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Photograph of Raton Pass
Photograph by Hinge of fate, CC BY-SA 3.0. Via Wikimedia Commons.

Raton Pass

A National Historic Landmark. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1966.

From the record

“Ratón Pass is a 7,834 ft (2,388 m) elevation mountain pass on the Colorado-New Mexico border in the western United States. It is located on the eastern side of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains between Trinidad, Colorado and Raton, New Mexico, approximately 180 miles (290 km) northeast of Santa Fe.”

Wikipedia article Raton Pass, CC BY-SA 4.0.

One of 30 National Register listings published here for Colfax County · listed in 1966 · category: Site · a National Historic Landmark.

Sources: the Wikipedia article · the case file at the National Archives · the National Register database, National Park Service

The listing

  • Address. U.S. 85-87, CO/NM border, Raton, 87740
  • When was it listed? October 1966
  • Category. site
  • Census division. Raton
  • National Register reference number. 66000474 - the number the National Park Service assigned this property when it was listed, and the key its nomination file is catalogued under at the National Archives.

Fires near this property

22 since 1992

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 22 fires within 5 miles of Raton Pass between 1992 and 2018, burning about 21,578 acres in total. 9 started naturally. None was recorded as arson. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a fire counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Reported cause Fires
Natural9
Missing data/not specified/undetermined9
Equipment and vehicle use1
Debris and open burning1
Misuse of fire by a minor1
Recreation and ceremony1

The most recent of them, most recent first, with the day each was reported and the service that recorded it.

DateCause SizeReported by Name on the report
5 September 2000Natural15 acresNew Mexico State Forestry DivisionCOAL
27 September 1992Recreation and ceremonyunder an acreLas Animas Countynot named
9 August 2000Natural45 acresNew Mexico State Forestry DivisionDUTCHMAN
5 August 2003Naturalunder an acreNew Mexico State Forestry DivisionPOCKET
13 August 2000Naturalunder an acreNew Mexico State Forestry DivisionOLDPASS
5 July 1993Misuse of fire by a minorunder an acreLas Animas Countynot named
5 July 1993Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreLas Animas Countynot named
28 July 2011Missing data/not specified/undetermined2.0 acresColorado State Forest Service-State HeadquartersTRINIDAD

Every fire recorded in Colfax County

Storms near this property

60 of 77 shown

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Raton, the town this property stands in, in 77 storm reports between 1993 and 2024: 59 hail, 8 flash flood, 3 thunderstorm wind, 3 tornado. The reports record 4 injuries. Each account below is quoted exactly as the forecast office filed it, from the NOAA Storm Events Database, and each date opens the federal record of that event.

