Spanish American Villages of the Pecos River Valley, General View, Upper Pecos River Valley, Villanueva

Source document Quoted word for word from HABS NM,24-VILLA.V,1-. Not written, edited or summarised by this site.

U.S. 85, 22 miles SE of Las Vegas, San Miguel County. Zip Code: Pop. 180 A. History Originally known as San Jose Del Bado Joseph of the Ford), the town of San Jose was settled by the Spanish in the year of the San Miguel Del Bado Grant. (Spanish Archives of New Mexico) Prior to the arrival of the Spanish in the Pecos River Valley, the area was inhabited by genizaros (Chavez, Armstrong, Simmons, Gilbert) Genizaros were out- cast Indians who had been captured, ransomed by the Spanish and displaced from their homes.

The Spanish brought Tlascalan Indians with them, as their servants and slaves, during the Reconquest of New Mexico in (Gilbert) Considered by the Spanish to be "children of the enemy," the genizaros were left without land, cattle, or other property with which to make a living except their bows and arrows." (Kenner, p. When the genizaros became un- ruly in Santa Fe, Governor Fernando Chacon appointed Don Luis Maria Cabeza de Baca to settle them in the Pecos River Valley. (Gilbert, Glasscock) In nine years after the founding of San Jose, Pedro Rautista Pino, acting on orders of the governor, partitioned the land to the settlers of San Jose. (Spanish Archives of New Mexico) In an plat of the San Miguel /Vio A//W-/3 / HABS No.

(Page 19) Grant, by John Shaw, San Jose is represented by seven tiny squares for buildings. (State Land Management Office) After the establishment of the Santa Fe Trail San Jose became a stop along the trail. On May 19, permission was granted, by the Bishop of Durango, to erect a church at San Jose. (Chavez, Twitchell) San Jose was under the jurisdiction of Nuestra Senora de los Angeles church in Pecos until nearby San Miguel Del Bado was made a parish and provided with a priest. (Twitchell) In San Jose was chosen as a camping site by General Kearny.

"During the night of the sixteenth, while we encamped at San Jose, the picket guard placed out by Colonel Doniphan, took the son of the Mexican general, Salezar, prisioner." (Connelley) From the rooftop of one of the buildings, General Kearny proclaimed the American occupation of New Mexico. Passenger stage-coach service, between Independence and Santa Fe, was established in (Wheeler Map, Hagerman) The stage-coach route, which crossed the Pecos River ford at San Jose, had regular mail service by and daily passenger service by (Hagerman) The Wheeler Map, of about shows the stage coach line passing through San Jose, but, as in the case of Las Vegas, does not indicate where the stage station was located. The station was probably located in the southeast corner of the plaza.

(See essay by Hagerman) A survey nap of San Jose shows that the number of tiny squares representing buildings had in- creased to fourteen. It could not be determined whether or HA&S Ko.NM-13.1 , HABS Mo. (Page 20) not the squares represented private or public structures. (State Land Management Office) In a United States Post Office was established in San Jose. It has been in operation, intermittently, from its establishment to the present, (Pearce) As a result of the trade caravans and stage-coach passengers who stopped to rest, procure fresh horse-teams for their wagons, and sell wares, San Jose prospered and grew in population. In the construction of railroad lines began in New Mexico.

The railroad, which bypassed San Jose, eliminated the need for the stage-coach and took over most of the traffic of the Santa Fe Trail, A steady decline in population followed. The village abandonment was further aggravated by the federal government land surveys of the early twentieth-century which assigned the common lands, and were then fenced in; greatly reducing the public grazing lands. Stock breeders were forced to search elsewhere for adequate grazing land for their cattle and sheep or else abandon this form of livelihood. B._ Description ^A&5 Ai&.A/M- 131 , , HABS No. (Page 21) CLUUISAA*** &** * A UJ-OM tt^JA ~L*AJ< ~Hu 7*Ur%i , written by; Perry Borchers N .A/Al~ f%J HABS No. (Page 22) III.

San Miguel Del Vado 2,7 miles south of Interstate Highway 85 on State Road 3, San Miguel County, Population 90 A. "is tory San Miguel del Vado "ichael of the Ford) was established during the term of governor Fernando Chacon. Lorenzo Marquez led fifty- one settlers, of which thirteen were genizaros onto the San Miguel Del Vado land-grant settlement in (Chavez) The San Miguel eel Vado Grant furnishes the first documented proof of the Spanish settlement of San Miguel, although it is commonly believed that San Miguel was founded earlier in the by genizros. (Gilbert, Simmons, Armstrong) Bandalier visited the area in the late nineteenth century and discovered six pueblos in the vicinity.

(Earnshaw) "Two small ruins were at ;::an Miguel; one, quarter mile east of town, was situated on the slope oi a low enbankment close to the Peccs River" (Earnshaw, Fabiola Cabeza de Baca maintains that the town of San Miguel was settled by Tlascalan Indians, :he decendants of the Mexican Indian servants the Spaniards brought with them during the Reconquest in The Indians were taken to Santa Fe but when they became unruly San Miguel was chosen for the site of settlement. ""ere, Don Luis Maria (Cabeza de Baca) supervised the building of homes, cultivating of the land, construction of dams, and the erection of a church. In later years, after the death of Don Luis Maria, the genizaros emigrates to Antonchico, La Cuesta, Chaperito and other surrounding villages.

Hispano colonizers then, seeking farming lands, populated San Miguel del Vado". (Gilbert, . On March 12, Pedro Bautista Pino, justice of the peace of HAS3 Mo.NM- ISI HABS No - (Page 23} the second precinct of Santa Fe, acting on behalf of governor Chacon, visited San Miguel and divided the land Into equal portions, (Chavez) to the fifty-eight families. (The original fifty-*-wo fa miles plus six new families). The people were instructed to "...erect mounds of stone to separate land and were not allowed to sell it for at least ten years''. (Chavez). In the genizaros of the new settlement petitioned the Bishop of Durango for a chapel.

