José Antonio Chaves (or Chávez) was gefe político or Governor of the territory of Santa Fe de Nuevo México (New Mexico) from September 1829 until 1832.[1]
José Antonio Chaves | |
|---|---|
| 7th Mexican Governor of New Mexico | |
| In office September 1829 – 1832 | |
| Preceded by | Manuel Armijo |
| Succeeded by | Santiago Abreú |
| Personal details | |
| Nationality | Mexican |
Family
editJosé Antonio Chaves was a descendant of don Pedro Durán de Chávez, a conquistador from the Extremadura province of Spain. Other prominent members of the Chávez family in New Mexico were Governors Francisco Xavier Chávez (1822–23) and his son Mariano Chaves (1833–34), and don Mariano's son Colonel José Francisco Chaves, a delegate to the United States Congress for three terms, starting in 1865, and after whom Chaves County, New Mexico is named.[2]
Political career
editChaves was New Mexican deputy to the Congress in Mexico City for the 1827-1828 term.[3] The Guerrero government appointed him governor of New Mexico in March 1829.[4] He took office as gefe político or Governor in September 1829, holding office until 1832.[1] In October 1843, as a step to reestablishing constitutional government, elections were held in New Mexico. José Antonio Chaves was chosen as one of the electors who chose a representative to Congress from New Mexico and chose the members of the first departmental assembly. Chaes was among the assembly members.[5]
Governor of New Mexico
editIn November 1829 Chaves dispatched an expedition of 60 men led by Antonio Armijo to discover a route to the Alta California. In May 1830 they had returned and Chaves was able to send the expedition's diary to Mexico City, pointing out that the route was not as long as had been thought and could be commercially valuable.[6] These discoveries, and notes from the governor's office, led to the publishing of the route on maps ultimately leading to the establishment of permanent settlements in the Las Vegas Valley, today southern Nevada.
In 1830 Chaves complained to the ayuntamiento (council) of Santa Fe that although the material had been provided, they had still not constructed a cemetery. The council retorted that in a republic they could not force anyone to do the work, and had been unable to contract any bricklayers.[7]
References
edit- Citations
- ^ a b Prince 2008, p. 114.
- ^ Julyan 1996, p. 78.
- ^ Weber 1982, pp. 30–31.
- ^ Coan 1925, p. 319.
- ^ Twitchell 1925, p. 231.
- ^ Hafen & Hafen 1993, p. 159.
- ^ Chaparro 2007, p. 167.
- Sources
- Chaparro, Martina Will De (2007). Death and Dying in New Mexico. UNM Press. ISBN 978-0-8263-4163-1. Retrieved 2012-07-17.
- Coan, Charles Florus (1925). A history of New Mexico. The American Historical Society, Inc. Retrieved 2012-07-17.
- Hafen, LeRoy R.; Hafen, Ann W. (1993-03-01). Old Spanish Trail: Santa Fé to Los Angeles : with Extracts from Contemporary Records and Including Diaries of Antonio Armijo and Orville Pratt. U of Nebraska Press. ISBN 978-0-8032-7261-3. Retrieved 2012-07-17.
- Julyan, Robert Hixson (1996). The Place Names of New Mexico. UNM Press. ISBN 978-0-8263-1689-9. Retrieved 2012-07-17.
- Prince, L. Bradford (August 2008). The Student's History of New Mexico: Facsimile of the Original 1921 Second Edition. Sunstone Press. ISBN 978-0-86534-694-9. Retrieved 2012-07-17.
- Twitchell, Ralph Emerson (1925). Old Santa Fe. Sunstone Press. ISBN 978-0-86534-574-4. Retrieved 2012-07-17.
- Weber, David J. (1982). The Mexican Frontier, 1821-1846: The American Southwest Under Mexico. UNM Press. ISBN 978-0-8263-0603-6. Retrieved 2012-07-17.