_Of the many romantic legends which abound throughout the West, few
match the Lost Mine story from which the peak takes its name. Is it
true? Did the mine exist? Or was it a campfire fabrication handed down
from generation to generation?_
Early Spanish explorers of the Southwest, in their fervent search for
gold and other riches, discovered and developed many mines, some
yielding silver and gold. According to legend, a rich ore body was
discovered on the highest point of Lost Mine Peak. Life-term prisoners
were forced to work the mine. These men were blindfolded on several
occasions in their march from the Presidio in San Vicente, Mexico, to
prevent them from learning its location. The ruins of this presidio may
still be observed some 20 miles southwest of this peak across the Rio
Grande in Mexico.
A story relates how the fierce Comanche Indians, who resented the
Spaniards’ invasion of their homeland and hunting grounds, attacked and
killed them to the last man. The last act, so goes the story, was to
seal the mine entrance to prevent further exploitation.
Legend states that if a person stands in the chapel door of San
Vicente’s Mission on Easter morn, he can watch the sun’s first rays
strike Lost Mine Peak at the exact mine entrance.
[Illustration: _Lost Mine Peak in the Chisos Mountains_
(Photo by 111th Photo Sec., Texas Nat’l Guard)]