Father Bragado of Nuestra Senora de los Angeles de Pecos Mission wrote and spoke of the great need of the settlers for a mission because of the long and perilous distance to the Pecos Mission. The license was granted on February 2 2, (Chavez) Jose Cristobal Guerrero, a genizaro of Cornsnche origin, representing the settlers of San Jose and San Miguel, was in charge of the collection for the building of the chruch and the license fee. (Chavez). By San Miguel and San Jose had a population that numbered 230 families. Guerrero, once again, wrote to the Bishop of Duroneo and requested a resident priest.

;* e suggested that Fray Manuel del Vail e of Pecos be sent, and commented that the Comanches were settling in San Miguel and San Jose and getting baptized, so that these towns were expected to become the most populous in New Mexico. (Chavez, Archives of Archdiocese of Santa Fe) . San Miguel remained a mission until May 19, the year San Miguel, along with the missions of Taos, San Juan, Abicuiu and Belen, were made parishes and provided with secular priests. (Twitchell, "However, an inventory of the church at Pecos, shows San Miguel to still to be a chapel under the Pecos Mission at that time. (Chavez, 1828,No.12). In records show that a resident priest was assigned to San Miguel and Padre Fernando Ortiz served briefly". (Earnshaw, p. 5) HA&S No. (^ ) HABS No.

(Page 2k) After Mexico achieved independence from Spain, the authority and position of the church was weakened throughout the republic. As a result, the church attempted to strengthen ecclesiastical authority by extending civil and religious instruction among the clergy and the people. In a college was opened in Santa Fe for the education of young men. (Twitchell). During the * s, a seminary school was con- ducted in San Miguel by Father Leyva. (Rodriguez) The ruins"of the building where the priests lived can still be seen today.

(Irene Duran, interview) There is also the possibility of there having been a school in San Miguel earlier than ":'witchell mentions the existence of a public school in "About this time :he magnificent sum of eight-hundred dollars had been expended by the government of New Mexico in the conduct of two so~::alled public schools, one at Santa Fe, and the other at San Miguel.' (Twitchell, p. The history of the church and its activities in San Miguel after the American occupation is rather limited. The history that follows has been pieced together from the testimony of Father Philip Cramer, presently the priest at San Miguel and of F. Stanley, who has written an undocumented and not completely reliable history of San Miguel. In the Sisters of Charity opened a school in San Miguel. Sr.

Ann Marie Devine was the mother superior of the school. Sr. Lucia Gleason, Sr. Angelica Ortiz, and Sr. Mary Carmel Garcia were the teachers. (Stanley). Stanley claims that around much of the population moved to the nearby town of Ribera because of a small pox epidemic. The sisters kept their school open until The school was re-opended several years later, as a public school, by the Sisters of the Sorrowful Mother. After the Supreme Court rulling which banned religious HASS No. '3/ HABS No. (Page 25) instruction and prayer in public schools, the pastor of San Miguel built a parochial school at San Miguel near the church. (Cramer) The school was there until and then moved to Vilianueva.

Zometime in the late or "he convent burned down and was replaced by some arny barracks which were brought in. This is the present residence of the priest. (Cramer) San Miguel grew rapidly and by 182 7, one record shows the population had already reached 2 , 3 ? 3 persons. (Boyd) The prosperity and growth of San Miguel can be attributed to the Santa Fe Trail trade. In William Becknell's caravan set out from Independence, Missouri to Santa Fe; a distance of seven-hundred and thirty miles. 13e arrived in San Miguel, where his wagons forded the Pecos River, and secured an interpreter before traveling the fifty-eight miles to Santa Fe. (Vestal, p. Becknell wrote of his brief stay in San Miguel as did many other travelers who wrote of their journals along the Santa Fe Trail, during 80.

(Josiah Gregg, Susan Magoff in and George Kendall) The existence of a customs house at San Miguel is often mentioned. It is not known for certain if there was one and whether or not it was used with any regularity. In a journal written by James J. Webb, in a mention of the customs house at San Miguel is made. "When we learned the train (caravan) was passed Las Vegas, Colburn, and myself left one afternoon intending to meet it at San Miguel sometime the next day...Messrs.

Colburn and Smith took possession of the goods and wagons at San Miguel and entered them and passed through the customs house without any trouble beyond the usual small annoyances from the customs house officers, vhich were usually satisfied by small loans of money which were never paid or expected to be, and small presents of some kind to which they would take a fancy, generally amount MASS Ha. A/M~&/ HABS No. (Page 26) ing to twenty-five to one-hundred dollars according to circumstances and number of wagons entered". (Bieber, p. The existence of customs house at Ran Miguel is also maintained by Armstrong and Ross. "' 'ere, too, the traders double-teamed and double-1 oaded their wagons just short of San Miguel to minimize a per-wagon duty".

(Ross,p.36) Following the American occupation of New Mexico, in General Sterling Price decreed that a six-percent duty was to be levied on all merchandise entering the Territory . (Earnshaw) A territorial treasurer was named and customs-duty collectorships were established at T a o s , San Miguel, and Valencia. (Loyola) Boyd , however, maintains that there was no customs house at San Miguel; at least not during the Mexican period. She claims that goods were repacked at San Miguel, double- loading the wagons, in orcer to minimize the tax levied per wagonload. which was collected at Santa Fe. Traders often avoided the tax altogether by turning south at San Miguel to El Paso, and Chihuahua.

