with the state centennial office, visit nmcentennial.org.

To learn more about the local centennial celebration and how you can attend or get involved, contact centennial committee

chair Patsy Jackson at the Carlsbad Museum & Art Center at (575)887-0276 or patsy.jackson@cityofcarlsbadnm. com. For more information on the cattle drive, contact Patsy Jackson or the Hobbs’ contacts Calvin Smith or Mary Lyle at (575)392-6730, csmith@ nmjc.edu or mlyle@nmjc.edu. Visit the website www.pitchforkcattle.com for more information on riding along with the cattle drive. Updated information will soon be available on the Western Heritage

Experience the Heart of our Community Visit Beautiful Downtown Carlsbad for all your holiday gift needs.

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Museum website at museumshobbsnm. org.

And don’t forget some of the big events coming up in 2011! Carlsbad’s Annual Electric Light Parade, organized by MainStreet and Keep Carlsbad Beautiful, will be held November 26. This year’s theme is “The Spirit of Christmas.”

Entry forms to participate in the parade are due by November 18. For more information, visit carlsbadmainstreetnm. com or call Wanda at 706-0953, Deanna at 302-4944 or Keep Carlsbad Beautiful at 887-0483.

Carlsbad MainStreet’s annual Downtown Holiday Stroll will be held throughout the day November 26 in downtown Carlsbad.

Participating businesses will have holiday boxes in which customers can drop off entry forms for the opportunity to win gift certificates and downtown shopping sprees. The entry forms will be printed in the Carlsbad Current-Argus the week of the event. There will be entertainment and a variety of things happening throughout the day.

Other Centennial Events Carlsbad Museum Celebrates the Centennial: THE SMITHSONIAN COMES TO CARLSBAD! The exhibit Journey Stories (a Smithsonian exhibit) opens 2 p.m.

Saturday, November 19, with Riders on the Orphan Train, a multi-media program starring Phil Lancaster & Alison Moore out of Austin, Texas. The public can continue to enjoy Journey Stories through December 31.

Journey Stories and accompanying programming is brought to you courtesy of the New Mexico Humanities Council & the City of Carlsbad.

In conjunction with the Museum’s annual Holiday Happening with Santa at 1 p.m.

Saturday, December 3, there will be a Chautauqua presentation of Mark Twain’s Adventures Out West featuring Jim Post of Illinois.

Jan. 6, 2012 – Happy Birthday, New Mexico!

Proclamation and formal release of 15,000 historic area photos onto the World Wide Web by the Southeast NM Historical Society

Jan. 6, 2012 Re-enactments of political figures involved in making New Mexico a state of the Union on the Court House lawn.

May 26, 2012 Pony Express – The NM Centennial Pony Express Ride leaves Carlsbad during the “End of the Trail” event on May 12 to deliver the mail to Hobbs. Then the Ride will depart Hobbs at the Western Heritage Museum on May 26th at 8:30 a.m. and arrive in Santa Fe 14 days later.

Apr. 30 – Aug 13, 2012 100 Years of Art in New Mexico: Special Centennial exhibit at the Carlsbad Museum & Art Center, sponsored by the Las Cruces Museum of Art and the NM Humanities Council.

Oct. 6, 2012 Extension of the annual Heritage Days event Statehood Comes to New Mexico: A Chautauqua Program in Halagueno Arts Park, sponsored by the Carlsbad Museum

& Art Center.

WINTER 2011 | A Community Magazine

19

on the

Date:

{1950}

1950s

You cruise or you lose cruising the 1950’s to today

The 1972 coming-of-age film “American Graffiti” captured the close marriage between teenage freedom and the automobile during the second half of the 20th century in the United States.

located.

Along the way, there were several Dairy Queens, a place called the Arrowhead, and plenty of empty lots to pull into if you spotted a friend.

Although it was set in 1962 in Modesto, California, the movie could have easily taken place in Carlsbad, New Mexico.

The route, cars, hangout spots and music may have all changed over the past six decades or so, but Carlsbad’s drag still remains a popular source of entertainment for its teenagers.

tired at the end of the evening from all the waving and honking. It was a great, special time.”

Greathouse drove a 1955 Chevy 2-door during his primary cruising years.

Every day after school, he’d pick up his girlfriend and cruise for an hour or two.

“You’d go home and do your homework and sometimes you’d go out later that night a second time,” Greathouse said. The local radio station, KAVE, was popular until late at night when Carlsbad residents could pick up Oklahoma City’s KOMA.

There seems to be some evidence that Carlsbad youth, at least during the 1960s, got more into cruising than most of their peers who lived elsewhere.

“We had no cell phones back then and gasoline was cheap,” he said. “We went out there to see what everyone was doing. It was how you got in touch with people back then.”

A life-long car enthusiast, Greathouse said he participated in his share of racing. There was a ¼ mile track near Lake Avalon where some of the bigger competitions would take place.

The first stop would always be Becky’s on Church Street to get something to drink. Back then, the primary cruising route was Church Street from Elm to Canal and then Canal south to about where the No Whiner Diner is presently

Local boys all idolized Dick Harrell, a professional drag racer in the 1960s and early 1970s whose path to fame began in Carlsbad. Harrell began racing sprint cars in Carlsbad when he was only 14.

By 17, he began driving stock cars on a

“I remember an article in the Lubbock newspaper that said Carlsbad was ‘American Graffiti’ come to life,” said Roger Greathouse, a Carlsbad High Class of ’67 graduate and avid cruiser during his teenage years. “It was bumper to bumper. My arm would be

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Focus on Carlsbad | WINTER 2011

nearby driving track.

“And those days, anyone who had a job after school could save up and buy a car for a few hundred bucks,” Greathouse noted.

Greathouse’s enthusiasm for cars and driving hasn’t waned. He’s a member of the Carlsbad Automotive Restoration Society (CARS), a nonprofit organization of men and women dedicated to the restoration and preservation of vehicles. Baring construction, CARS club members still enjoy taking cruises through town, and they’ll often stop at Becky’s.

Dianne Mathis and Kim Cavender, who own and operate Carlsbad’s Gossett’s Jewelry, can probably give a good feel for how Carlsbad’s cruising scene has changed over the years. Both members of the mother-daughter combination say they cruised Carlsbad during their teenage years.

When Mathis, who graduated from Carlsbad High School in 1963, would go cruising, she was usually riding in a station wagon.

“If you had a boyfriend, you’d go with your boyfriend and he’d do the driving,” she said. “We didn’t have the cool cars. We’d beg our parents to drive the family car. My family drove a brown Chevrolet station wagon.”

Her daughter, Cavender, graduated from CHS in 1990. By then many teenagers had their own vehicles.

“When I was in school, those Baja Volkwagons were really popular,” she said.

Mathis said her parents would only allow her to go cruising every now and then.

“I was a cheerleader, and when we had games, we’d go out before and after ball games,” she said. “It was mostly on weekends.”

Mathis recalls Becky’s, Dairy Queen and the Come and Get It as primary stopping points along Carlsbad’s drag at the time.

“People would go all the way to Lea Street and then turn around and go back,” she said. “The Come and Get It was a taco place right before Lea Street.”

Mathis said her husband, Tom, was a hot-rodder who spent a lot of his time working on cars during his teenage years. Races, she said, would mostly take place off of the main drag, typically near Lake Avalon.

and then go back down Church Street toward Becky’s,” she said. “Sometimes, you’d go down to the beach area where people were congregating.”

There was a Taco Bell at the corner of Church and Canal that was also a popular central point, Cavender noted.

