For Whom the Bell Tolls

It sounded like a fairy tale. When the Mexican coal miners left Mexico, they left behind the comfort, safety and security of their small town. The first group of coal miners to arrive in Bridgeport were from Zaragoza, Coahuila Mexico. They brought personal belongings, family and their values. The Catholic Church was a big part of whom they were and left behind.

The Mexican community of Bridgeport missed their Catholic religion and wanted to build a church but lacked the resources. In this unknown land of North Texas, they sought the comfort and security of the “Virgencita.” A yearning for this part of Old Mexico was inside the soul of the Mexicans.

Unlike nearby Thurber, there was not a large European Catholic population to build one. They asked for donations from the Bridgeport community to build the church. The community responded and the Mexicans had their church. The miner operators contributed their share towards building the church and the Mexican cemetery. They knew that satisfied Mexicans would be more productive and less likely to return to Mexico.

When the church was demolished the bell went somewhere. What everybody knew was that the bell was inscribed with “Nuestra Senora de Guadalupe” on the inside. No one could tell me where the bell was located. The story would be incomplete without the bell. If the story was true, the bell had to be somewhere.

As I approached Saint John the Baptizer Catholic Church I noticed a bell on top of a metal frame to the left of the entrance of the church. I went inside and asked questions. A parishioner told me he had climbed to the top of the metal frame to see if the bell was inscribed. It was. On the outside of the bell is inscribed, “Our Lady of Guadalupe 1929”.

Mexican Americans have a long proud history in North Texas.

Editor’s note.

Bridgeport is located about 50 miles northwest of Fort Worth. The first coal mine in North Texas opened in Bridgeport in 1882. This created an immediate demand for experienced coal miners. Zaragoza. Coahuila has the largest coal mine in Mexico. Coal owners flocked to Mexico to recruit first coal miners then any miner. To make the move more appealing there were higher wages and the families could come with the miners. This was the first Mexican-American community of North Texas. The church would have been built in 1889.