There are no documentary records of mercantile stores in San Miguel which have been mentioned in the journals and letters of people who traveled along the Santa Fe Trail. In -'at t Field wrote a newspaper article for the New Orleans Picayne in which he recollected his im- pressions of San Miguel. In the article, he mentioned that the sole American trader in San Miguel was Thomas Rowland. This was the same Thomas Rowland who "After 30 years in business in San Miguel, Thomas Towland was found murdered one wintery night in George Cooke, p. 16) William Chamberlain, traveling the Santa Fe Trail in stopped in San Miguel for four days and mentioned that "There are several stores of groceries in the place, their principal business being the sale of inferior liquor". (Bloom, pp. 3 Mr.

Ramon Griego, a resident of San Miguel states that there used to be stores and that they were HABS No. (Page 27) located on the north side of the church. (Interview). In the Texas-:; an ta Fe Expedition, led by Kendall, vas captured by the forces of General Armijo. .'he Texas expedition had attempted to cut off the Santa Fe Trail at San Miguel as a means of securing control of the trade. Kendall and his men were imprisoned in San Miguel. Shortly thereafter, General McLeod and his officers were captured and also brought to San Miguel. On October 17, ""he Texans were all assembled in the plaza of San Miguel, placed under the charge of Domasio balazar, And began the long march to Mexico City, there to be imprisoned". (Earnshaw, Throughout this period, San Miguel was plagued by Indian trouble.

'!"ne first account of Indian trouble was recorded in the record book of Galisteo for which mentions the death of two vecinos (neighbors) killed by Apaches while looking for the mine of Rio Tecclote. (Boyd) The problem was so acute that in the Ayuntair.iento of San Miguel (town council) met and discussed "the establishment of a town in a proper place to affort a defense against hostile Indians". (Twitchell, Vol.1, no. The council was fortunate in that a few years earlier they had found a group of people who were seeking a grant in the area of the Vegas Grandes on Gallinas Creek. The group claimed that their settlement would close the northern "entrance" ;:o the Pecos River Villages.

The result of this petition was the Las Vegas grant and the settlement in (Glasscock) Also, in Albert Pike, on his way through San Miguel, commented on the prayers, good wishes, and warnings to watch for Indians. (Earnshaw) Indian raids continued into the and did not cease until after the Civil War. Many accounts are written of Indians stealing and plundering including an account HA&S /Vo- >3/ UU MBS No. (Page 2Q[ ^^ by Kit Carson, Indian agent for the United States. It was due to the Indian raids that San Miguel was settled and planned around a defensible plaza. (Boyd, Chavez) In General Kearny led the American Army through Mexico.

He entered Las Vegas, gave a brief speech informing the people that New Mexico was now under the administration of the United States, and administered the oath of allegiance to the town officials. (Earnshaw) ..."the next day, (August 16, with only a short halt of the column, a similar scene was enacted at San Miguel..., the General and his staff, the alcalde (mayor) and a priest and few others ascended a flat house top overlooking the plaza, the General, through his interpreter, delivered his address with the advantage of its success at Tecolote,..." (P. St. George Cooke, p. General Kearny engaged the Twenty-second Regiment of the Mexican Army; forcing Armiio's troops back to Santa Fe. In the county seat .of San Miguel County was moved from San Miguel del Vado to Las Vegas.

(Earnshaw) San Miguel prospered until the construction of the Santa Fe Railroad in The railroad, which bypassed San Miguel, put an end to travel on the Santa Fe Trail. 3y the population of San Miguel had declined to (U.S. Census By there were only 217 people in the community. "'his same year, Governor Tingley, running for re-election, addressed the villagers from the portale (porch) at the Inn of the Governors, one of the houses on the plaza. (Earnshaw) /4A&3 No. A/M- /3/ TUBS No. (Page 29) B. Description 6^ ttU$ HAQS Uvunu $5u* M^QUMX AL \fado /&< -u<^vf u^^Cfe**^ -&JL&*u .aMU* t+z tfi fn rfu CAMMJL* ? Hit &-a^ * Ai* *+ u*H (rf A***JUjt4 UHM* S M . Wt i+*+? o^Uu tnu -fan**** H SOM AU'A*U ^MUA &Js M****A^ H* fu<n /?Wi a#i*n tLu fi%A. u>W . u*-4 tn^a.

fox -VAA+U o^^ W Mt 5A**A & " \AL fo-Lis ittcrf cUijut&f tfotc ifo pU*f*} far**- ^^t*i^ o ^t u^ ^S duMJU^d, Written: Perry Borchers UAR^ A/ AtM- 13/ HASS No. (Page 30) C. INTERVIEW Ms. Irene Duran San. Miguel, New Mexico September, Ms. Irene Duran was born in San Miguel and has lived here all her life. The first thing she told me was that there used to be a priest's seminary in San Miguel; the foundations visible on the extreme west side of the town. She was told this by an old lady when she was a little girl. The ruins of a dilapidated house, located on the northwest side of San Miguel was a private home owned by the Quintana family; already abandoned when she was a little girl.

The county courthouse and jail were in the same building; the foundation still visible directly behind the church. She was told this by her mother and by Mary Trujillo, a woman who died about ten years ago at the age of seventy-five. The "Territorial House" now owned by David Clawson, was a dance hall when her mother was married there about fifty-years ago. Around the town well was dug in San Miguel. Ms. Duran claims that a skeleton was found. The skeleton had braided hair and clothes in the Indian fashion so that it is thought that the skeleton was of an Indian. Ms. Duran said that Father Cramer, the present resident priest of San Miguel, has all the church records including a large old photograph of San Miguel. The convent, she claims, burned down in the 's. UA KS Mo .

