Legend of Ponciano Gutierrez and the Mountain Thieves

Once upon a time in the Mora Valley of northern New Mexico there lived a farmer named Ponciano Gutiérrez. On a trip through the mountains he was taken captive by Vicente Silva and his gang of bank robbers. This tale of Ponciano’s quick-witted escape has been a bedtime story for generations in the Paiz family.

New Mexico authors at the turn of the last century published many accounts of the crimes ...