7 19 1830 By Denise Holladay Damico Santiago de Jesus Valdez was born in Taos, New Mexico on July 19, 1830 and was baptized by water upon his birth "because of emergency" by the Padre's younger brother, Don Santiago Martinez. Padre Martinez concluded the baptism on July 22 of…
Mexican Independence Day Celebrations in New Mexico September 16th: 1821-1846 By Robert Torrez New Mexico was part of the Mexican Republic from 1821 to 1846. Historical documents in the Mexican Archives of New Mexico show that during this time nuevomexicanos celebrated the commemoration of Mexican independence from Spain, planning…
By William H. Wroth José Rafael Aragón (ca.1783-90 – 1862) was one of the most prolific and popular santeros in nineteenth-century New Mexico. Santeros are makers of images of saints, known in New Mexico as santos. The Spanish term santero has several meanings, the primary one being a person…
By Samuel Sisneros Twelve years after the 1680 Pueblo Revolt, half of the refugees in El Paso del Norte returned to northern New Mexico. Those who stayed either remained in the refugee colonies or migrated further into Chihuahua and established new communities along the Camino Real. They opened and…
By Samuel Sisneros In 1849, following the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, more than 150 families from central and southern Texas, a small group from California, close to 4,000 people from New Mexico, along with approximately seven hundred people from the present El Paso Lower Valley (Socorro, Ysleta and San…
On the Feast of the Ascension, April 30, 1598, Juan de Oñate took possession with the following excerped words: In the name of the Most Holy Trinity, and the undivided Eternal Unity, Deity and Majesty, Father, Son and Holy Ghost, three persons in one sole essence, and one and…
By J. Mark Sublette Farming in this high desert climate was always a challenge. Shortly after founding Santa Fe in 1610, the Spanish built an irrigation canal above the River, parallel to Canyon Road. Still in use, this Acequia Madre, or "mother ditch," brought precious water out of the…
Between 1919 and 1925, Mary Austin was in and out of Santa Fe, writing, lecturing, and promoting the preservation and revival of Hispano and Indian cultural production. In 1923, the Society for the Preservation of Indian and Spanish Traditions in the Americas was organized at a meeting held around…
By William H. Wroth The Cofradía de Nuestro Padre Jesús (Brotherhood of Our Father Jesus) is a Catholic lay confraternity in New Mexico, whose members, popularly known the Penitentes, are dedicated to living a pious Christian life through devotion to the suffering and crucifixion of Christ. Their devotional activities…
By Kim Suina In the late seventeenth century a brewing revolt orchestrated by the Pueblos to remove the Spanish gripped communities along the Camino Real. Under the primary leadership of Pueblo leader Po’pay, a spiritual head from San Juan Pueblo, Pueblos and Apache allies attempted to expel Spanish settlers…