A//W - / 3 / HABS No. (Page 31) IV. VILLANUEVA Approximately 10 miles south of Interstate Highway 85 on State Road 3, San Miguel County. Zip Code: Population: 300 A. History Villanueva (New Town) was founded in by Marianos Baros and Jose Filipe Madrid (Pearce). "The official founding of the village is given as (Phil Cooke, Originally known as La Cuesta, (the Hill) Villanueva was settled on land which formed part of the San Miguel Del Bado Grant of The church of Villanueva, dedicated to Nuestra Senora de Guadalupe, was built in (A Ortiz, J. Madrid, interview). However, the license for the construction of the church was granted on May 18, (Chavez), probably because of difficulties at that time between the Mexican government and the church. F.

Stanley suggests that there was once a wall around Villanueva; built as a defense against Indians. Although his claim is entirely without foundation, there exists the possibility that there was once a watchtower or torreon . Mr. Ortiz claims that when he was a boy, he remembered the fifteen- twenty feet high walls of the round-shaped towe r which he was told was a torreon (See Ortiz interview). A school was established in Villanueva just before the turn of the century (Ortiz, interview). The school, built of stone, taught grades one to three, later increasing its classes to include the eighth grade. In the Sisters of the Sorrowful Mother arrived in Villanueva and took over the administration of the school They taught classes until the Supreme Court ruling banned religious HA&S Nv.

A/M- ^ ' HAE8 No. (Page 32) instruction in public schools. Another school, on the east side of town, was set up and is currently in operation. The first store in Villanueva was built around by Mr. Carson; an American from Santa Fe (Ortiz interview). It was in this same year that the United States Post Office was established and the name of the town changed from La Cuesta to Villanueva. The reason for the change in the town's name is not known. In addition to the store owned by Carson, there was a store owned by the Lucero family, one owned by the Gallegos family and one, of short duration, owned by the Madrid family. The Lucero store and the church had a shingle-covered wood roof. Most houses had flat roofs made of earth.

The wood roof on the church was replaced by a metal one in the The relative isolation of Villanueva, from the mainstream of technological progress, accounts, in part, for the lack of modern development in its architecture The railroad, built in bypassed Villanueva and had the effect of augmenting the decline and isolation of the village. Metal roofs, transported to New Mexico by rail, and built over the existing flat adobe roofs, did not become common place until the s Electricity was not installed in Villanueva until (J. Madrid, interview). B. Description HA&S No. ArM- /3/ HABS No. (Page 33) <%r&JJU+4 * **( A Unvjtas&*J~ cyiu^sA^ eUwAuet o-ttouZ tfu. Al+asvi - ai the. TUA&U 6rf u d / i /iM&t.

irf -y*ui/i HU- /U"S**i4 &L+U**J( ~t* tiu i*+-d{\ / 'fit hum c+v-bi IrtnLtyoAth * ' Ml* **& $ fu&tsi -vatOu* ; &~M ftU eUu A^CO^e. ej ?&& Wj; t/S ~fU Vi UUOV<L wi^Ui&t JJibL OAT&Cds t>u*X* p**JU**zd <nd 6zt t&v A*d$z> ttnvui^a ^JFUJV. ^ /4. /IW/J ;. OsJ' r jj -> arsjrw^usi o-^^4 r^. rut* u Itl -Vtlurt *f t^ A**W M INCUTS. ?Lt 6tAr J C*sU. /&c rUii^f^ "tS f x vJlvuJi A*^ p* * A*w/ UrsuU* b-U^^^ t J(a. CVM.*JI , &~tuX. c written: Perry Borchers HABS No. KM- /3/ HABS Ho. (Page C. INTERVIEW Modesta Garcia & Juanita Madrid Villanueva, New Mexico September , Garcia and Madrid were interviewed in Garcia's hone. Both women, neither of which speak English have lived all their lives in villanueva, Garica was born in Tecolote in and came to Villanueva just shortly after her birth.

Her father, Rcque Garcia, was born in Villanueva. Madrid was born in Villanueva in Her grandfather was Jose Felipe Madrid; one of the original founders of La Cuesta or Villanueva as it is now called. Madrid never met her grandfather. Garcia remembe rs Marianos Bar o, the other original founder of La Cuesta. She said that she was about ten years old when she met him although she never actually discussed anything with hitn. At the time, Garcia said that Mr. Baro was the oldest man in the village. In Gracia recalls that the houses and the church had flat roofs made of earth. A year later, in a metal roof was put on the church A few houses at the time, however, did have roofs covered with wooden shingles.

Madrid recalls that when she was a little girl, only a few houses had metal roofs although she thinks the church had a wood shingled roof before it had a metal one. She thinks this was told to her. Madrid also claims that the church was built in and probably related this information to her daughter, Flores. Both women agree that the Sisters No- NM- (3\ (3D HABS No. (Page 35) came to Villanueva in When both women were little girls, school was taught by civilian teachers. School was of three months duration and was only from grades one to three. Garcia recalls that one of her teachers was Mr. Antonio Gallegos; a man whom she claims was very strict and feared by all the students. She said the same books were used over and over again but the children were too scared to learn anthing.

Madrid is positive that electricity was first installed in Villanueva in because she still has the first receipts. Neither woman knew when the town's name was changed from La Cuesta to Villanueva. From the Spanish Archives, I found a list of the original claimants of El Cerrito. Many of the El Cerrito settlers were supposed to be from San Miguel and other Pecos River Valley towns such as Villanueva. I asked the women if they had ever heard of any of the claimants names. Fernando Quintana - Madrid and Garcia said he came from San Miguel. Manuel Jaramillo - Never hear of him. Marcelino Montoya - Garcia said he came from "El Pino" or "Jorupa" Juan Madrid y Trujillo - Madrid's great-uncle who came from San Miguel.

