by Richard Flint and Shirley Cushing Flint Although neither fray Francisco Atanasio Domínguez nor fray Francisco Silvestre Vélez de Escalante spent much time in New Mexico, they both left historical legacies of importance for understanding the Spanish colony. Both were Franciscan friars, and both were sent to New Mexico…
1578 by Richard Flint and Shirley Cushing Flint Some of the most detailed documentary information about the Spanish province of New Mexico in the early decades of the 1600s comes from reports written by fray Alonso de Benavides. Fray Alonso was resident as custos, or superior, of the custody…
By Richard Flint and Shirley Cushing Flint Without the work of fray Marcos de Niza, there may never have been a Coronado expedition. It was evidence provided in his 1539 report that triggered launch of the expedition the following year. Had Marcos\'s report been less glowing in its descriptions…
By Richard Flint and Shirley Cushing Flint Speculation abounds regarding the origins of the black slave of the Spaniard Andrés Dorantes, Esteban de Dorantes, also known as Esteban the Black, Estebanillo, and Estebanico. The only eyewitness account available comes from Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca, the chronicler of the…
by Richard Flint and Shirley Cushing Flint The attempt made to settle New Mexico in 1590-1591, led by Gaspar Castaño de Sosa, might have succeeded but for one ruinous detail. The venture was illegal. Thus, even if Castaño and his colonists had been able to insert themselves into the…
By Richard Flint and Shirley Cushing Flint Although he was never in what is now New Mexico, Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca and three companions of his had a momentous effect on the region's history. In February 1536 four survivors of the expedition to La Florida that had been…
1887 San Ildefonso Pueblo is a quiet community located 20 miles northwest of Santa Fe. Inhabited since 1300 AD, the pueblo saw many changes that resulted in a rich culture, in which ancient traditions mix with Spanish festivals and Anglo conveniences. Life in the Tewa-speaking village on the Pajarito…
8 14 1900 By Enrique R. Lamadrid University of New Mexico Linguist and folklorist Juan Bautista Rael, highly regarded for his pioneering work in collecting and documenting the Hispano folk stories, plays, and religious traditions of northern New Mexico and southern Colorado, was born on August 14, 1900, in…
Following the conquest of the Southwest by the United States, Archbishop Lamy became the first bishop of Santa Fe. When he arrived in the early 1850s, he found only nine priests in New Mexico. He proceeded to bring a large number of priests from France and other European countries….
