This Mountain Is Mine

Winston and Minnie Scroggins found it rough making a living in the late 1870's. Winston was a hard worker, but lived a little close to the bottle when things were going good. Work would slack off a bit and at times the family had very little to eat and a worse place to live. Winston would buckle down and always come up with a way to feed his growing family. Minnie was a very religious woman and prayed to the good Lord above for guidance. Early in the year 1875, Winston left the farm in the lower Rio Grande Valley and took his family to the Moreno Valley, high in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains of northern New Mexico Territory, looking for gold. For years Winston did any job he could find just to take care of the family. He was a blacksmith, shod horses and mules. He was a carpenter and help with building part of Elizabethtown. This was gold and copper country and Winston was going to find his. Minnie was a good strong woman making sure her four children knew and worshiped Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savor. The 1880's rolled around and the family was still struggling. Minnie talked Winston into giving up on finding gold and map out a plot of land to start a ranch and build their home. Northeast across the valley from Elizabethtown, they would make claim to the southwest side of Elizabeth Peak, all the way down to the Moreno River. This land would be theirs. Last fall the county seat was moved from Elizabethtown to Cimarron that is where the land description and deed would be filed. With help from the eldest son Carrey, they built their home beside a year round running creek, far on the east side of Moreno Valley. From here you could see west all the way across and south as far as the eye could see. At last Minnie had her home. Carrey went off to some far off war and was killed in action. This devastated the family, but life must go on.