Emeterio Arellanes - Garcia said he was from El Cerrito but went to Las ^egas where his son, Rogelio Arellanes, still resides. Albino Manzares - Never heard of him. Elenterio Rael - Garcia said he lived in El Cerrito, HA&S No. /3/ HABS No. (Page 36) the family is now in Colorado. Rarao Alarid - Never heard of him. Juan Vigil - Both women said he was from San Miguel. This interview was conducted in Spanish. Both women appear to be very accurate in their citing of dates and events, and are very alert. HAS5 A/o. MM- /3/ O-O HABS No. (Page 37) C. INTERVIEW Mrs . Isadora Flores September, 19 75 General Delivery Villanueva, New Mexico Isadora Flores (Born is sixty-five year old woman who has lived in Villanueva all her life.

Her father, Fulgencio Madrid, 7 4) and her grandfather, Ambrosio Madrid, were also born in Villanueva. She told me that Jose Felipe Madrid, one of the original founders of the town, was her great-grandfather but that she never met him. Her mother, Juanita Garcia de Madrid (Born 189 2) was also born in Villanueva. Flores believes that the church of Villanueva was built in The church is dedicated to Nuestra Senora de Guadalupe. When I pointed out to Flores that the Spanish Archives show May 18, as the date of the license for the construction of the church, she said that the church could have applied much later, after its con- struction, for the license.

Flores told me there were only three stores in town when she was a little girl; one owned by her father, one owned by the Gallegos1 and the other one owned by the Lucero family. She remembers that electricity first came to Villanueva sometime after The convent, residence of the Sisters of the Sorrowful Mother, was built just prior to the arrival of the nuns in The Sisters were brought to Villanueva from Wichita, btA&S No- MM- /3/ MBS No. (Page 38) Kansas, at the request of Father Moog, resident priest of San Miguel. The Sisters had taken over the educational instruction and the administration of the school. The school, which is located next to the Lucero store across the road from the church, was from the first to eighth grades* All instruction was in Spanish.

Prior to the arrival of nuns, the school was taught by non-clergy teachers. One of these teachers was Mr. Antonio Gallegos. The Gallegos' still occupy a prominent position in ^illanueva. MA&S No. A/M- (3; HAJ3S No. (Page 39) C * INTERVIEW Mr. Andres Ortiz & Mr. Jose Fidel Baca Villanueva, New Mexico September, I was referred to Messrs. Ortiz and Baca by Garcia who said that although they were younger than she, they knew a lot of" the history of Villanueva. Mr. Ortiz was the spokesman and told me that he was born in and Mr. Baca was born in Mr.

Ortiz was in school in He said the school was founded just before the turn of the century; circa The school term was of three months duration and was taught in Spanish The first store in Villanueva was around and was owned by an American from Santa Fe; a Mr. Carson. It was Mr. Carson who also established the Post Office. (The Post Office was estab- lished in At this time, there were two or three other stores in town. One of the stores, the Lucero store, had a shingled roof in the The rest of the houses had flat roofs made of earth. Mr. Ortiz claims the church was built in He said Father Benito Cuesta, a Spaniard, from the Pecos church or Santa Fe, had documents which proved this. Mr. Ortiz said that the acequia was built during his great-grandfather's time.

His grandfather was Jose Antonio Flores. One of the most interesting things Mr. Ortiz mentioned was the existence of a torreon or wat chtower. The torreon was round and had high windows. When he was a boy, he remembers HABS No. MM- 131 HABS No. (Page that the adobe walls were fifteen-twenty feet high. It was located south on Road Three just past the first cross road. The acequia can be seen at the cross road on the west side of the road as well as some ruins which are set on a hill. The torreon is supposed to be just below the ruins in the field. When the farmers saw Indians coming, they would run to the torreon and fight them off. A box, filled with pebbles, was rattled as a means of warning the villagers, Mr. Baca con- firmed this and the existence of the torreon, Mr.

Ortiz and Mr, Baca were both very friendly and willing to relate their stories. The interview was in Spanish although I believe they speak English. tfA&S A/o. AJM" CSf HABS No. (Page Ul)- V. El Cerrito 30 miles southwest of Las Vegas on the Pecos River, San Miguel County. Zip Code: Serafina, New Mexico Pop.: 22. A. History El Cerrito, (The Little Hill or Peak) is a small Spanish- American village settled in the early nineteenth-century (Circa The settlers came from the neighboring villages: the majority from San Miguel (Leonard). Prior to the arrival of the Spanish in El Cerrito, the area had been inhabited by Indians (Quintana, interview). Arrowheads and pottery sherds have been found; and there are Indian pictographs in the vicinity.

The village was founded sometime after the year of the San Miguel Del Vado Grant, and on which land El Cerrito was settled. The earliest documented record of the existence of El Cerrito is (Twitchell, No. p. One of the first settlers in El Cerrito was Fernando Quintana (Florencio Quintana, interview). Mr. Quintana, a fourth-generation resident of El Cerrito, claims that his great-grandfather, Fernando Quintana, came to El Cerrito from Spain. The San Miguel Del Vado Grant documents, found in the Spanish Archives, list the original claimants of the land of El Cerrito; among them Senor Fernando Quintana and eight others (State Records Center, Report No. File No. Fernando Quintana and his wife are buried under the floor of the church.

The church of El Cerrito, dedicated to Nuestra Senora de Sanparados, was built in Mr. Florencio Quintana's grandfather, Epitacio Qunitana, born in El Cerrito in HABS No. (Page 42) remembered when the church was first being built and when the adobes for the construction of the church were being made* The date of construction, is carved in one of the ceiling vigas or beams. The ceiling beams were visible until last year (19 74) when a modern ceiling was added. El Cerrito was settled on Tract No. One of the San Miguel Del Vado Grant land tracts. A survey map of the grant, made in shows the settlement consisting of eight squares representing structure.