“People would park on the corner and watch cars go by,” she said, noting that she also fondly remembers the 49 cent tacos.

Cavender recalls some racing, “People would hit the lights, but it wasn’t like what you saw in the moves. Mostly, you just cruised around to see who you could talk to.”

Cavender said she was mostly into pop music during her teenage years, but she does recall Def Leppard’s “Pour Some Sugar on Me” being one of the most popular songs of her era. Mathis listened to Elvis and Buddy Holly on the radio.

By the time Cavender hit high school, the Dairy Queen along the drag route had closed down, but Becky’s still served as a main hub of activity.

Cruising may still take place in Carlsbad, but not at the level it used to, Cavender and Mathis said. Changes to the law mean teenagers are not allowed to congregate at one spot outdoors as much.

“I remember you’d take Canal Street to Sonic, do a U-turn at Sonic, turn around,

Cavender said she doesn’t think her teenage daughter is that in to cruising.

Photos Below: Becky’s, on Church Street, was one of the most popular hangout places during decades of Carlsbad cruising. Pictured “back in the day” and how it looks present day.

“She drives, but she usually has a specific place to go,” she said. “I think cell phones probably took the place of

WINTER 2011 | A Community Magazine

21

cruising.”

“It was our way of communicating,” Mathis agreed. “This was before texting.

Cruising was how we found out where everybody was and what they were doing.”

Texting and Facebook may have eliminated cruising’s role as a primary method of communication, but it’s still a popular small town activity for many.

One change–Church Street has been replaced by Pierce Street as the northern half of Carlsbad’s cruise route.

Carlsbad resident Charfalla Smith, 20, said she’s been cruising through town with friends since she was 14.

“We just listen to music and look at everything in town. It makes it more interesting,” Smith said. “After you’ve already gone to Sonic and the beach, and after you’ve done everything else you can think of, that’s when you go cruising.”

Smith’s usual partner in cruising is her close friend, Cecilia Jones, though other friends will come as well. Like Carlsbad cruisers of other times, they’ll talk and

listen to music, while looking for friends who are doing the same.

“We’ll usually drive from Sonic (on Canal Street) to Sonic (on Pierce Street),” Smith said. “If we happen to see someone we know, we’ll stop and say hi.”

Smith said she only goes cruising a couple times a month lately, due to other obligations and the rising cost of gasoline. With the construction going on for most of the past year, any cruising taking place in Carlsbad has had to happen along back streets.

“We just like to go out and have some fun,” she said. “Sometimes we’ll go to a hangout spot to see who is there, but most of the time we’ll just drive around for an hour or two.”

Main Photo: Roger Greathouse poses in front of his Mustang at a recent car show.

Greathouse drove a 1955 Chevy when he cruised during his high school years.

Inset Photo: Some of Carlsbad’s most avid cruisers relive their glory days by participating in the Carlsbad Automotive Restoration Society (CARS).

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Focus on Carlsbad | WINTER 2011

So maybe things really haven’t changed that much after all.

1: Cub scouts line up at Carlsbad National Bank. (Photo courtesy of Pecos River Antique Mall & Henry J’s Indoor Flea Market) 2: Carlsbad’s IGA was one of its most popular grocery stores for years. (Photo courtesy of Pecos River Antique Mall & Henry J’s Indoor Flea Market) 3: Roy Jacob stands in front of his novelty store between Carlsbad and White’s City. (Photo courtesy of Pecos River Antique Mall & Henry J’s Indoor Flea Market) 4: The Mine Supply Co. a longstanding local business.

(Photo courtesy of Pecos River Antique Mall & Henry J’s Indoor Flea Market) 5: The water is low in this 1960 photo of the Carlsbad Beach. (Photo courtesy of Pecos River Antique Mall & Henry J’s Indoor Flea Market) 6: One of Carlsbad’s three Tootie’s Cashway stores. (Photo courtesy of Pecos River Antique Mall & Henry J’s Indoor Flea Market) 7: The Anderson Hospital, pictured in 1953 at its Main Street location. (Photo by Roderick Mead) 8: The Old Palace Hotel, pictured in 1950.

(Photo by Roderick Mead) 9: U.S. Government Building on the Corner of Fox and Canal, 1966 (Photo by Roderick Mead)

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3

4

5

6

2

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WINTER 2011 | A Community Magazine

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on the

1960s

Gnome, Gnome on the Range Date:

{1961}

December 10, 1961 Project Gnome

The 1960s began in Carlsbad not with a whimper but a

bang!

On Dec. 10, 1961, the first non-weapons use of a nuclear explosive occurred 1,100 feet underground about 20 miles east of Carlsbad.

The hundreds of onlookers of the United States Atomic Energy Commission test included Edward Teller, the father of the hydrogen bomb. Meanwhile, thousands of Carlsbad and Loving residents listened to the radio broadcast of the explosion at home and waited for what felt like an earthquake.

Called Project Gnome, the experiment was the first of 35 peaceful nuclear detonations known as Project Plowshare, a Biblicallynamed operation designed to explore the possible peaceful uses of nuclear explosive devices. The experiments focused mostly on creating craters and canals, producing radioactive elements, reducing radioactive fallout and stimulating natural gas production from underground resources.

Project Gnome’s location was selected due to its remoteness and the area’s deep salt beds. A 3.1 kiloton nuclear device was emplaced 1,184 feet underground in bedded salt at the end of a hooked tunnel designed to be self-sealing. The detonation, which occurred at noon to the countdown of a local radio station, resulted in the creation of an underground, dome-shaped chamber 60 to 80 feet high and 160 to 170 feet in diameter.

Carlsbad resident and retired park ranger Tom Bemis, 62, said he recalls some of the coverage of the event, but he doesn’t remember there being major concern at the time.

“The main thing that I remember is the morning the thing went off, we were all sitting in our living room listening to the radio,” Bemis said. “They had a countdown

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Focus on Carlsbad | WINTER 2011

going, and when it went to zero, we all felt a little jolt.”

The jolt, a tremor caused by the explosion, shook the walls, Bemis said.

“I was really surprised by how fast it came after they hit zero,” he said. “There was no way to miss it.”

Bemis said most of the other children he knew who were growing up in Carlsbad also listened to the event on the radio.

Art Chavez was a five-year-old resident of Loving at the time of the explosion.

“There was a lot of excitement,” Chavez said.

“It was close to the Christmas holiday, and a lot of friends and relatives came over.”

When the time for the explosion came, everybody stopped talking and waited, Chavez said.

“We wondered what it was supposed to do,” he said. “We felt the ground shake, and then we went back to playing.”

Chavez said years later one of his uncles was on a team that conducted cleanup activities at the site. Chavez is a senior scientist with Regulatory Environmental Services and has spent 18 years on the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant project. Two of his siblings also work at WIPP. He noted that the Carlsbad Environmental Monitoring and Research Center will

Main Photo: Los Alamos chemist George Cowan, pictured, was one of the many well-known scientists who worked on Project Gnome.

Inset Photo: Six months after the Project Gnome explosion, researchers and miners went into the underground cavity. periodically detect extremely small quantities of radiation from the Gnome Project with the center’s ultra-sensitive equipment. CEMRC’s mission is to monitor WIPP, which gives off no trace of radiation at all.

Sandia National Laboratories, Los Alamos National Laboratory and Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory were among the institutions to conduct experiments during Project Gnome. The project had actually first been announced in 1958, but was delayed due to a moratorium on nuclear testing between the United States and the Soviet Union.

“I had the responsibility for some strong motion studies,” said Wendell Weart, retired scientist with Sandia National Laboratories.

