by Denise Holladay Damico New Mexico's Taos Valley is one of the longest-settled regions of New Mexico. Its fertile soil and the availability of running water made it an attractive location, first for the Taos Pueblo Indians, and later for other settlers. By the early nineteenth century, these competing…
by Malcolm Ebright Gervacio (Gervais) Nolan was a French-Canadian fur-trapper and trader who came to New Mexico in 1824 with fellow French Canadian Charles Beaubien. Both became Mexican citizens in 1829, married local Hispanic women, and raised families in the Taos area, though Beaubien is much better known than…
by Michael Miller The Juan Bautista Valdez grant was petitioned in 1807, by Juan Bautista Valdez who was resident of the Town of Abiquiu and a loyal subject to the Spanish crown. Valdez and seven companions requested two thousand varas in the Canon de los Pedernales. Manuel Garcia the…
An Essay by Rick Hendricks The cries of the muleteers rent the hot, dry air of desolate El Paso. Heavily laden wagons lurched forward, propelled by yoked oxen to the accompaniment of the high‑pitched squeal and roaring undertone of wood‑on‑wood axles. Fighting men, Spaniard and Pueblo ally alike, went…
By Mark Thompson* Would litigating four cases over land in New Mexico, two ending with appeals to the New Mexico Supreme Court, another two ending with appeals to the United States Supreme Court, be worth the expense of lawyers and other costs? Maybe. What if the land contained…
By Malcolm Ebright Kirby Benedict (1811-1874) was born in Kent, Connecticut and grew up near the first law school established in the American colonies, the Litchfield Law School. He did not attend Litchfield, whose register of students included many prominent lawyers to be. Instead, Benedict studied law under John…
1886 The Ranger and the Saboteur By John P. Wilson Las Cruces, New Mexico We think of the sheriffs and U.S. Marshals of the Old West as the men who brought law to the mesquite in early-day New Mexico. However, what about up in the ponderosas, among the occasional…
Banishment During the Spanish Period in New Mexico: The Case of Reymundo Baca Valencia By J. Richard Salazar On March 18, 1765, Antonia Martin, resident of the Puesto of Nuestra Senora de la Soledad del Rio Arriba (the present day community of Alcalde), appeared before Alcalde Mayor of Santa…
By Donald R. Moorman Perhaps the most interesting aspect of Western History that has captured the imagination of the American people has been the problem of law enforcement. Seemingly, few aspects of this field remain to be covered. The colorful sheriffs and marshals of Tombstone, Dodge City and Topeka…
6 5 1850 Pat Garrett, An Unlucky Lawman By Kathy Weiser Born in Chambers County, Alabama on June 5, 1850, Patrick Floyd Jarvis Garrett was one of seven children born to John and Elizabeth Garrett. Three years later, Pat's father, John Garrett, purchased a Louisiana plantation in Claiborne…