According to Mr, Ouintana, there have never been any stores in El Cerrito; the village always having been a farming com- munity and therefore self-sufficient. There was once a grade school in the village but it burned sometime in the The ruins of the school building still stand in the north east part of the town near the Pecos River bank. The town plan of El Cerrito is a classic example of the pattern of settlement for Spanish-Colonial towns. (See introduct ion: Spanish-Colonial Architecture.) Presently, there are only six families residing in El Cerrito. B. Description l-U&S Ho.NM-l^f HABS No. (Page k3) Of Hit irtAA. $pA* - /h jAA^A*, WIL*M.s (rj Hi*, /Sun* -msULs^ #^ e*^ djjj^du.

(nf c *f-u *i**<k A+q %%Uj>&<i *& W- t*^ ^% T^AXwdlL, dour* *&> &* Tut A tf* Ruxs\ ettx^&sjLS HA (yute*^ hum a+*J. its td po&C 6e&*w< c> da***' a. u*pi uu ** ^ ^twu?>t . * / tli& /tic's **p *^ ^ HU ifzas written by: Perry Borchers AM*- /3/ HABS No. (Page hk) C. INTERVIEW Mr. Plorencio Quintana Mail Address: Serafina, El Cerrito, New Mexico September, Mr* Florencio Quintana is a seventy-three year old man who was born in El Cerrito and has lived here all his life. (Born He is the direct descendant of one of the original settlers of El Cerrito, his great-grandfather Fernando Quintana, who , he claims, came from Spain. His grandfather, Epitacio Quintana and his father, Luis Moria Quintant were born in El Cerrito and lived all their lives in the village. Mr.

Quintana is the village patriarch and this commands a position of authority and respect in El Cerrito. His wife, is of the maiden name Aragon, the other prominent family in town. Both families are closely inter-related. The birth and death dates were taken from the grave stones found in the church courtyard. Mr. Quintana said that his maternal grandmother, Andreita Aragon, had come from Antonchico, and that her daughter, Isabel Aragon, had married his father Luis Quintana . Quintana told me that the church was dedicated to Suestra Senora de Sanparados and that the date of the construction of the church, is carved in one of the ceiling beams. It was visible until last year when a ceiling was hung below the beams. Mr. Quintana said that there were never any stores in El Cerrito.

People were self-sufficient and only went to the city MASS No. AIM- t*l } HABS No. (Page once or twice a year. He said merchants often came to El Cerrito, in wagons, to sell various wares. The earliest educational instruction was in private homes; a grade school having been established around The school, which taught through the ninth grade, was accidently burned-down in the 19 40 * s. Mr. Quintana has always been a farmer, and recalled that when he was 21, the population of El Cerrito numbered about sixty people. He said that there were only six families left in El Cerrito today, the rest having sold their land and gone elsewhere in search of an easier life. This interview was conducted in Spanish. uABS Ala. A/A4~/3/ HABS No. (Page VI.

BIBLIOGRAPHY **Adams, Eleanor, and Chavez, Fray Angelico, Spanish Missions of New Mexico, (University of New Mexico Press) Armstrong, Ruth W., "San Miguel-Port of Entry on the Santa Fe Trail," New Mexico Magazine, February, Bandelier, A., Charles Wilson Hacket, ed., Historical Documents Relating to New Mexico, Nueva Vizcaya, and Approaches Thereto, To Volume I; Carnegie Institution of Washington; Washington, Becknell, Capt. William, "Journals from Boone's Lick to Santa Fe, and From Santa Cruz to Green River," Missouri Historical Review, Volume 4, October, - July, pp. Bieber, Ralph P., ed., Marching with the Army of the West Journals of Abraham Robinson Johnston, Marcellus Ball Edwards, Philip Gooch Ferguson (The Arthur H.

Clark Co., Glendale, California) Bieber, Ralph P., ed., Southern Trails to California in (The Arthur H. Clark Co., Glendale, California) Bieber, Ralph P., ed., "Southwestern Trails to California in Mississippi Valley Historical Review, XII, pp. Bloom, "From Lewisburg (PA) to California in Diary of William H. Chamberlin, I," New Mexico Historical Review, Volume 20, No.l, pp. January, *Boyd, Elizabeth, "The Plaza of San Miguel Del Vado," El Palacio, Volume 77, No. 4, Musuem of New Mexico, Boyd, E.j Popular Arts of Spanish New Mexico (Museum of New Mexico Press, Santa Fe, New Mexico) Briggs, Walter, "Town at the Foot of the Trail," The New Mexican, news- paper; Friday, May 31, Santa Fe, New Mexico.

*Bunting, Bainbridge, Of Earth and Timbers Made, (University of New Mexico Press, Albuquerque) **Bunting, Bainbridge, Taos Adobes: Spanish-Colonial and Territorial Architecture of the Taos Valley, Fort Burgwin Research Center (Museum of New Mexico Press, Santa Fe, New Mexico) **Chavez, Fray Angelico, O.F.M., Archives of the Archdiocese of Santa Fe, Academy of American Franciscan History, Washington, &4A&S No, r 3; '^ HABS No. (Page kf) Cohea, Carol, "Vandals Ruining Priceless San Miguel," Albuquerque Journal, newspaper, December 9, m Connelley, William E,, Doniphan's Expedition: Conquest of New Mexico and California. Cooke, Phil, "Historic Ground," New Mexico Magazine, Vol. 47, No. 5, May, Cooke, Philip St.

George, The Conquest of New Mexico and California in A Historical and Personal Narrative (Horn and Wallace, Albuquerque, New Mexico) Dike, Sheldon H., The Territorial Post Offices of New Mexico, Albuquerque, New Mexico, *Dominguez, Fray Francisco Atanasio, The Missions of New Mexico, translated by E. Admas and Fray A. Chavez (University of New Mexico Press, Albuquerque, New Mexico) Emory, Lt. Notes of a Military Reconnaissance from Fort Leavenworth, in Missouri to San Diego, California, Executive Document No.