“We installed gauges underground within several hundred feet of the detonation and recorded all of our data.”

Weart had only joined Sandia two years earlier.

“That day was pretty well etched in my mind,” he said. “It was the first full scale nuclear test after I joined Sandia that I had responsibility for.”

The day of the test, Weart was in a helicopter hovering between the explosion site and the control point where several hundred visitors gathered to watch. Sandia had set a number of TNT explosive devices up in the air, which the lab intended to set off as a sort of control group for comparison against the atomic explosion.

“One of the experiments was associated with air pressure generated from ground heating explosion,” Weart said. “We had a detonation set to go off before (the Gnome explosion) and one right after.”

Somehow, the explosion set to go off after the Gnome explosion went off at about the same time as the actual charge.

Some bystanders mistook the more visually dramatic TNT explosion for the underground atomic one.

“So people at the control point–who had been told not to expect to see anything–here they see this huge fireball,” Weart said.

“They started trying to find shelter.”

Also unexpected–smoke, steam and some radiation began venting from the explosion site several minutes after the explosion. A higher gamma intensity level was detected to the west of the explosion point near Highway 128. Technicians and monitoring systems kept the public safe, though Weart said several vehicles of visitors to the site that had travelled along the highway were washed the next day as a precaution.

The surface heave above ground zero was measured at about six feet by instruments installed by the Atomic Energy Commission and its contractors. As anticipated, global seismometer enthusiasts around the world were able to pick up the atomic explosion, making it literally a shock heard ‘round the world.

Underground recovery operations were delayed due to the radiation levels at the shaft opening, but initial surveys were conducted six days after the explosion.

Miners entered the cavity six months later.

“One thing we did afterwards is we mined back in to recover some samples,” Weart said. “We also wanted to understand why it vented.”

Re-entry was made through an underground tunnel parallel to the original one. During the return visit six months later, which involved scientists and miners walking into the underground cavity, temperatures in the cavity of up to 130 degrees Fahrenheit were recorded, but radiation levels were fairly low. The roof of the cavity had collapsed and trapped most of the radioactivity beneath a thick pile of rubble.

Weart, who retired in 2000, noted that the experiment probably would not be conducted in the same fashion today due to changes in attitude and procedure.

“I always found it interesting that I started my career at Sandia conducting underground tests at the Gnome site and ended it 40 years later at the WIPP site,” he said. “You can see the WIPP site from where the Gnome shaft was located.”

Weart said a prime purpose of Project Gnome was to see what kind of seismic waves were generated by the atomic explosion.

“We wanted to understand more in order to tell if anyone (other countries) was cheating on the underground test ban,” he said.

Other experiments included studying the possibility of converting the heat produced by a nuclear explosion into steam, exploring the feasibility of recovering radioisotopes for scientific and industrial applications, and developing more overall knowledge about the nuclear process.

“The intent was to understand how different materials capture neutrons using different energies,” Weart said.

Because the shot broke through the closure drift underground, some of the test objectives were not realized. Still, many results led to new experiments and a deeper understanding of the atomic process.

“In some ways it was a very naïve initial attempt,” said Roger Nelson, chief scientist with the Department of Energy’s Carlsbad Field Office. “Project Gnome didn’t give all the answers, but there were some successes.”

concrete plug.

While Project Gnome and the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant aren’t directly related, there are some correlations. WIPP permanently isolates transuranic waste in salt beds 2,150 feet beneath the surface.

“Gnome was a detonation in salt, and millions of curies of radioactivity were trapped in the cavity,” Nelson said. “In a way, Gnome and WIPP are both examples of how perfectly salt isolates and seals radioactivity.”

Nelson, who often takes international visitors to the WIPP site, said he will take the guests to see the marker for Project Gnome when there is time.

“Sometimes visitors will question why there is such a high acceptance factor at WIPP,” he said, referring to the community’s legendary rejection of the Not in My Backyard philosophy espoused in other communities. “Part of the explanation is that the population of the area was already preeducated as a result of Project Gnome.”

The Gnome site can be reached by driving eight miles east on Highway 128 (the Jal highway) to Mobley Ranch Road (not paved). Drive south 6 miles to the spot of the initial vertical access shaft (a concrete pad). The monument directly above ground zero is 1,000 feet to the east.

Today, the Gnome site is a 740 acre fenced site on BLM land, withdrawn for at least 100 years from access to any potential underground resources. BLM does allow surface leasing, and cattle can be seen roaming near ground zero. The area is still subject to annual surveys by the DOE. All of the buildings and equipment were removed, but a few concrete pads still can be seen scatted across the area. There is a small, worn monument sitting immediately above ground zero, and a small concrete pad marks the former shaft entrance 1000 feet to the west. Most of the contaminated soil removed during cleanup campaigns over the decades was used to backfill the shaft below the

WINTER 2011 | A Community Magazine

25

on the

Date:

{1971}

1970s

Coach perini becomes carlsbad’s head baseball coach

Every good story has its prequel.

we had a great Little League program.”

It was August 11, 1959, and about 300 people were watching as the Carlsbad Potashers hosted the Odessa, Texas, Dodgers in baseball’s Class D Sophomore League.

Perini, 11 at the time, was watching the 1959 game with a friend. Many of the boys relied on the Potashers for equipment.

Just another summer baseball game in Carlsbad, until the ninth inning rolled around.

That’s when Gil Carter, a Potasher and former prizefighter from Kansas, knocked a baseball 730 feet into a nearby subdivision.

The slam, recorded as the longest home run in baseball history, has been chronicled in detail

by New Mexico writer Jerry Dorbin on the web site http://www.efqreview.com/NewFiles/ v18n1/numbersgame.html.

But this is the story of some of the boys who were watching the game that day, witnessed the magic of baseball first hand when they saw Carter’s long ball go into orbit and then went on to help found a Carlsbad baseball dynasty that would span nearly half a century.

While Carter’s home run was certainly a milestone, 1971 is probably the best date for chronicling the establishment of Cavern City’s baseball dynasty. That’s the year four young men took over Carlsbad High School’s baseball program and never stopped winning.

Carlsbad’s baseball roots actually stretch back well before 1959, in fact. It was certainly the key recreational activity for boys growing up in the 1950s, and the Potashers were a popular squad.

“Minor league baseball was great entertainment,” said former Carlsbad High baseball coach Dave Perini. “Carlsbad was full of old coal miners who had played baseball, so

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Focus on Carlsbad | WINTER 2011

“Us kids idolized those guys,” he said. “We’d wait for old balls and broken bats. Then we’d put nails in them and tape them up to play sandlot ball. I remember once the manager of the Potashers saw us playing with taped-up balls and he stopped and gave us a whole bag of new ones.”

Carter, Perini recalled, would usually either get a home run or flat out strike out. Either way, he’d remember to greet the legions of local boys who worshipped him and his new-fangled sixfingered glove.

Perini still remembers Carter’s blast in 1959.

“It took off and the third baseman flinched,” he said. “It went down the rise and started rising like a rocket.”

Retired Carlsbad High School baseball coach Tom Forni was a batboy for the Potashers.

“Even as a little guy just 8 years old, I remember that it was a heck of a shot,” Forni said. “It was unbelievable. It just kept climbing.”

Did witnessing such a magical baseball moment have a lasting effect? There’s no way to tell, but Perini and Forni would go on to become key players in Carlsbad’s baseball dynasty.

In 1971, Perini, a former Cavemen standout who played college football in Colorado, took

Main Photo: Pictured is the Carlsbad High School squad from the early 1970s.”

