The town of Santa Rita was once about 15 miles down the road from Silver City. Originally, it was nothing save a fort with a church. Once additional buildings were constructed around the complex, the community became known as Santa Rita del Cobre. In the first half of the 20th century, the population of this town surged to 6,000 people. Today it’s gone. Swallowed up by this massive copper mine in New Mexico. Where once there was a town, now there's only the gaping maw of an open-pit copper mine. Come see why the Santa Rita Mine is legendary... for the wildest reason.
The Native Americans in the area knew that there was copper here. But it wasn’t until the 18th century, that the Spanish paid attention. After discovering copper in streambeds, they enslaved the Native Americans and forced them to mine for the metal.
That was when the fort and church, the first buildings in the town that eventually became Santa Rita, were built.
By the start of the 20th century, most of the copper had been extracted using mineshafts and tunnels.
The only way to access the remaining metal was through open-pit mining.
The Chino Copper Company took on the project and, after the Santa Fe Railroad connected the mine to other parts of New Mexico, Santa Rita grew larger.
For a time, it was the biggest open-pit copper mine on the planet!
This was a company town in the truest sense of the word. By the 1950s, the Kennecott Copper Corporation was the owner of both the mine and Santa Rita itself.
Mining operations had become so large scale that the pit surrounded the town. Santa Rita had to go. Now there is only empty air where the town used to be.
In order to absorb the sheer scope of this mine, drive eastbound along NM-152.
A short ways beyond Hanover is a pull off, where you can gaze in awe (or horror) at this gigantic mining operation. The chasm stretches 1.75 miles across and extends down 1,350 feet - and it’s still growing.
Now in the shadow of the Chino Mine, Silver City, NM is the closest present-day town of any real size.
You’ll find the mine referred to as the Santa Rita Mine, the Santa Rita del Cobre Mine, and also the Chino Mine. This one hole in the ground has more monikers than a character in a Russian novel. Thankfully, the new owners (Freeport-McMoRan) that bought the mine in 2007 didn’t feel obliged to slap their name on it as well. However, they did reopen the mine in 2011. Today, holes in the fencing allow you to take unobstructed photographs of the pit. Informational plaques at the pull-off provide details about the mine.
Have you ever heard this fascinating story about New Mexico's history? The Santa Rita Mine is only the beginning! After you have stopped to view this giant mining pit, consider exploring more of the state's history by visiting some of New Mexico's mining towns.
Need more to do other than simply exploring old mines? Check out this tour of nearby White Sands National Park from our friends at Viator.
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