The Land Systems of Mexico

By George McCutchen McBride

Book Overview

"The Land Systems of Mexico" is a seminal geographical and sociological study that examines the complex evolution of land tenure in Mexico. Written in the wake of the Mexican Revolution, the work provides a detailed analysis of the historical forces that shaped the nation's rural landscape, focusing on the transition from indigenous communal holdings to the dominance of large-scale haciendas. George McCutchen McBride explores the social and economic implications of these land systems, highlighting the deep-seated inequalities that fueled national unrest.

The text delves into the distinctions between different types of landholdings, including the hacienda, the rancho, and the ejido, or communal village lands. By documenting the distribution of property and the living conditions of the rural population, the work offers a profound look at the structural challenges facing Mexican society at the turn of the century. "The Land Systems of Mexico" remains an essential resource for scholars of Latin American history, geography, and agrarian reform, providing critical insights into the relationship between land ownership, social hierarchy, and political stability.

This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work was reproduced from the original artifact, and remains as true to the original work as possible. Therefore, you may see the original copyright references, library stamps (as most of these works have been housed in our most important libraries around the world), and other notations in the work.

This work is in the public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work.

As a reproduction of a historical artifact, this work may contain missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1025773659
• ISBN13: 9781025773650
• Release Date: February 2026
• Publisher: Tradd Street Press
• Length: 244 Pages
• Weight: 1.14 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 6.1" x 9.2"

Customer Reviews

This presentation is primarily an economic outlook.

However, the information is quite useful for other disciplines. The book covers everything from rainfall patterns to class differences in Mexico. But do not think that it is some dry dissertation designed for a doctorate on the agrarian problems of Mexico. From the introduction, “While the urban centers of Mexico have Pace with other modern cities in many respects, the country districts have drowsed through the centuries, undisturbed, amid the seclusion of their intermontane fields, by events of peace or war that have substantially altered conditions of rustic life in other lands.” Under the section on the "plan of a typical hacienda in the state of Colima, Mexico," there are pictures that show the striking difference between the haciendas that have changed hands from mostly European owners and the pictures of the peon’s hut in a Mexican hacienda. A little side note is that I spent some time in Vietnam and saw the difference between structures from the French planters and those of the Montagnards. The similarities are striking until you take an architecture course where they explain that you can only make so many variations with the same structural material. The book has quite a few monochrome photographs of places I have seen long before they were cleaned up and modernized, yet my traversing of the locations in the mid-’70s showed that some of the pictures could have been taken yesterday. We also have diagrams and graphs of the various locations that make up “The Land Systems of Mexico.”