WhenEvent Place namedHarm What the report says
July 2013Flash FloodRaton3 hurt, $10,000Trained Spotter relayed video of flooding beneath a prominent underpass in north Raton. A woman drove her car with 2 children into water and became submerged and had to be rescued by officials. Water was reported to be 11-12ft deep. Flooding occurred in an underpass where 2nd St. in north Raton crosses the railroad tracks. Spotter reported a total rainfall amount of 1.47 inches with 1.22 inches with the initial burst and an inch of that falling in 30 minutes. Raton Creek was reported to be 7-8ft deep.
August 2006LightningRaton1 hurtA construction working survived a lightning strike to the head with only minor injuries. Officials credit his hard hat for deflecting away the lightning strike which knocked him to the ground. The man remained conscious and was released from hospital after just a short stay of several hours.
June 2004HailRaton$300,000no account filed
October 1997Thunderstorm WindRaton$30,000Highway signs were blown over at the Raton Truck Stop. Trees and small lawn building were also damaged across town.
October 1997Thunderstorm WindRaton$10,000Snow fencing was ripped out by thunderstorm winds.
August 1993HailRaton$5,000Thunderstorms produced quarter-size hail in Raton at 1415 MST and dime-size hail in Maxwell at 1450 MST. Thunderstorms redeveloped in Colfax County later, producing a hail storm that lasted about 40 minutes in the Springer area. Baseball-size hail damaged about 55 state vehicles at the New Mexico Boys School just northwest of Springer. Eleven building sustained roofing, window or ventilation damage, including the Trades center, in which all 22 overhead skylights were broken. The storm caused many branches and limbs to break away from trees, littering the campus. School officials estimate the total damage to exceed $500,000.
June 1998Thunderstorm WindRaton$2,000no account filed
July 2024HailRaton-A severe thunderstorm dropped ping pong size hail a few miles south of Raton along Interstate 25.
May 2023HailRaton-Quarter size hail lasted a few minutes and completely covered the ground.
June 2023Flash FloodRaton-Video from Michael Snyder on Twitter of water overflowing canyons and racing across U.S. Highways 87 and 64 in multiple places. Also reports from amateur radio of 6 to 10 inches of water over U.S. Highways 87 and 64.
July 2022HailRaton-A trained spotter near Raton reported mostly pea to dime size hail with a few quarter size stones as well.
May 2021HailRaton-A trained spotter in Raton reported penny size hail from a strong thunderstorm.
April 2019HailRaton-Nickel size hail accumulated around one inch deep along Interstate 25 in Raton.
June 2019HailRaton-Hail up to the size of nickels accumulated up to one inch in Raton.
May 2018HailRaton-A series of thunderstorms that moved across the Raton area produced several inches of hail accumulation. Hail size is estimated.
June 2016HailRaton-Video along Interstate 25 through Raton Pass showed three to four inches of hail. A few hail stones appeared as large as a quarter. Travel was slowed to a halt.
July 2016HailRaton-Half dollar size hail in Raton. Quarter size hail occurred for several minutes.
July 2016HailRaton-Hail ranged from pea size to half dollar size in Raton. Most of the stones were nickel to quarter sized. Spotter reported a quick 0.71 inches of rainfall as well.
May 2015HailRaton-At least three storms moved through Raton and each produced light accumulations of pea to dime size hail. The heaviest storm produced penny size hail.
June 2014HailRaton-Raton southeast side.
June 2014HailRaton-Nickel to quarter size hail covered the ground on Interstate 25 near Raton.
September 2013HailRaton-Nickel size hail reported at the Raton Fire Department between 1250pm and 1259pm.
June 2013HailRaton-Half dollar hail near Raton.
June 2013HailRaton-Quarter hail in Raton.
July 2011Flash FloodRaton-Significant runoff transported considerable amounts of ash and debris from the Track Fire burn scar into Lake Maloya. All lakes and ponds in the Sugarite area were bankfull.
July 2011HailRaton-Hail piled up between 12 and 17 inches over Johnson Mesa due to a stationary thunderstorm that persisted for approximately one hour. Though some stones were as large as a quarter, much of the hail was smaller. Snow plows had to be called out to clear Highway 72. Some motorists were stranded for nearly 6 hours.
August 2011Flash FloodRaton-State Police in Raton reported rock and tree limb debris from the Track Fire burn scar on Interstate 25 from mile markers 455 to 459. The northbound lanes were primarily impacted. Much of the water and debris came from the mountains on the west side of the interstate. Raton Creek also overflowed its banks on the north side of Raton. The creek, which is 15 feet deep and cemented, had water spilling out up to 30 feet away from its banks. The water came up to the porches on a half dozen homes, but fortunately did not cause any house damage.
May 2005HailRaton-Windows broken at the Interstate 25 Port of Entry.
June 2004Tornado (F0)Raton-State police observed an event which was reported as a dust devil that was captured by a small thunderstorm moving off of Johnson Mesa and turned into a brief tornado. Winds from the event reportedly blew a motor home into the guard rail on Highway 87 with no injuries. This event form in an area well known for producing horizontal shear that is lifted into the vertical by passing convection.
July 1998Flash FloodRaton-A car was washed off the road southwest of Raton.
August 1997HailRaton-Small hail, some to dime size, covered Highway 87 to three inches deep.
June 1997HailRaton-The Port of Entry north of Raton reported 5 minutes of golfball hail.
October 1997Tornado (F0)Raton-A small tornado was photographed over the T-O Ranch southeast of Raton.
May 1995HailRaton-Storms over the county produced widespread hail which reached depths of two inches deep at Lake Maloya northeast of Raton.
June 1995HailRaton-Hail ranging from pea- to quarter-size accumulated first to near four inches deep then to a total of nine inches deep in Cimarron during two separate hail events.
June 1995HailRaton-State police from Raton reported vehicles running off Interstate 25 due to pea- and marble-size hail covering the roadway.
August 2011HailRaton-no account filed
August 2011HailRaton-no account filed
August 2011HailRaton-no account filed
July 2009HailRaton-no account filed
June 2008HailRaton-no account filed
June 2008HailRaton-no account filed
July 2007HailRaton-no account filed
June 2007HailRaton-no account filed
June 2007HailRaton-no account filed
August 2006HailRaton-no account filed
May 2005HailRaton-no account filed
July 2005HailRaton-no account filed
June 2005HailRaton-no account filed
July 2005HailRaton-no account filed
June 2004HailRaton-no account filed
June 2004HailRaton-no account filed
June 2004HailRaton-no account filed
August 2004Flash FloodRaton-no account filed
June 2004HailRaton-no account filed
June 2004HailRaton-no account filed
June 2004HailRaton-no account filed
June 2004HailRaton-no account filed
August 2004HailRaton-no account filed
August 2004HailRaton-no account filed

Every storm recorded in Colfax County

Map coverage status

No historic map-sheet match is published for this property yet. That does not mean no map exists. This record needs a coordinate-quality review before it can be joined to a sheet boundary. Browse the county's mapped places while that work is pending.

Listed places nearby

6 within 8 miles

Other National Register properties close enough to walk or drive between, ordered by distance from this one. Both positions come from the same geocoding pass that matched these properties to their map sheets.

Photograph PropertyDistance Listed
Raton Pass Scenic Highway6.1 miles2015
Columbian School6.3 miles1996
Colfax County Courthouse6.5 miles1987
El Raton Theater6.6 miles2007
Original Townsite Historic District6.8 miles2008
Raton Downtown Historic District (Boundary Increase)6.8 miles2015

Sources for this property

National Archives recordThe nomination case file for reference 66000474 in Record Group 79.
Wikipedia articleCommunity-written account of this property, licensed CC BY-SA.
Colfax CountyAll 30 listed properties in this county.

Provenance

  • Listing record. National Park Service National Register of Historic Places, listed-properties dataset, current to 2026-05-22.
  • Map join. Address geocoded through the United States Census geocoder, then tested against the published boundary of every sheet in the USGS Historical Topographic Map Collection.
  • How this page is made. Listing fields come from federal records; map-sheet coverage is a labelled coordinate-to-boundary calculation, not a source-field claim.
  • Wildfire. Short, Karen C. 2022. Spatial wildfire occurrence data for the United States, 1992-2020 [FPA_FOD_20221014]. 6th Edition. Fort Collins, CO: Forest Service Research Data Archive. https://doi.org/10.2737/RDS-2013-0009.6 Collected with United States Government funding and usable without additional permissions or fees.
  • Storms. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/stormevents/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105. Narratives are quoted verbatim from the National Weather Service report and are not edited or summarised.