Hagan, NM: The Lost Legacy of Dr. J. J. dePraslin and Abenicio Salazar

By Paul R. Secord

This book has three protagonists. The first, and principal reason for writing this book is the now mostly forgotten short-lived (1924-1931) town of Hagan, New Mexico. Hagan was a prime example of a Western U.S. company town. A self-contained community providing all of the amenities its residents needed. In many respects it follows the ideas expressed by the British model company towns; i.e. an orderly, planned community overseen by the enlightened head of a single industry. However, as research into Hagan proceeded, it became clear that the two key individuals in the realization of the town deserved more than a supporting role. They are Dr. J. J. De Parslin, the entrepreneur responsible for the development of the local coal deposit. And secondly of Abenicio Salazar, a master, in many respects the master, builder of adobe construction in the Southwest. De Parslin's realized his dream in Hagan, which all too quickly evaporated when the Hagan mines ran out much more quickly than anticipated. Likewise, Salazar's construction of a unified planned community buildings, one of may well have been the largest 20th century adobe structure ever built in New Mexico, saw his work reduced to nothing more than a few walls in less than 10 years. In the end it is a sad story of the unrealized expectations of a dreamers business venture collapse, a unique builders finest work forgotten and return to the earth, as well as the dashed hopes of town residents seeking a better life. A note on photographs: Because of the large number of images found during research for this book it was decided to group all of the images into a separate section, rather than imbed them into the text. The text provides a broad overview of the topics discussed, while the photographs and their captions fill in details and provide additional context.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: B0BPGQ4PM2
• ISBN13: 9798366698290
• Release Date: December 2022
• Publisher: Independently published
• Length: 199 Pages
• Weight: 1.30 lbs.
• Dimensions: 11.0" x 0.5" x 8.5"