The Story of Arturo Calderon: Migration, Labor and Divorce

Arturo’s journey while Migrating and settling is a story that contributes to the history of Mexican workers and families during the 1930s-1960s. Arturo worked within the railroad industry, living like many other Mexican men. His life changed and turned out differently than most other Mexican men during this time.

Junction City, Railway Station 1930s-40s.

Navigating a New Life: The Migrant Experience in the U.S

Arturo Calderon arrived in the United States around the 1920s. Arturo migrated in search of better economic opportunities like many Mexican migrants during this time. He was born in Durango, Mexico in May of 1903. He made his way to the U.S. through El Paso, Texas. Arturo’s first job was working within section laboring where he maintained railroad tracks. During this time Texas was a common entry point, there were very few opportunities for economic expansion due to the large population of migrant workers all seeking these same opportunities. Arturo spent two years in Texas, he had a stable income and adapted to the demands of his field. Unlike the larger population of migrant workers that migrated to the Southwest and Midwest, he moved to Oregon where there was a high demand for labor but a smaller workforce. Arturo settled in Junction, Oregon when he arrived, there was a very small population of Mexican migrants which allowed for greater economic mobility and opportunity to move up within this workforce. In Junction, he met and married Esther, a Mexican migrant woman in 1923. The young couple built a life and family together and had four children. From the 1930s through the 1940s census records show the evolution of the Calderon family, going from renting to owning a home. Despite this economic stability, the couple divorced in 1942. This was a rare occurrence for Mexican migrant families during this period During this time. 

Labor and Livelihood: A Mexican Migrant’s Role in Society and the Economy

Arturo’s journey in the broader sense is not unique, he has a very common upbringing. Being a Mexican migrant worker seeking employment and economic stability. However, the unfolding of Arturo’s life after the period of the 1930s to 1940s is a big contribution to Mexican Migrant history. Being

Junction City, 186 Ivy St.

a section laborer to a railroad foreman and later his divorce and remarriage set him apart from most Mexican migrants in this era. The U.S. in the early 20th century experienced economic migration from Mexico. This was fueled by the high demand for railroad labor and the willingness of long hours and low wages that Mexican migrants faced. This divide between migrants and U.S. citizens caused Mexican migrants to face discrimination, economic exploitation, and social exclusion. Through these hardships, many stayed very close to their family members and felt the need to form tight-knit communities that helped settling and assimilation. 

In Oregon, compared to states like California or Texas, the population of Mexican people was relatively small. Arturo’s migration experience was different in specific ways, moving to Oregon, an unusual migrant destination. However, this idea of close-knit family dynamics set Arturo apart from most after his divorce from Esther. During this time divorce especially as they had a pretty big family was very uncommon and it may have been that something was not working out within this marriage because they had gotten married and started a family within a short period. While this was an unusual choice for a marriage during this time, this could have also been seen as a “failure to uphold structures” or familiar values within the Mexican community. While I do not have full details of the specific reasons for their separation, I could guess that it was due to personal differences or pressures of assimilation because Arturo was shown to be making better money during this time.

Traditionally, marriage also organized the division of labor and power by gender and age, confirming men’s authority over women and determining if a child had any claim on the property of the parents. Marriage was the most important marker of adulthood and respectability as well as the main source of social security, medical care, and unemployment insurance. Marriage, (Coontz 2005, 22)

Historian Stephanie Coontz provides valuable insights into the key reasons for marriage and offers explanations for why some marriages did not succeed.

Arturo’s Life After Divorce: Changes and New Beginnings

After the divorce, Arturo’s life shifted in a new direction that set him apart from most Mexican Migrants. Their children remained with Esther and Arturo remained within the railroad industry as a foreman. This career advancement set him apart from the population of Mexican migrants who went to states with larger populations. During the 1940’s there are records of Arturo registered for WWII, while there is no evidence that he ever served, this could reflect some change that he was seeking in his life and solidifying his status in the U.S. His decision to remain in Oregon showed that he was settled on the West Coast.

Later in his life, he had another major shift, he remarried in 1951 to Inadell Geraldine, a white woman from Michigan. Interracial marriages were very uncommon. Although Mexican people were considered a “white” race, the social dynamics were very different as we talk about backgrounds, social hierarchies, and differences which made this a major shift in his life. Arturo and Inadell settled in Lake Oswego, Oregon, a predominantly white, middle-class suburb. This relocation, stable and higher-paying employment, and “restart” marked a new shift in Arturo’s life, highlighting his social and economic standing as a Mexican Migrant. 

This second marriage also highlights different ideas about the pressures of society and assimilation within this smaller community of Mexican people in Lane County. Arturo’s story is important to take into account within Lane County’s Mexican migrant history because it sheds light on an uncommon experience that shifted the life and structure of one man’s life and the direction it went into. It also shows this shift in society and the economy as a man who moved to a less populated area like Oregon. This allowed for economic mobility and these opportunities to be able to “restart” and create a different path within different aspects of life. 

U.S. Census Bureau. 1930 and 1940 Census Manuscript Records for Lane County, Oregon.

World War II Draft Registration Cards, National Archives and Records Administration.

Coontz, Stephanie. 2005. Marriage, a History: How Love Conquered Marriage. New York: Viking.