Mexico » Occupations

Avalos...Te Recuerdo | smelter life in Ávalos, Chihuahua

In 1905, the Guggenheim family persuaded Porfirio Diaz to allow them to build the American Smelting and Refining Company (ASARCO) town of Avalos, east of Ciudad Chihuahua, Mexico, along the Mexican Central Railroad. The Guggenheim’s built Avalos on land owned by the prominent Terrazas family. La Fundación de Avalos was operational from 1908-1993 and was at one time the world’s largest lead smelter. Managers, supervisors and their families lived within the housing compound called The Colony. This blog explores the history of La Fundación de Avalos and the employees and their families who lived there.