Inset Photo: From left, Dave Perini, Tom Forni, Gary Whittemore and Richard Mattson, pose during Perini’s stint as head coach of Carlsbad’s high school baseball team. Combined, the four men would lead the Cavemen baseball program for close to four decades. over as Carlsbad’s head baseball coach. The program had been strong, but the team had not won a state championship since 1958, and the coach wanted to change that. Perini would move over to football 4 1/2 years later after leading the Cavemen to two state championships in 1972 and 1973.

His staff included Richard Mattson, Gary Whittemore and Tom Forni. They stuck around.

When Perini left, Mattson took over as head baseball coach. Whittemore then took over where Mattson left off.

Then came Forni, the Aristotle of the quartet of Carlsbad baseball-philosophers in that he was the last and, in many ways, the most renowned.

Forni coached the Cavemen to six state titles during his two-decade stint as head coach and never had a losing season during 36 years of coaching. This summer, he was awarded a place of honor in the New Mexico High School Coaches Association Hall of Fame.

“This group of coaches lasted from 1971 until Tom retired about 40 years later,” Perini said, gesturing at a picture of the four men. “We had the same signals. We had the same philosophy.

We each had our own personality, but one of the reasons the program did so well was that we had continuity.”

In fact, when Forni retired in 2007, he was replaced as head coach by Kenny Groves, a long-time protégé who continued to use the same signals and much of the same battle plan until he left the program in 2011.

Where did the signals come from?

“We had a kid named Terry Cox who pitched for the Angels who was visiting us during batting practice in 1971,” Perini said. “Terry said the Dodgers had the best signals in the major leagues, and he showed them to me.

I didn’t invent them. I had someone who happened to be in the big leagues show them to me on the way back to spring training.”

Perini led the Cavemen baseball program to a 105-22 record during his four full years as head coach. Whittemore helped him with the varsity, while Mattson and Forni ran the JV and helped with varsity.

“I was the luckiest guy in the world,” Perini said. “We broke some barriers. What a phenomenal run we had.”

Perini hired Forni, a Carlsbad native and college baseball standout, during his first year as head coach.

“I was interviewing for a college job at Adams State, and it was between me and another guy,” Forni said. “I didn’t get the job, and suddenly it was late August.

I saw Dave at Sitting Bull Falls and asked if he could help get me on to the school system.”

Coach Whittemore was a phenomenal pitching coach, Perini said.

“Really, the brilliance behind the whole deal to me was Rich Mattson,” Forni noted. “He knew his baseball inside and out. He could always come up with different drills for different situations.”

It was a group capable of thinking on their feet. In 1973, Perini recalled, two players were suspended right before the state championship. The coaching staff had to make a last minute adjustment by moving Larry Yturralde to first base and training Danny York to play shortstop. Both players wound up being all-state that year as the Cavemen won their second straight state title.

“We had the foundation, but Dave Perini brought it to a whole new level,” Forni said.

“We had great kids and great coaches (who came later) like Coach Bobby Click and Coach Kenny Groves. I’ll say one thing about our program. We had a great work ethic.”

They’d win state again in 1988, ‘89, and ‘90 under Forni’s direction and bolstered by the presence of Shane Andrews, a now retired major league baseball player who was a titan among giants when he played for the Cavemen.

Andrews played in the majors from 1995 to

2002 for the Montreal Expos, Chicago Cubs and Boston Red Sox. Among other honors, he was the first player to hit a home run in the new millennium. Another Carlsbad player, Paxton Crawford, played for the Red Sox for two years.

Andrews grew up loving baseball, though he said he was more of a “throwing the ball through a tire” player as a child than he was the type of kid who attended dozens of baseball clinics. He played for Carlsbad National as a youth and quickly became one of Carlsbad’s greatest early in his tenure at CHS. In 1990, the Carlsbad Cavemen were picked as the nation’s best high school baseball team.

Andrews, by then, was mostly pitching and playing shortstop for the Cavemen, though he also saw some time at third base.

Carlsbad continued to produce legends. Just a few years later, current San Francisco Giant slugger Cody Ross would lead the Cavemen to a title in 1996. The Cavemen, still under Forni’s watch, added two more state titles to their tally in 1998 and 2002.

Perini’s two sons were both standout players.

The oldest, John, played with Andrews, while the youngest, Michael, played with Ross.

In 2010, Ross was voted the MVP of the National League Championship Series. His Giants would go on to beat the Rangers to win the World Series. Intrigued about his small-town origins, baseball writers who made the trip to Carlsbad enjoyed throwing the term “baseball town” around while setting the scene.

Where and how did Carlsbad become a “baseball town”? And what does that really mean?

“It means pride, tradition, and all the things that make up a good program remain intact,” Perini said. “I remember telling my ’72 team ‘You guys are the grandparents of the guys to come. Break this barrier, and you’ll be the guys who get this started.’”

And it means players like Andrews and Ross are by no means anomalies.

“Brian Hall, John Crider, Brian Flores, Michael Perini, Wally Lester, Eric Chaves, Frankie Rodriguez, Tim Gadbury, Tim Perry – I could name a lot more guys,” Perini said.

“When you put that jersey on, the tradition is here. The echoes are here. I think it gives you an added, intangible incentive over a program without that tradition.”

Carlsbad’s high school baseball tradition also has a more tangible payoff.

“After I was drafted, I came home every winter before I went to spring training and went out there with the guys,” Andrews said. “All the guys have come back and contributed in some way. The younger kids look up to you, and they notice you are just a normal person.”

Batting practice with professionals certainly doesn’t hurt, especially when they are teaching you signals.

“Let me tell you this–everybody wants to be part of a winning program,” Forni said. “Over the years, Cavemen baseball

represented that winning attitude. The kids within the program didn’t expect to lose. The program was tweaked over the years, but the kids always put forth the work ethic. If you were going to beat us, you had to be really good or put your time in like our kids put their time in.”

The benefit of tradition, Perini said, doesn’t mean you are going to win every game.

“But we also had the hardest workers,” he said. “We were going to outwork you.”

When national reporters start poking around Carlsbad and throwing out terms like “baseball town,” Perini, who was there when the legacy began in 1971, can’t help but beam just a little bit.

“I’m so proud of all these guys and players,” he said. “I feel a connection with what we started. We didn’t start with much, but before long, we were drawing 1,500 people to games and had two concession stands running.”

Carlsbad’s youth baseball programs have also been a success. Three youth leagues– American, National and Shorthorn–mean no shortage of young men interested in being the next Shane Andrews or Cody Ross. One thing that hurt the program, Mattson noted, was the formation of Loving High School. Before that, some of the area’s best baseball players grew up in the town of Loving and played for the Cavemen.

“We’ve still got kids in professional baseball like Kenny Toves and Todd Weldon that I had the opportunity to work with,” observed Forni. Todd’s brother, Corey, has also developed an impressive post high-school career.

“You could just go on and on about all the old ballplayers, but right now we’re looking for the next batch,” Perini said. “When you speak of tradition, it spans a lengthy period of time.”

Andrews credited Carlsbad’s youth program with the high school’s continued success. He also credited Groves with doing an excellent job running the program after Forni’s retirement.

“A lot of people at younger levels are very baseball oriented and know the game,” he said. “You’ve got three baseball leagues and numerous softball teams. You’ve just got a great turnout.”

Andrews, who could have played college football as well, said he’s also excited about the development he’s seen in Carlsbad’s youth football program in recent years and said it is likely one contributor to the current high school program’s success.

