Sallie Lucy Chisum Robert was born May 28, 1858 in Bolivar, Denton County, Texas to James Thomas “Jim” Chisum (1827 – 1908) and Ara Josephine Wright Chisum (1830 – 1875). Jim Chisum was the brother of John Simpson Chisum (1824 – 1884). John was the oldest son of Claiborne and Elizabeth Chisum and Jim was … Continue reading Sallie Chisum→| New Mexico History
This is one of the names given to a gang that operated around the middle and eastern part of New Mexico for a number of years and were wanted for robberies and other crimes. They were also known as the Mesa Hawks. Hawkins and his associates eluded capture for a while. Some were captured while … Continue reading Henry Hawkins Gang→| New Mexico History
The January 23, 1902 article was widely reported in United States newspapers that in New Mexico, three brothers had been ambushed while riding horseback on the way back to their homes. Dick and John Spikes were killed and Fred Spikes was badly wounded, but managed to make it to the home of a neighbor who … Continue reading The Spikes Brothers Murders→| New Mexico History
John Towers Hutchings was born in Birmingham, England in 1887. By 1911, he was living in Alamogordo, New Mexico where he married the former Mary Simms. Newspaper reports said he had enlisted in the United States Army and been a driver for General John J. Pershing at one point. He was said to be the … Continue reading John T. Hutchings Murder Case→| New Mexico History
Almost 250 years ago, two friars set out from northern New Mexico to find a northern route to a new settlement and the related missions in Monterey, California. The idea of a northern route was to see if there might be a way to avoid the difficulties of the Grand Canyon and the Mojave Desert. … Continue reading The Domínguez and Escalante Expedition→| New Mexico History
The area now known as Colfax County was originally part of Taos County, one of the first nine counties created in 1952, when New Mexico became a territory of the United States. In 1859, Mora County was established out of the eastern section of Taos County and then ten years later in 1869, Colfax County … Continue reading Colfax County→| New Mexico History
Governor C. de Baca was the second elected governor of the new state of New Mexico. He was the first Hispano elected governor of any state. According to newspaper account however, a serious illness manifested itself during the campaign in which he was elected. His inauguration took place in a local hospital or sanitarium January … Continue reading Governor Ezequiel Cabeza de Baca→| New Mexico History
As told by Inspector Hartman of the Colorado stock growers’ association in the Hastings Daily Gazette-Journal (Hastings, Nebraska), 23 Apr 1884: “One Nail” Bob referred to a cowboy named Bob Hale, in some accounts called Bob Cole, on the John Chisum ranch near Roswell. The cowboy got the nickname from having one fingernail that was … Continue reading The Story of “One Nail” Bob Hale→| New Mexico History
The San Luis Valley of Colorado and New Mexico was once part of the Territory of New Mexico in an early configuration of Taos County. Now most of it is in Colorado, but some still extends into New Mexico. As you can see from the map below, except for the headwaters of the Rio Grande, … Continue reading Thomas Tate “Tom” Tobin→| New Mexico History
The Santa Fe New Mexican headline of August 23, 1963 read “Alleged Treasure At White Sands Not Yet Uncovered.” It continued to explain that the laboratory of anthropology of the Museum …| New Mexico History