New Mexico - Hachita 5c - Museum Gallery

This goes with Hachita 10 and 25 cents. This was a gift from Peter Spooner, author of "Arizona Trade Tokens."
Hachita ("Little Hatchet" or Axe) Good For 25 Cents in Trade at the Post Exchange for US Troops stationed at Camp Shannon, north of Hachita New Mexico.
During the Mexican Revolution, after President Porfilio Diaz fled to France, his successor, Francisco Madero took over. Francisco Madero did not approve of the Mormon communities in Northern Mexico, and put pressure on these communities to flee the country. His Armies would raid these villages, stealing livestock and harassing the residents. On August 3, 1912, the approximately 800 residents of Colonia Diaz, a Mormon community located about 80 miles south of Hachita, fearing for their lives packed up whatever belongings they could and fled Mexico, arriving at Hachita a few days later. The U.S. military and the Mormon Church headquarters in Salt Lake City, Utah assisted in supplying tents, food and other supplies and this group established a camp just north of Hachita, naming it “Poverty Flats”. The original residents of Hachita had mixed feelings over their new neighbors and their practice of polygamy (plural wives). Most of the Mormons only stayed temporally, leaving when the U.S. government offered each refugee a free railroad ticket for travel anywhere in the country to resettle. A handful of the refugees stayed on to become permanent residents of Hachita and moved into town, abandoning the tent city known as Poverty Flats.
After the March 9, 1916 raid on Columbus, New Mexico by Mexican Revolutionist, Francisco (Pancho) Villa the U.S. Army strengthened its military presence along the Mexican border by establishing several camps or forts. One such camp built in 1917 was Camp Shannon, a U.S. Calvary post established at Hachita, just north of town. The camp consisted of 50 wood frame structures used to house over 400 enlisted men and 40 some officers. This camp helped the economy of Hachita when the troops spent money in town, and purchased food and supplies and several civilians held jobs at Camp Shannon. Camp Shannon was closed in the spring of 1922 and by the end of June, all the camp’s Buildings were vacant. Most of the troops were transferred to Camp Furlong, just west of Columbus, some 45 miles east of Hachita. Most of the equipment was shipped to Fort Bliss in El Paso.