Biographical note: Accountant; George "Ben" Heney was City Treasurer and Tax Collector from 1888 to 1901, and Pima County Treasurer and Tax Collector from 1901 to 1909. He served as Tucson's Mayor for ten months in 1909, but was asked to resign after a quarrel with the City Council. He married Blanca Erminia Roca Montoya in 1886; she was the daughter of Tucson merchant Miguel Gonzales Roca and Josefina Samaniego de Haro. Ben became stepfather to her children, Mina and Frecia, and together they had three children: Ruth, Ben Jr., and Carlyle. In 1907, Ben and his brother, Francis, incorporated the Swisshelm Gold and Silver Mine, roughly half-way between Willcox and Douglas, Arizona, in the Swisshelm Mountains. Frecia Montoya Heney married Audrey Lippincott in 1902; he was a member of Pershing's expedition against Pancho Villa, they retired to Tucson in 1951. Ruth Heney worked for the postal service from 1912 to the 1950s. Carlyle became an engineer. Mina Montoya Heney married William Oury Smith, the grandson of Cornelius C. Smith, who commanded Fort Lowell and Lola Oury, dauther of William Sanders Oury.
From the description of Heney papers, ca. 1880-1965 (bulk 1935-1965). (Arizona Historical Society, Southern Arizona Division). WorldCat record id: 465218538
