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The Early Mexican Immigrants The first Mexicans to become the permanent residents of the United States were the inhabitants of the Mexican territories which were ceded to the United States as a result of the Mexican War of 1848. The treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo politically divided the United States from Mexico at the Rio Grande River. The majority of Mexicans did not want to live with the “gringos" and they had the opportunity to go home. However, there was still migration from both sides, those who wanted to return to Mexico and the others looking for a better life in the United States. During this time the Mexican immigrants were often hired as cowboys and railroad workers. The railroad played a significant role in the Mexican experience and the development of Mexico. The railroads opened up the territory and made it easier to travel. Therefore, the train is often mentioned in corridos of this time period. |
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Following are two corridos that express the life experiences of the early Mexican immigrant. The first corrido shown is called "La Maquinita" or "El emigrante". This corrido was written in 1953 and describes the adventures of the bracero. This corrido speaks of one common trail used by the braceros traveling to the United States. The character in this corrido is traveling to work on the railroad tracks. |
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De “La maquinita” o de "El emigrante” ¡Corre,
corre, maquinita corre por esa ladera! ¡Adiós,
parientes y hermanos! ¡Adiós todos mis amigos! Salí de
San Luis Potosí con rumbo de Aguascalientes, Al pasar por Zacatecas vi todos sus minerales, que desde el tren se devisan chorreaderos de metales. Al pasar por El
Torreón me dijo una chimolera: - No señora,
no la llevo, porque tengo a quien llevar. Pasé por
Gómez Palacio, Vi el Río del Tlahualilo Desde allí
se devisa Parras de la Fuente, De Parras pasé
a Chihuahua hasta que llegué a Juárez, Trabajé
en el “Traque”, me dieron mi provisión; |
About “ the little machine”
Run, run, little machine, run through those farms!
Good-bye relatives and brothers, good-bye my friends
I left San Luis Potosí headed toward Aguacalientes Passing through Zacatecas I saw all it's mineral richness, you can see even from the train the glitter of metals everywhere. While
passing through Torreón a young “chick” told me No, my dear lady, I cannot take you, because I have someone else already.”And the poor girl cried and cried for she did not want to stay behind. We passed through Gomez Palacio, I saw the Tlahualilo River, Whose waters irrigate the cotton fields of San Pedro and El Higo. From
there you can see Parras de la Fuente, From Parras we passed through Chihuahua and than arrived at Juarez. And the next day I went to visit the local sights.
I worked on the railroad line, they gave me groceries. |
| The next corrido is called "Canción del Interior". This song tells the story of a Mexican immigrant who starts a second family in the north(U.S). This song tells of his troubles juggling two women in two countries. |
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