“The girls too–maybe even more so,” he said about Carlsbad’s softball program. “Our softball team is always one of the strongest teams in the state. We’ve been blessed with good coaches for sure, but we’ve also been blessed with talent at every level.”

Forni stressed that he supports all Carlsbad athletics.

“I’m a Caveman, and that’s not just baseball.

It’s boys and girls soccer, basketball, football and everything else. I bleed blue. Carlsbad has been very good to me and my family.”

WINTER 2011 | A Community Magazine

27

on the

1980s

by Donna Birchell

Date:

{1989}

Centennial project begins

T

he Southeastern New Mexico Historical Society has been involved in many monumental events over the years. One such occurrence was the relocation of the Eddy House to its current home at Heritage Park west of the Flume in the early 1980s. Each stone of the Eddy House was numbered, moved and rebuilt in the exact order used by the original builders in the 1880s. That project was a huge undertaking involving many people and resulted in the beautiful Heritage Park Carlsbad knows today.

A brand new endeavor has been accomplished through the superhuman efforts of past society president, Jed Howard, and computer expert, Paul Derby. The Centennial Project, as it has been dubbed, is slated to be available not just to Carlsbad citizens, but the world by the hundredth anniversary of New Mexico’s statehood on January 6, 2012. The scope of the project is to provide a large group of the historical society’s photographic archives to anyone interested in images of Carlsbad and the surrounding areas.

Jed Howard began collecting, cataloging and arranging the over 400,000 vintage photographs and negatives in 1989 with the New Mexico state centennial in mind.

It is his hope to provide the world, via the website: www.nearlovingsbend.com, accessibility to the ever-growing collection of the historical society. Loving’s Bend was the first English name for the geography of the area, and since the photographs encompass a range larger than just Carlsbad, the name was adopted. The format will feature a black background allowing the black and white images a chance to standout.

Included on the website will be several searchable databases allowing the user to look up the subjects and topics they are interested in with just a click of the mouse.

A list, currently ending in 1999, of the 30,000 to 40,000 Carlsbad High School students

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Focus on Carlsbad | WINTER 2011

in that time frame will also be available.

A recent gift from the Carlsbad High School Athletic Department of over a 1,000 photographs of sporting events and athletes over the years will also be involved in the Centennial Project.

Main Photo: The serene setting of the Eddy House is a quiet respite from the hustle and bustle of modern life not too far away.

When asked what got Mr. Howard interested in history, particularly photographic history, he responded, “I remember being fascinated by the photographs on display in 1962 at Carlsbad’s Diamond Jubilee. Since no one could tell me about the photographs, I began reading the old newspapers.”

Historical Society)

Sixteen hand-written journals later, Jed has accumulated a wealth of knowledge from the early newspapers which are still available in bound volumes at the Family History Center. As a result of these journals, he has compiled a chronology of the history of the area, which he describes as “the meat of the website,” which will be another searchable database. He has documented 400+ pages of deaths, marriages, and national events His main drive of the chronology was the fact he thought no one would be able to decipher his handwriting since he has a tendency to print in a very small hand and is curious to see if it will delight people as much as it does himself.

It’s a “let’s be honest, Carlsbad—warts and all” chronology and not a Chamber of Commerce brochure, Howard noted.

Jed Howard was born in 1934; his family has been in the area since 1916. He has fond memories of living near the beach area where he spent summers swimming.

Since the Howard family ranch was in

Inset Photo: Colonel Etienne de Pelissier Bujac stands in front of the Eddy House in its original location in La Huerta in 1907. (Photo courtesy of the Southeastern New Mexico Right Page Photo: Carlsbad historian Jed Howard has found great purpose in preparing the Centennial Project website.

the mountains, he had ready access to McKittrick Canyon during his youth.

Howard’s father worked many years for the Carlsbad Irrigation District which was housed in the First National Bank building at the corner of Fox and Canal streets.

A former educator for the Carlsbad Municipal School system who has taught many of the Focus readers, Mr. Howard feels lucky to have fine teachers during his school years. “A number of them meant a great deal to me.”

As the popularity of digital photography grew, the demise of the locally owned photography shop began. Robert Nymeyer, teacher, engineer at the Carlsbad Army Air Base during World War II, author, and apprentice to the world renowned Ray V. Davis, bought the Davis Studio housed on Canyon Street in 1951. The shop had twenty to thirty foot shelving units lining the interior walls; the top shelves housed the negative collection which Jed Howard volunteered to catalog. During this

time period, he was also asked by the museum to catalog their photographic collection of 200+ prints.

The Nymeyer Studio negatives and photos were donated to the Southeastern New Mexico Historical Society once the shop closed—greatly adding to the growing accumulation. Crouch Studio followed suit in a few more years with the addition of many file boxes; then came the Current Argus negatives and, of course, the highly valued local family collections.

Jed credits Paul Derby as the computer genius of the project since Howard has tried to “avoid computers like the plague.” Paul has taken on the technically related tasks and worked on the project for the past three years. During that time, he has scanned over 15,000 photographs, designed the site and produced back-up programs in support of the project. Although the number of photographs is only a drop in the proverbial bucket, the pair feels it is enough to complete their goal.

One of the greatest aspects of the website is it allows the general public to search, choose and print out the image of their choice.

As with any collection, some of the images will be of copyrighted material which can only be viewed with a white line across the photo, but not printed. Howard said he appreciates the assistance many in the community have provided, and he hopes the project will leave a lasting legacy.

The Centennial Project has been a massive undertaking, but was, as Jed Howard describes it, “a labor of love.” Howard laughed when asked when the Centennial Project will be over and said it will certainly continue as long as he’s around.

The Southeastern New Mexico Historical Society archives will be well provided for even in the distant future. Howard has deeded the archive building and his own home to the society for future use while monetarily providing for its maintenance.

About the author:

Donna Birchell is a native of Carlsbad, a free-lance writer, a blogger, and the author of two books, Carlsbad and Carlsbad Caverns and Eddy County, which highlight the fascinating history of the area. She currently working on several projects and is always in search for a good ghost story.

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29

on the

1990s

WIPP Historic Celebration Took a Lot of Legwork Date:

{1999}

Carlsbad.

March 26, 1999 WIPP Opens

As many as 400 local residents gathered in the predawn chill on March 26, 1999, to celebrate as the first shipment of radioactive waste rolled through the gates of the nation’s only deep geologic nuclear waste repository.

Hundreds more lined the streets of Carlsbad to honor the fact that more than two decades of planning and negotiation had resulted in the opening of the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant near Carlsbad.

Now, nearly 13 years later, WIPP has safely received and disposed of more than 10,000 shipments of defense-generated transuranic waste (TRU). The site is considered an international success in terms of safety and the very fact that it has been, and remains, operational–a major accomplishment when compared, for example, to Nevada’s now defunct Yucca Mountain.

The scientific and political efforts behind getting WIPP open are used as a resource by many. WIPP’s success story isn’t just used as a model for getting similar facilities open–it’s used as a model for getting an engaged and educated community buy-in. The memories of a few key players in WIPP’s opening follow.

“I worked continuously on WIPP from 1975 until it opened,” Weart said. “We handled the Environmental Impact Statement for the conceptual design of the facility and many of the initial experiments, which later led to large underground experimentation.”

Weart recalled that the first exploratory holes drilled in the salt beds east of Carlsbad were in an area that turned out to have unacceptable geologic conditions.

Researchers started over at what would become the current WIPP location.

Weart said he was present for WIPP’s 1999 opening.

“Of course, I wouldn’t have missed it,” he said.

“I was out in the parking lot inside the fence. We could watch the truck turn into the facility.”