41 (Wendell and Van Benthuysen, Washington) *Gilbert, Fabiola Cabeza de Baca, We Fed Them Cactus (University of New Mexico Press) *Glasscock, James T., The Genizaro Outpost of San Miguel del Vado, un- published manuscript, State Records Center, Santa Fe, New Mexico, *Gregg, Josiah, Commerce of the Praries, (Southwest Press, Dallas, Texas). Kendall, George W., Across the Great Southwestern Prairies,Vol. I, University Microfilms, Inc., Ann Arbor, Kenner, Charles L., A History of New Mexican-Plains Indian Relations, (U.

of Oklahoma Press, Norman) **Kubler, George, The Religious Architecture of New Mexico, The Taylor Museum, Colorado Springs, **Leonard, Olen E., The Role of the Land Grant in the Social Organization and Social Processes of a Spanish-American Village in New Mexico [El Cerrito] (Calvin Horn, Albuquerque, New Mexico) Lovato, Phi], Las Acequias del Norte: Technical Report No. 1, Taos, New Mexico. Loyola, Sister Mary, "The American Occupation of New Mexico, III," Historical Review, Vol. 14, No, 3, July, HA&S No. MM- l3f U4) HABS No. (Page U8) *Pearce, ed., New Mexico Place Names, A Geographical Dictionary (Univeristy of New Mexico Press) Raines, Lester, SanMiguel Del Bado, Museum of Santa Fe, Vertical Files, Rodriquez, Arnold, "New Mexico in Transition," Historical Review, Vol. 24, No.

4, October, Ross, Spencer, "Two Villages on the Pecos," New Mexico Magazine, Vol. 49, Nos. March-April, *Rusinow, Irving, A Camera Report on El Cerrito; A Typical Spanish- American Community in New Mexico, U.S. Dept. of Agriculture, Misc. Pub. No. January, *Salpointe, Most Rev. Soldiers of the Cross: Notes on the Ecclesiastical History of New Mexico, Arizona and Colorado (Calvin Horn, Inc., Albuquerque, New Mexico) *Santa Fe Museum of New Mexico Staff, New Mexico Historic Sites, State Planning Office File, Simmons, Marc, Spanish Government in New Mexico (University of Press, Albuquerque, New Mexico) Simpson, Lt.

James H., Navaho Expedition: Journal of a Military Reconnaissance from Santa Fe, New Mexico to the Navaho Country, Made in (University of Oklahoma Press) Stanislowski, Dan, "Early Spanish Town Planning in the New World," Geographical Review, Vol. 37, January, Stanley, F., San Miguel Del Bado, New Mexico Story, P. 0. Box 11, Pep, Texas, Stanley, F., The Villanueva Story, P. 0. Box Nazereth, Texas. *State Planning Office, "Application for Registration, San Miguel," Form A, New Mexico State Register of Cultural Properties, State Planning Office, Santa Fe, New Mexico; May, **Twitchell, Ralph Emerson, Leading Facts of New Mexico History (Horn and Wallace, Albuquerque, New Mexico) **Twitchell, Ralph Emerson, Spanish Archives of New Mexico (The Torch Press, Cedar Rapids, Iowa) U.S. Dept.

of the Interior, The Santa Fe Trail, The National Survey of Historic Sites and Buildings, National Park Service, I-IA&S NO MM- '3/ ^^ HABS No. (Page k9) Vestal, Stanley, The Old Santa Fe Trail (Hough ton-Mifflin Co., Boston) Woods, Betty, "The Levee Road," The New Mexico Magazine, Vol. 34, No. 1, January, Wright, Bessie L., "Diary of a Member of the First Mule Pack Trails to Leave Fort Smith for California in Panhandle-Plains Historical Review, Vol. 42, Panhandle-Plains Historical Society, Canyon, Texas, Writer's Program, New Mexico: A Guide to the Colorful State (University of New Mexico Press) MAPS 1. Wheeler, George, "Land Classification Map of Part of Central New Mexico," Atlas-Sheet No. 78 (A), State Records Center, Expeditions of Santa Fe, New Mexico. 2.

Woodward Collection, "Rutas de Las Caravanas que Pasan de los EUNA a La Republica Mexicana," C. State Records Center, Santa Fe, New Mexico. OTHER 1. Spanish Archives of New Mexico, State Records Center 2. Hagerman, State Records Center (copy enclosed) * Recommended ** Highly Recommended ttA&S NO. (4 6) HABS No. EM-131 (page 50) Vii, Footnotes 1. Under normal weather conditions, a fair quality of adobe will wear at the rate of one inch in twenty years (Kubler,p.^5) 2. Spanish-Colonial towns were originally intended to be designed around the defensible plaza design, (San Miguel Del Bado Grant, Spanish Archives, State Records Center) j. The earliest documented proof of the existence of Villanueva is the mention of "La Cuesta" in (Spanish Archives) WAB3 No. ATM- /3/ U7> HABS No.

(Page 51) VIII. GLOSSARY Adobe a sun-dried brick of clay and straw Aduana customs house Alacena wall cupboard Alcalde mayor, town official Almacen warehouse, large storage shed or structure Ayuntamiento t own counc il municipal government Banco built-in seating Canale scupper or spout Cerrito small hill or peak Cerro hill or peak El the Geni zaro begotten by parents of different nations Grande big, large Gallina hen Horno outdoor oven Jacal upright posts, as in jacal construction Jaspe homemade whitewash Latias ceiling of; peeled poles in herringbone pattern Llano Estacado 1. Palisaded plain 2. place for duel (fighting) Men ta cloth blanket, cotton cloth Nueva new Padre father, priest Paracleto Holy Ghost (4A&S A/o. HABS No.

