The River Has Never Divided Us: A Border History of La Junta de los Rios

by Jefferson Morgenthaler

Winner, William P. Clements Prize, Best Non-Fiction Book on Southwestern America, 2004 Not quite the United States and not quite Mexico, La Junta de los Rios straddles the border between Texas and Chihuahua, occupying the basin formed by the conjunction of the Rio Grande and the Rio Conchos. It is one of the oldest continuously inhabited settlements in the Chihuahuan Desert, ranking in age and dignity with the Anasazi pueblos of New Mexico. In the first comprehensive history of the region, Jefferson Morgenthaler traces the history of La Junta de los Rios from the formation of the Mexico-Texas border in the mid-19th century to the 1997 ambush shooting of teenage goatherd Esquiel Hernandez by U.S. Marines performing drug interdiction in El Polvo, Texas. "Though it is scores of miles from a major highway, I found natives, soldiers, rebels, bandidos, heroes, scoundrels, drug lords, scalp hunters, medal winners, and mystics," writes Morgenthaler. "I found love, tragedy, struggle, and stories that have never been told." In telling the turbulent history of this remote valley oasis, he examines the consequences of a national border running through a community older than the invisible line that divides it.

Genres: Nonfiction

317 pages, Paperback

First published May 1, 2004

Reviews

[Pam · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another good read that added to my understanding of the Big Bend area after my recent trip there. This is a comprehensive history of the La Junta region (near Presidio), with tales of 'natives, soldiers, rebels, bandidos, heroes, scoundrels, drug lords, scalp hunters, medal winners and mystics' running all over the wider area. Very detailed.

[Tattered Cover Book Store]

This book was recomended by author William deBuys as part of the Rocky Mountain Land Library's "A Reading List For the President Elect: A Western Primer for the Next Administration."

[Ann Morgenthaler · Rating 5 out of 5]

My dad's book!