There’s a reason Wendell Weart is sometimes called “The Father of WIPP” or “Mr. WIPP.”

The early-morning group inside the facility was a mixture of dignitaries and WIPP employees, Weart said.

The long-time Sandia National Laboratories scientist and WIPP’s principal science advisor was part of the initial site study for the project in 1975. Oak Ridge National Laboratory and the U.S. Geologic Survey had been looking at an area near Lyons, Kansas, for an underground waste repository.

When that didn’t work, the Atomic Energy Commission turned to Sandia—and

“As they (the WIPP truck) came through the gate and turned to drive down toward the waste handling building, there were loud cheers,” he recalled.

“It was a really

Wendell Weart

30

Focus on Carlsbad | WINTER 2011

Main Photo: WIPP employees, their friends and families all drove 26 miles to the waste repository to celebrate on March 26, 1999.

Inset Photo: Mayor Gary Perkowski, Representative John Heaton and DOE Official Keith Klein celebrate WIPP’s opening.

(Photos courtesy of the Department of Energy and URS Washington TRU Solutions.)

exciting time.”

Weart, who was also part of Project Gnome in the 1960s, retired the year after WIPP’s opening.

“I was determined to hang in there,” he said about WIPP. “I was there from the inception to its initiation as an operating facility, and that was very satisfying.”

Joe Gant

In 1971, Carlsbad was facing a major economic downturn. About a 1,000 people lost their jobs when U.S. Borax closed its doors, and city leaders were looking for a replacement.

Joe Gant III was visiting his dad in Albuquerque when the state senator asked his son to get a newspaper. Gant Jr. found himself reading an article about the government struggling with a Lyons, Kansas, project. He contacted a friend to suggest that the Atomic Energy Commission take a look at the salt beds east of Carlsbad.

Gant III, an attorney, would later help keep the project in Carlsbad by working as a lobbyist for the Carlsbad Department of Development.

“I remember when they (northern state legislators) introduced a bill to make it illegal to bring waste from out of state,” he said, referring to a bill introduced in 1975.

“We managed to kill that bill.”

It would be the last time any negative WIPP legislation would be introduced at any level, and support would continue to grow.

Gant watched WIPP’s opening with family members from the site.

“For 28 years, we had been trying to get it open,” he said. “It was a good, long, hard battle. We kept after it and met all the challenges. It was a relief to see some waste arrive.”

John Heaton

Former Representative John Heaton was also a VIP guest at the WIPP site the day the waste arrived.

“It was fun seeing Joe Skeen in the truck honking the horn,” he said. “There was just an atmosphere of tremendous excitement among everyone who was there. It was cold, and it was late, but people were very excited about the fact that that first truck was coming through the gate.”

U.S. Congressman Skeen was one of WIPP’s biggest advocates throughout his political career.

Heaton said he knew the WIPP project was going to open when all of the related science projects began wrapping up and yielding favorable results.

“It was the realization that the science was coming to a conclusion,” he said. “Until they came to some conclusion, I don’t think I had

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That was one of the most significant steps.”

On the political side, the Department of Energy’s decision to begin shipping nonhazardous waste to the site was essential, Heaton said. The state has the ability to regulate hazardous waste. Some, but not all, of the TRU waste disposed at WIPP has hazardous waste components as well.

“The decision to find TRU waste that had no mixed waste constituent and just bring it to WIPP under the EPA—that said we could do it,” Heaton said. “And that forced the state to move forward. It was a very strategic move.”

Heaton remains an advocate of both WIPP and of seeing the area expand its portfolio of other nuclear-related projects. In October, he visited the East Coast, where he talked to officials who are concerned about the millions of dollars being spent there each year because there is no national solution for disposing of waste currently sitting at power plants there.

“There are decommissioned, nonfunctioning power plants each costing $8 million a year,” Heaton said.

Heaton, and many other local residents, believes the salt beds east of Carlsbad offer national solutions to nuclear waste issues beyond WIPP. “We need to focus on defense-generated high level waste,” he said. “We need to move forward with salt testing and get interim storage in place.”

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WINTER 2011 | A Community Magazine

31

on the

2000s Date:

A Decade Overseas {2001}

september 11, 2001 Changes many lives

For months, a Carlsbad mother wakes up every night at about 3 a.m. from the

same dream. In the dream, a familiar vehicle is parked in the driveway–her son has come home safely from his deployment to Iraq.

September 11, 2001, changed the lives of everyone. Some Carlsbad residents, among them Jason Cunningham and James Pirtle, would pay the ultimate price during a decade often defined by military action abroad.

Many more Carlsbad and Loving residents and thousands of other Americans would spend a significant part of the decade that followed the tragedy of September 11 in Afghanistan or Iraq.

For millions more, their hearts, at least, were occupied overseas with their loved ones.

The Onsurez Brothers

Photo: Brothers, from left, Denny, Dominick and Demetrius Onsurez all served overseas during the past decade.

Photo: Carlsbad businesswoman Valerie Murrill poses with her son, Jayson Geisler, who was deployed to Iraq last year.

The village of Loving has had its share of war heroes in the past. Foremost among them is Alejandro R. Ruiz, who received the Congressional Medal of Honor for his heroic actions during World War II’s Battle of Okinawa.

“We were in charge of hunting down mortar teams,” he said. “They’d bomb the palaces from across the river. They’d shoot and scoot, and we’d have to chase them.”

Demetrius said he missed better showers and food the most.

Three brothers from Loving, Denny, Dominick and Demetrius Onsurez, followed in that tradition this past decade by all serving in military conflicts overseas.

The oldest, Denny, 28, enlisted in the Army right after finishing high school some time before September 11, 2011. Denny didn’t think he was going to wind up serving overseas. In fact, when a friend asked him if he was scared about joining the Army, he laughed and noted that there was no danger of any conflict.

“When 9-11 happened, I was still in training in Huntsville, Alabama, helping set up for an Oktoberfest celebration,” he recalled. “All of a sudden, the drill sergeant stopped us and had us all go inside to tell us what happened.”

Danny was stationed at Fort Hood in Killeen, Texas, before he deployed to Iraq near the start of the Shock & Awe campaign there in 2003. He spent 11 months there working on missile systems and maintenance.

“They put us basically right behind the tanks,” he said. “We went all the way up a little past Tikrit to an abandoned air base up there.”

Danny said his job involved working with Iraqi civilians.

“We’d set up a base, and they would hire them (Iraqis), and we’d have to escort them and watch them,” he said.

His brother, Dominick, 26, showed up in the country about six months later. Dominick graduated from Carlsbad High School, unlike his older and younger brothers, who graduated from Loving High School.

Also unlike Danny, Dominick fully intended to be deployed overseas. In fact, he pre-enlisted in the Army in 2002 and joined as soon as he finished high school.

Dominick was sent to Iraq during December of 2003. He was involved in combat.

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Focus on Carlsbad | WINTER 2011

Though they were stationed fairly close to each other, the two brothers never actually saw each other in Iraq. The one time Danny went down to visit, his younger brother was off on guard duty.

When the two men returned to Ft. Hood, they had time to catch up.

Danny returned to civilian life by 2005 and works for Forrest Tire. Dominick went over to Iraq a second time in 2005 and now works in security at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant.

Several years passed and another brother, Demetrius, 25, joined the National Guard. By that point, their mother wasn’t expecting any more deployments.

“I got the other one,” Demetrius said. “I went over to Afghanistan.”

Demetrius was a member of the 920th U.S. National Guard Engineering Company, a New Mexico group deployed to Afghanistan in 2009 that returned in 2010. Like Denny, he didn’t expect to go overseas.

