In 1890, Chapala was a small fishing village. Within a few decades it became Mexico’s first and most desirable international tourist destination.
Hot off the presses, a new book by Tony Burton, the foremost expert on local history, explains how and why this remarkable transformation took place.
“If Walls Could Talk: Chapala’s historic buildings and their former occupants” tells the story of the architects, entrepreneurs, adventurers, visionaries and well-heeled property owners who made it all happen.
Organized as a guidebook for a walking tour of Chapala, each of the 42 chapters focuses on a different building, detailing fascinating tales of its builders and former occupants and the legacy they left behind in the streets and edifices that still stand in this idyllic lakeside locale.
The text is enhanced by vintage photographs and four original maps. The cover art is a detail from a photograph by Winfield Scott, colorized and published as a postcard from around 1905. The book also includes ample reference notes, bibliography, and a full index.
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