Exhibit

Survey Report.jpg

Survey Report of Topolobampo Bay

 Fresno During the Era of Topolobampo

To contextualize the era of the Topolobampo colony it is interesting to look to our own local history. Various Fresnans during this time wrote to Owen or other colonists to seek information about Topolobampo. Once such Fresnan, Frank Goebel wrote to Owen from a Fresno boarding house called the Cowan House. Goebel writes to inform Owen he would like to join the colony and encloses $20- $10 for the land fund and $10 to buy his share of the Credit Foncier Company’s stock. The letterhead of Goebel’s letter places the Cowan house at the corner of Tulare and K street. A postcard dated 1910 showcases the Cowan House on the adjacent corner at Tulare and J. A familiar street corner gives the Topolobampo enterprise a certain sense of immediacy.

Similarly, another letter shines a light on the supposed similarities between Fresno and Topolobampo’s soil and climate. One P. Marks writes to inquire after a horticulturalist named Gould. Marks has heard that an A. Gould is on his way to Topolobampo and is curious if he is the same Gould who successfully planted a large orchard in Fresno. If it is the same man Marks believes that Gould can speak to the practicality of planting in such a peculiar climate and soil.

Survey Report of the Topolobampo Bay and Colony

Pacific Colony is a prime example of the utopian concept of withdrawal. When explicating the utopian tradition, Lyman Tower Sargent claims that “the most common form of putting a specific vision into practice has been to create a small community either to withdraw from the larger society to practice the beliefs of its members without interference or to demonstrate to the larger society that their utopia could be put into practice” (33). Albert Owen believed that Pacific Colony would do the latter. Although located in a relatively “uninhabited,” uncultivated area of Sinaloa, Owen chose the harbor at Topolobampo precisely because his dream was to turn it into an active international port. A report of the Topolobampo Harbor showcases the bay as an ideal commercial port and railroad terminus. The report, presumably intended to garner investors, presents the harbor and Pacific City with an obviously favorable slant. The report’s cover features two quotes extolling the brightness of the harbor’s future framed by two idyllic illustrations.

Survey Report (contd.)

A photo dated January 30th, 1891 showcases workers with horse teams working hard on Los Tastes Ditch. Despite the shallowness of the ditch a caption claims it “can be extended at the rate of half a mile a day when needed.” Another photo dated two months later on April 4th, 1891 shows a much deeper ditch with an inscription that describes, “nearing bottom in the 22ft cut.” We can assume that it took the full two months between photos to reach that depth, further contradicting the earlier photos claim about the amount of expansion possible in a given day.

Survey Report (contd.)

Yet another photo shows multiple rows of small bushes with the caption “The Beginning of an Orange Plantation. 16 Miles North from Topolobampo” In addition to the caption the photo has an inscription which informs us that this picture was taken at La Logia in May of 1890. This fledgling orchard is the result of four years of colonization in Topolobampo. Again, Owen and the colonists underestimated the work necessary to build a civilization from nothing. 

Credit Foncier Company permit

Destination Topolobampo

To a modern audience, much of the Topolobampo scheme conveys instability and precariousness. It is difficult to imagine the sense of trust and idealism many of these colonists must have possessed. A template of a permit to Topolobampo, issued by the Credit Foncier Company highlights the precarious nature of the enterprise.  First, a potential colonist must apply in writing for permission to relocate to Topolobampo, a requirement which would undoubtedly lend a sense of authority and exclusivity to the venture. The permit claims, “[the colonist] has received permission to go to Topolobampo, at h[ ] own expense,” already there is a contradiction in the language. Why does one need permission to pay for their own relocation? Additionally, they must “conform to the published instructions … that, in case [ ]he wishes to return to the United States or to go elsewhere, that [ ]he does so at h[ ] own expense.”  Again, one wonders what the colonist is getting permission for if they are essentially funding their own idealism. Upon traveling to Sinaloa the colonist “takes with h[ ] a tent, provisions, supplies, etc., and as per published “’Instructions,’ [ ]he is at liberty to turn any property not needed for personal use, in to the Company for Credits, or not, as [ ]he may choose, but is prohibited from selling anything which has passed through the Custom House of Mexico, to any company or person other than to The Credit Foncier Company or to one of its members.” If not already suspicious, here the modern reader’s incredulity is piqued. It becomes increasingly clear the totality of what these colonists were asked to sacrifice and towards what ends. The C.F.C. expected colonists to pay for shares, forfeit all of their belongings, and pay for their own passage to a colony where – as evidenced by the need for a tent- there were no homes awaiting them.

 

A Collection of Maps Maintained by Ira Kneeland

As much as Owen felt passionately about the creation of an alternative mode of society, his first concern was the creation of the Topolobampo-Chihuahua railroad. Although the two were intimately intertwined it is interesting to see what interest his colonists took in the railroad endeavor and how they prioritized those concerns. Found within Ira Kneeland’s copy of Integral Co-Operation were multiple maps: one outlines the path the railroad track would take from Topolobampo harbor to meet up with the much larger route through Durango and Chihuahua. This map directly reflects Owen’s own map found within Integral Co-operation. In addition to the railroad map Kneeland also kept a proposed blueprint for the resident hotel of Pacific Colony. This juxtaposition reminds modern readers that while Owen was traipsing around the globe trying to coerce investors to lend money towards the building of the railroad, colonists like Kneeland were dealing with the reality of planning very quotidian aspects of the colony’s infrastructure. One can only wonder how Kneeland prioritized these concerns and what passion he took in the railroad as an important aspect of the colony’s success.

Exhibit