“We built roads and leveled ground,” he said.

“Our job was to make the central operating base in the eastern province there bigger.”

His brothers didn’t give him much advice before he left because they said every situation is unique.

Demetrius now works as a mechanic in the potash industry.

The brothers said they’d watch DVD’s and play lots of Spades when they had free time.

“Where I was, you basically had a bunch of cots,” he said. “It’s not the high life. You pretty much live in a tent or sometimes they would put us all in a Conex.”

“I was glad when it was over,” Denny admitted.

“It’s just like a whole year of your life that’s gone.

You are doing what someone else wants you to do every day.”

Dominick said he avoided thinking about home because it didn’t help.

“There are people over there who that’s all they kept thinking about, and they made the situation worse than it actually was,” he noted.

A Mother’s Fears Valerie Murrill’s world stopped turning in 2010.

Her son, Jayson Geisler, a Carlsbad High School graduate, had served a peaceful tour of duty with the Airborne Army. Geisler went on to become a sheriff’s deputy and then enlisted in Idaho’s National Guard. By the end of the decade, Murrill thought his chance of being sent overseas had passed.

“About August of last year, I got the phone call,” Murrill said. Jayson’s company with Idaho’s National Guard was being sent to Iraq.

Murrill didn’t know how to react, but her daughter-in-law, Emily, helped.

“It’s a lot like going out in the middle of nowhere around here,” shrugged Denny.

“She is ex-military, and she understood everything about what was going to happen,” Murrill said. “I felt pretty helpless. I asked her, ‘Aren’t you afraid?’ and she said ‘of what?’”

“It’s hot,” observed Dominick. “The palaces over there are nice, but we didn’t stay in no palaces. We stayed in tents.”

Murrill said Emily explained to her that her son considered deployment to be the opportunity of a lifetime.

Soldiers are limited in the amount of time they can talk to family over the Internet. Denny said he worked with a group of civilians who had access to their own satellite phone who let the soldiers use it.

Jayson’s division was deployed from Idaho in September 2010. Murrill attended the event, as did Emily and the couple’s two children.

“You spent three or four hours watching these

guys get on the plane and saying farewell to their kids,” Murrill said. “It’s gut wrenching to watch, but it’s also uplifting in a way to see all these kids with flags painted on them.”

Six weeks later, Murrill received another phone call. Her son was in Bioloxi, Mississippi, for four days awaiting final deployment overseas. She flew over to see him again, but many of the soldiers’ families were not able to make the last-minute trip.

And then her son was gone.

“First of all, thank God for the Internet,” Murrill said. “His Facebook would load faster than his Yahoo account, so I’d send him a Facebook e-mail and sleep with the phone. I’d roll over in the morning to see if I had a Facebook message.”

She’d receive a message once every ten days or so, which she always appreciated.

“Did you know our soldiers serving overseas are charged 90 dollars a month for Internet?” Murrill said. “A lot of these soldiers don’t have families who can support that.”

By this fall, Murrill knew the time for her son to return home was approaching, but she also knew that there’s a reintegration period. In September 2011, Murrill glanced at her cell phone to notice that her son had tried to call.

“I started calling it back, and I couldn’t get through. I called his wife, and by that time I was crying,” she said. “I said, ‘I saw his number, but I couldn’t get hold of him.’”

“She told me to calm down,” Murrill said. “She said he’s back in the United States, and now I really was crying because I hadn’t expected to hear from him for another few weeks.”

Murrill said her son’s homecoming went well. For starts, she managed to behave herself.

“I thought I was going to have a Will Ferrell ‘Elf’ moment where I ran onto the tarmac and acted like an idiot, but I saw Jayson give his wife a big kiss, and I saw the look in her eyes, and then I

said, ‘Okay, I’m good,’” she said.

As a result of her son’s deployment, Murrill has become involved in an adopt-a-soldier campaign.

“I’ve adopted five soldiers, and they are all back now,” she said. “It’s such a simple thing to do.

Basically, they want things like Crystal Lite, chocolate and the local newspaper.”

She said Jayson served in logistics and received special honors for his accomplishments in that field before being transferred into artillery. “I think the Army is the best training in the United States,” she said. “The respect and dignity that every one of these people display is just amazing. These kids are all American to the core.”

“I’m so glad he got this opportunity, but I’m so glad he came home safe,” she concluded. “All my years, I operated oblivious to the sacrifices that people made. I’m still going to adopt soldiers. I don’t think I’ll ever stop.”

Murrill said when talking with her son online she’d focus on everyday conversation. She thought it was neat that the soldiers in Iraq ran a 5K race once that was coordinated to run at the same time as one in Idaho.

“Just imagine in the old days when you’d send a letter and not hear back for three months or more,” she noted. “So the Internet was a blessing.”

It wasn’t enough for her.

At NMSU Carlsbad we offer a variety of career paths, including welding, nursing, teaching and other highdemand fields. We take pride in keeping our tuition affordable without sacrificing quality.

“So I’m basically glued to Fox News, CNN, anything I could get on the Internet,” she said, laughing. “I’d get on Google Earth and watch there. I probably became what you would call a mom stalker.”

Murrill said she also continued to find inspiration in her daughter-in-law, Emily.

“She’s a real hero, too,” she said. “While Jayson was gone, Emily worked full time, got the kids ready for school every day, ran five or six marathons and planted about 65 trees–all without a word of complaint.”

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Murrill said many military spouses don’t always receive the support they deserve.

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“It’s little things, like opening a car door in Idaho when there’s a three-foot snow drift and your husband isn’t there to help,” she said.

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Despite the support, Murrill said her own fears took an emotional toll.

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“There would be some nights where I’d wake up at 3 a.m. because I kept having the same dream where he got back and was in my driveway,” she said.

She took up jogging as a way to handle her anxiety.

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Some photos courtesy of the Carlsbad Museum & Art Center.

Progress. Growth. Carlsbad.

PROUD TO BE - THE CITY OF CARLSBAD, NEW MEXICO

on the future

W e l come to

Carlsbad

Ne w M exico Population 50,000

Date:

{2041}

Appreciating our past and preparing for our future

Carlsbad, first christened as Eddy in 1888, has certainly seen its share of growth over the years.

From the early days of agriculture through the growth of potash and the oil industry, the development of tourism at Carlsbad Caverns National Park and the successful creation of the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant, the town has expanded from about 900 people at the turn of the century to its present population of about 26,500.

For the past twenty to thirty years, however, Carlsbad’s population has stayed about the same level.

What will happen over the next twenty to thirty years?

City administrator Harry Burgess said he believes Carlsbad is poised for population growth. Potash and oil and gas have been the healthiest they’ve been in years and more natural gas expansion is expected along the southern portion of the county.

The city’s lodger’s tax receipts have been extremely healthy for the past three years.

The Waste Isolation Pilot Plant has also generally been healthy, though it has seen signs of federal budget struggles over the past few months.

In preparation, the city has taken proactive steps to ensure that the infrastructure is in place for Carlsbad to grow when it is ready to do so.

“In 2008, we went to the public and asked them to support updates and

improvements to infrastructure,” Burgess said. “Many of those elements are intended to support anticipated growth.”

Most of Carlsbad’s major road reconstruction is expected to be concluded

by January 2012. Additionally, a $30-million Double Eagle waterline project will double the city’s water supply, and a major renovation of the city’s waste treatment facility will also make growth possible.

“The ability to provide additional water to residents and businesses while also addressing wastewater concerns puts us in a strong position when compared to other municipalities in the Southwest,” Burgess said.

