By Sophia E. Carrillo, History Major, Latinx Studies Minor, C/O 2027

Rafael Hill was born Rafael Martinez in Marin Nuevo Leon, Mexico on October 24, 1893, to Paula Caballero and Tiburcio Martinez, brother to Antonio, Margareto, Jesus, Teodora and Mattina. He had grown up with both his parents for only a short period of time, with his mother, Paula, dying when he was 5 years old. He left home at 16 years old, crossing the border on July 28, 1910, through Eagle Pass, Texas. His father had crossed to the United States on September 11, 1916, in Eagle Pass as well, only 6 years after his son. Hill’s father, Tiburcio, had died when Rafael was 31 years old. 

The building of the railroad, however, enabled many who were seeking their familiar type of labor to travel to the United States, where that labor was in high demand.

This was a common experience for migrant Mexican workers who crossed through Eagle Pass, finding employment in other parts of the country. This area was very well known for the heavy presence of Mexicans; however, they were treated poorly both socially and economically and many were unable to overcome their circumstances and find work elsewhere. This period, also known as the Porfiriato period, was one that changed the landscape of the Mexican economy completely. Porfirio Diaz during his presidency (1876-1910), was focused on lifting Mexico up as the next globalized country. Through the campaign of “Order and Progress,” Diaz was able to change the economy to being wage based, privatize land, and expand the railroad system in Mexico. This shift was beneficial to the upper class, since the land privatization allowed for financial benefits to be direct to them. The land privatization was detrimental to the working class of Mexico, while it may have created new jobs, many familiar jobs were eliminated due to the change of economy.  The building of the railroad, however, enabled many who were seeking their familiar type of labor to travel to the United States, where that labor was in high demand. This change was a major contributor to both the Mexican Revolution and the major migration that inspired Hill to come to the United States in search of steadier employment.  

Photo of “Little Mexico,” the area in which most migrants settled after crossing the border.

Hill found himself on the better end of this story, after immigrating through Eagle Pass, ending up in the northernmost area of the United States. Before coming to Lane County, Oregon, Rafael Hill had taken a residency in Alaska, his first known place of residency after his immigration in 1910. There are many possibilities to what could have drawn Hill to Alaska, with the primary industries being mining and working in canneries. There was an influx of Mexican migration after the gold rush in California had led many to go north to Alaska. From there, the mining industries up north were known for employing foreign-born workers. Hill lived in Juneau, Alaska for 1 month until his arrest in King County, Washington in 1928. Hill was arrested in King County, Washington for unlawful possession of narcotics on 5/20/1928. In the prosecutor’s official statement, it was alleged that Hill supplied an undercover narcotics officer with marijuana cigarettes, while Hill testified that he was not guilty. This interaction could be one where Hill was purposely targeted by those in the King County area, being set up for the interaction, and this level of prosecution is one that could have had an influence on his desire to go South and ending up in Lane County.  

Photo from Hill’s criminal arrest record in King County, Washington. Credits to Ancestry.

The Census enumerator referred to the crew members as “belonging” to the bridge conductor of the Railroad.

Hill had lived in a house on Deal Street with 14 others; the head of the household, Chris Patterson, his wife Nathalie, their son and three daughters, and then 7 other crew members. The Census enumerator referred to the crew members as “belonging” to the bridge conductor of the Railroad. This speaks volumes to the attitude held by the public to those who did manual labor, people who usually were people of color. During Hill’s time of living in Junction City in 1930, there was a population of 922, with 4% of the population being cases like Hill and his ‘Deal Street Crew.’ In total, during the time of the 1930 Census, there were 38 Mexican Railroad laborers in Junction City, Oregon. This crew who lived in the home of the Foreman Patterson were divided even amongst themselves, with the two white crew members being the bridge conductors to whom the rest of the six crew members ‘belonged to’. Of the rest of these six crew members, Hill was considered a laborer with the five other single Mexicans, while their married Chinese crew-member was a cook. The median age of these laborers was 26, which makes Hill, 36, an outlier. The deficiency of middle-aged laborers can speak to the intense physical cost that the classification of ‘laborer,’ had in the railroad industry. Many of these laborers had immigrated to the United States in the year 1924.When comparing the median year of immigration to the median age of laborers, it can be assumed that these laborers had immigrated when they were “of age,” by today’s Western societal standards, which makes Hill’s case of immigrating as a minor seem unique. Rafael Martinez Hill was naturalized on the 15th of October 1940, living in Tacoma, Washington. He was unmarried and had no children, still working as a laborer. The death and the circumstances around Rafael Hill are unknown, and at this time, it is assumed he died of old age since there is no definite death record.  By taking Hill’s story, and the overall story of Junction City, it can be assumed that Junction City served as a stopping point and place of employment. The constant change of location could be due to the labor demand and other economic factors.  The story of Mexican migration is not one that is black and white, where many assumed that the Mexican working class worked solely in the agriculture industry when they were instead all over in many different industries. Hill’s story is one that shows the ability that Latinos, and many other immigrants, had when it came to adapting to the United States labor demand. Hill immigrated as a child, by societal standards, looking to find employment in a country not on the brink of war. This led him to traveling all along the Northwestern United States, going to Alaska, Washington, and Oregon. The impact left on Lane County would be the significant Latino population today, with it being 11.8% of the overall population, the largest percentage of minorities. Although Hill did not settle down in Junction City, he was part of the initial movement of railroad workers that were able to open this area of the country for Latinos to come here and settle themselves. 

Bibliography:

Wilson, William H. “The Alaska Railroad and Coal: Development of a Federal Policy, 1914-1939.” The Pacific Northwest Quarterly, vol. 73, no. 2, 1982, pp. 66–77. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/40490609. Accessed 20 May 2024 

“Spring 2019 Full Issue.” New Mexico Historical Review 94, 2 (2019). https://digitalrepository.unm.edu/nmhr/vol94/iss2/12 

Hernandez, K L. “Mexican Immigration to the United States.” Magazine of history. 23.4 (2009): 25–29. Web. 

RIGUZZI, PAOLO. “From Globalisation to Revolution? The Porfirian Political Economy: An Essay on Issues and Interpretations.” Journal of Latin American Studies 41.2 (2009): 347–368.

Web.  U.S. Census, 2023  Year: 1930; Census Place: Junction City, Lane, Oregon; Page: 1B; Enumeration District: 0077; FHL microfilm: 2341680 National Archives and Records Administration (Nara); Washington, D.C.; Naturalization Records of the U.s. District Court For the Western District of Washington, 1890-1957; Microfilm Roll: 151; Microfilm Serial: M1542 Washington State Archives; Olympia, WA, USA; Governors’ Office, Clemency and Pardon Case Files; Access Number: AR2-9-0-33