MRS. T. CASSILLAS
(ZACATECAS)
Recorded by Romelia Gomez, Field Reporter

Mrs. Cassillas, whose first name is Ilaria, has lived in  Bisbee practically all her life, having been brought over from Sonora, Mexico when she was about seven or eight months old, sometime around 1885. There were five of the Valenzuela’s (her family name—two brothers, who are still living, herself, and her mother and father.

Her father, Mr. Valenzuela, was nearly always working out of town, with cattle, or in ranches in Gleason, Tombstone, or in the Sulphur Springs Valley, while his family stayed at Bisbee. He never did actual mine or lease work, but for a while he hauled wood for the smelter, which was then in Bisbee. He was under contract to do this work and she remembers his mentioning Pete Johnson, who was well-liked among the Mexican wood-haulers, so he might have worked for Mr. Johnson. That is the extent of Ilaria’s knowledge of her father’s occupations.

Their first home in Bisbee was near the Central School, and it was this school which she attended for five years, during which time she learned a little English. Central School was then a four-room adobe building where six grades were taught.
The family next moved to a house situated below the Franklin School Building, which was then not a school but “La Opera”, or Opera-House, recreation hall of all nationalities. Here were enjoyed by Mexicans, Americans, Italians, Spaniards frequent dances and also skating parties. This two-story building consisted of two very large halls, one upstairs and the other downstairs. The dance-music was provided by local Mexican orchestras which usually consisted of a clarinet-player, a violinist, a bass-viol player and one or more guitar-players. These guitar-players really could sing, too.

Ilaria was then too small to attend these dances until later on; she and her pals would much rather play at hide-and-go-seek among the graves at the cemetery, which was then situated where the City Park now stands. Once in a while one of them would carelessly pick a flower from some grave, whereupon an old lady would tell them that the ghosts of those buried there would come and get them in the night-time. However, this never seemed to scare the children at all.

Of Zacatecas then, she remembers nothing except that there were very few houses up that way. It looked quite lonesome and was mostly all trees and rocks.

The Valenzuela’s next residence was at upper Tombstone Canyon (now called Hollywood Bowl for some reason or other). Here they built their own house of wood, of which there was plenty in the surrounding hills. Ilaria walked with other children to Central School every morning, in good and bad weather alike and enjoyed it all very much, especially when it snowed a lot. She recalls that during one heavy snowstorm an intoxicated Mexican fellow as found frozen to death, lying in the snow in Tombstone Canyon. All the children who lived here were greatly awed and excited at unusual happening and could talk of nothing else for several days.

She remembers coming down from Tombstone Canyon to funerals in town, riding in carriages drawn by two horses. On either side of the road trees and bushes swished the sides of the carriages and all one could see on the hillsides were trees and more trees all the way down to Main Street.

Ilaria has always been a Catholic. In those days, there being only one Catholic church in town, everyone went to the little Sacred Heart Church which is now for the Mexican people. It was even smaller than it is now, but nevertheless all the Catholic officials of the mining companies faithfully attended Mass on Sundays and were quite generous with their donations. Priest were changed often and were of different nationalities, sometimes an American priest was officiating, at other times the pastor was a Mexican or of some other nationality. All the children sang in the choir under the direction of Miss Massey (purely phonetic), quite a robust parson, who was inclined to faint frequently, in the middle of a hymn, always causing much consternation among the children, who never knew what caused these fainting spells.

Ilaria never worked outside of her home except for about a month when she was taking care of a small daughter of Walter Douglas, son of Dr. Douglas and superintendent of mines. These people had a beautiful home situated on the site where the C.Q. Hospital now stands. It had arches on the doorways and beautiful gardens. She knew Dr. Douglas only slightly, having seen him at his son’s house about three times. He seemed to be very kindly and nice.

When Ilaria married Teodoro Casillas in 1906 they went to live in Zacatecas Canyon, where she has been living ever since. She probably will die there too, she says. Mrs. Casillas has two married sons, but lives with neither one, preferring to be by herself in her small house in Zacatecas. Of course, her sons help her in every way they can. Mr. Casillas worked for a long time in the lease, having as his first boss Mr. William Reid, who liked Teodoro quite well. Mr. Casillas died of dusted lungs seven years ago. Mrs. Casillas is now about 55 or 56 years of age.