The other major requirement for growth is adequate housing. Carlsbad hit a point a few years back where it was attempting to grow, but it just didn’t have enough available resources at the time. That’s changing.

“A 2009 study concluded that we need housing at all levels,” Burgess said.

“We’ve been able to use that study to attract developers.” Several housing subdivisions and apartments in north Carlsbad are now being constructed by Carlsbad developers and others, Burgess said, including the expansive Copperstone Apartments. There are also a number of

housing units being built in south and southeast Carlsbad.

“We’re looking at a total of 400 new apartments and over 300 new single family residences over the next couple years,” Burgess said. “The ball is starting to roll. We’re seeing businesses such as Lowe’s move into the area and growth in other sectors as well.”

Burgess said the city is preparing itself for the possibility/likelihood of growth to meet the goals of the mayor’s long-range planning committee, which established a Carlsbad population goal of 50,000 residents by the year 2040.

Why grow?

“Growth does a number of different things,” Burgess said. “That’s (50,000) sort of the magic number. Once you hit that number, you start attracting other businesses to the area.”

Many chain restaurants, for example, will only look at towns with populations of 50,000 or more. And if a town gets big enough, it will have a diverse enough economy to absorb a hit to one aspect of its economy.

“We’ve got natural resource extraction, tourism and government services,” Burgess said. “We’re seeing both housing and retail grow right now, and they feed on one another.”

Will Carlsbad’s growth continue in the direction of 50,000 over the next few decades? There’s no guarantee, but Burgess said the city is doing its part to make sure the infrastructure is available when needed.

WINTER 2011 | A Community Magazine

35

on the chamber

tourism corner

Christmas on the Pecos gears up for its 20th Anniversary Season This magical vista is created by over 100 homeowners who spend hours decorating with care. Each house is unique – from the Christmas in the Desert southwest theme at one home to Santa’s Play Land at another. Carlsbad residents show their creativity as much as their community pride.

Each year the Pecos riverfront shimmers with color.

Illuminated backyards, boat docks, islands, wisemen and angels glow on sloping lawns. Giant margarita glasses and bright stars reflect on the water.

The 40-minute boat tours sail 12-15 times per night between 5:30 pm and 9:30 pm from Thanksgiving weekend to New Year’s Eve. The boats depart from the Pecos River Village located at 711 Muscatel. This turn-of-the-century park is transformed into a wonderland of sparkling lights and delights. Wander through a gallery of gifts created by local artists and enjoy holiday refreshments at the Village before and after your tour.

Tours sell out quickly, especially on Thanksgiving weekend, Fridays and Saturdays in December, and Christmas Day. Tours are not offered on Christmas Eve. Tickets may be purchased from 8 am to 5 pm Monday through Friday at the Carlsbad Chamber of Commerce, at the Christmas on the Pecos ticket office on days of departure, or on-line at www.christmasonthepecos.com.

Space is limited and advance purchases are strongly suggested. Be sure to wear warm clothing; layers are

best as it is cooler on the river. Blankets are provided

by URSWashington TRU Solutions and are available prior to boarding.

Ticket prices for the 2011 season are: Adults $17.50 per person on Friday and Saturday, $12.50 per person Sunday through Thursday.

Children ages 2 – 12 are $12.50 per person on Friday and Saturday, $7.50 per person Sunday through Thursday.

Children under two are free if they do not occupy a seat.

A lap pass must be obtained from the ticket office prior to boarding.

Christmas on the Pecos has been awarded on of the top 100 “must see” events in North America by the American Bus Association for the last 14 years.

For more information on the most spectacular show of Christmas lights in New Mexico, contact the Carlsbad Chamber of Commerce at 575-887-6516.

Retire in Carlsbad

You’re invited

Carlsbad, New Mexico:

Where friendly people and the perfect lifestyle are waiting for you!

May 4-12, 2012 is “Centennial Celebration Week”.

Make plans to visit Carlsbad and enjoy: • 26th Annual Mescal Roast • Centennial Cattle Drive • Golf • Pecos River Activities • Carlsbad Caverns National Park • Historic Downtown District • Living Desert Zoo & Gardens State Park ...and more special events planned just for you!

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36

Focus on Carlsbad | WINTER 2011

Letter from the chairman

Fall Greetings! I would like to start by thanking Carlsbad residents and merchants for another successful Business Fair. It is always a great event and well attended.

Christmas on the Pecos kicks off its 20th season on Friday, November 25th. Tickets are on sale at the Chamber Office or the Christmas on the Pecos website (christmasonthepecos.com) and it looks like it will be another amazing year!

The First “Winter Wine Festival” will be held December 2nd and 3rd in conjunction with Christmas on the Pecos. This will be a spectacular event and one you will not want to miss. Tickets will be on sale at the Chamber Office mid-November.

I wish you all a wonderful Holiday Season and Great New Year. I am enjoying serving our wonderful community and I continue to encourage you to contact me with any suggestions, questions or comments.

Susan Crockett

Robert Defer, Chief Executive Officer

Donna Cass, Senior Administrative Assistant

Brenda Whiteaker, Director of Operations

Brandy Aguilar, Administrative Assistant

Lisa Boeke, Director of Marketing & Tourism

Randy Baker, Facilities Maintenance Albert Perez, Facilities Maintenance Jesus Torres, Facilities Maintenance

Janell Whitlock, Director of Retirement retirement@carlsbadchamber.com

Big John’s Automotive Machine Shop Copperstone Apartments

Roja Real Estate

Your Chamber Staff

tourism@carlsbadchamber.com

Barbara Flores Farmers Insurance

Lincoln National Forest Sitting Bull Falls

“Uniting Business…..Advancing Carlsbad”

operations@carlsbadchamber.com

New Members

Herrmann Waters Construction, LLC

Sincerely,

director@carlsbadchamber.com

Welcome!

carlsbadnm@carlsbadchamber.com

temp@carlsbadchamber.com

The Norm Group TNT Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Wade Construction, LLC ...............................................................

Contact the Chamber at (575) 887-6516 www.carlsbadchamber.com

Grand Openings ribbon cuttings ground breakings

Carlsbad Chevrolet celebrated their grand opening in early September with family, friends, employees, and officials from the City of Carlsbad. They’re located at 2155 S. Canal in Carlsbad.

Linnie Currier cuts the ribbon at the new location of Carlsbad Community Foundation.

They’re new home is at 114 S. Canyon.

Jackie Stephens owner of The Enchanted Herb Panty located at 97 W. Ogden Rd. in Loving, NM celebrated a grand opening with a ribbon cutting on September 9, 2011.

Employees, Chamber of Commerce Ambassadors, City of Carlsbad officials, and owners celebrate the opening of Carlsbad newest hotel - the Fairfield Inn located at 2525 S. Canal Street.

The Girl Scout program center located at 409 S. Alameda Street recently celebrated their new ADA approved entry way.

IHOP celebrates the opening of their new restaurant in Carlsbad at 2529 S. Canal Street.

A grand opening celebration was held for Kymera Independent Physicians expanded facilities at 101 S. Canal St. They can be reached at 234-1466.

Officials from New Mexico State University, the City of Carlsbad, State of New Mexico, and friends of NMSU-C celebrate the opening of the new Allied Health & University Transfer Center located on the NMSU-C campus at 500 University Drive.

Liz Thompson and friends celebrate the new downtown storefront of Sew What Custom Embroidery.

Sew What is located at 205 W. Fox Street.

WINTER 2011 | A Community Magazine

37

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Focus on Carlsbad | WINTER 2011

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