(Page 52) Placita - open court Portal - porch Presidio - outpost garrisoned by soldiers; jail or prison Pretiles - firewalls Provin cia interna - internal province Puerto - place, barracks for soldiers Rajas - lattice work, of split cedar boards San Miguel - St. Michael San Jose - St. Joseph Savinos - saplings, branches, etc., laid on top of vigas for ceiling, log, beam, or rafter So terr ano - s ma 11 storage cellar Tapia - mud wall, massive wall Techo - roof Tierra amarilla - yellow earth Tierra blanca - white earth Tierra Colorado - red earth Tierra negra - black earth Tierra verde - green earth Vado - ford, river crossing Vega - open plain Viga - beam, floor or ceiling Villa - town, country house Zaguan - covered passage HA&S MO. MM~ ^3/ HABS No. (Page 53) IX.

Appendix MOTES ON THE SANTA'FE TRAIL STAGS ROUTE AND A POSSIBLE STAGE STOP AT SAN JOSE The original route of the Santa Fe trail, from Las Vegas to Santa Fe, crossed the Pecos River at the ton of San Miguel ( San Miguel del Vado ). In I85J8, Capt. John Ne Kacoirib, an Army engineer, relocated ( in places ) and repaired ( in places ) the road, from Fort Union ( just beyond Las Vegas ) to Santa Fe and his road crossed the Pecos River at the-town of. San Jose, a few miles upstream from San Miguel.

Source document Quoted word for word from HABS NM,24-VILLA.V,1-. Not written, edited or summarised by this site.

W, Turrentine Jackson, Wagon Roads West, U. of Calif, Press, Berkeley and Los Angeles,* and Yale U. Press, New Haven, A map prepared by the Engineer Bureau, War Dept. " Map of the States of Kansas and Texas and Indian Territory ,with parts of_the Territories of Colorado and New Mexico *', ( a copy from the U. S. Archives, Washington, D. C. in my possession ) and other maps. Passenger stage operation^ between Independence and Santa Fe, began in 18U6 or 18U7. Regular mail coaches were running by l8UQ. Daily service was established by \ - SOURCE:. Notes on the Santa Fe Trail ^ from Kenyon Riddle, Records and Maps of the Old Santa Fe Trail.

Had I been running a stage coach business, I would surely have picked the newest, shortest, and most improved road available in this case, Capt.' Kacomb's road as soon as it was available in this case, any time after Other research on the location of the road seems to bear this out. From Margaret long, The Santa Fe Trail: Following the Old Historic OSCGOS: Pioneer Trails, on the Modern Highways, Denver, Colorado, W. H. Kistler Stationery Co., 1 5U> I quotes " The emigrant road went west through San Miguel on the Pecos to San Jose. The Wheeler maps show a direct road from Bemal to San Jose', with connecting roads to San Miguel. n { page 2li9 ) ' And; Eased on the distance between Bernal and Rows there should have been a station, at San Jose.

The Wheeler map ( sheet 78 A ; shows the town of San Jose, but, as in the case of Las Vegas, does not give the stage station. { Appendix B, Santa Ft. Stage Stations in New Mexico, page ) The railroad (, which, of course, put the stagecoach companies out of business ; reached La Junta, Colo, in Las Vegas, in and Santa Fe, in SOURCE: Kenyon Riddle and others. , I .would conclude, from the above information, that any stage stop at San Jose was built between ^ date of Macombts improved road ) and { date of near-completion of the railroad ) . a more exact date could be guessed at and, perhaps, substantiated by further research. . In the Museum of New Mexico !s Photo Archives, in the file folder marked " San Jose, " , there are three pictures of an old building with a long wooden portal.

' continued... MABS Me>> MM- /3/ MBS No. (Page 5*0 NOTES on the S. F Trail stage route and possible stop at San Jose, page i-fcr husband and I have visited this building several times in the past five years i - } and nave talked with a Kir. Ruben ullibarri ( a man about U0 years old ) who lives in the part of the building nearest the town plaza { toward the back of the building in the photograph ) and -whose mother ( if I remember correctly ) owns the property. Kr.

Ullibarri told us that this building (now almost completely in ruins ) was " the old stage stop on the Santa Fe trail " a -\ I thought it was certainly an interesting story I also thought I would be more inclined to believe it if I could discover some proof that a stage route had passed, through San Jose and that there had been a stopping point there. I am now certainly convinced that the stage route did pass through San Josej and^ if Mr. ullibarri is correct, the building pictured in the Photo Archives file is the old Santa Fe trail stage stop, with the stone and adobe barns and corrals across the road having been used to hold the horses, .

As for the date of, the picture, since it shows the building as no longer in use and deteriorating, it would probably have been taken after { when stage travel gave way to railroad travel ) and before { based on the type of negative used ) due to the condition of the building, let s guess t To me, this photograph itself is an indication that the building was probably the old stage stop someone passing through San Jose in thought it was important enough to photograph, taking pictures of it and not of the other buildings in the town. ; If it would be of any use to anyone, I would be glad at this point ( ) to photograph the same building from the same angle to show the extent of pre- sent deterioration and/or to photograph some of the ruined shutters and . .

doors ( attractively decorated with wooden cutouts of hearts and diamonds ) now in the possession" of myself and my husband. Katherine ( H. L. ) Hagerman Santa Fe, New Mexico . . ' April 21, . ". FE.B. Correction of last paragraph:' 1; color prints of slides taken in f^a of this building at. San Jose are enclosed. I would be glad to go back and take a panoramic" view... . "' ' : ' " : \ : :"" ' ' . ;; 33" A/o. A/M--f3l' HABS No.' (Page 55) A AL / =2. / HABS No. (Page %) *1 < */AR* A; (5U) ' HABS No.' (Page 57) LLA&V AU A/AA / ?/