New Mexico Historic Sites

New Mexico Historic Sites Explore history where it happened! NM Historic Sites are storied places where the past is palpable.

A little Mesilla history from Taylor-Mesilla Historic Site: The buildings on this corner of the Mesilla Plaza were owned...
09/01/2026

A little Mesilla history from Taylor-Mesilla Historic Site: The buildings on this corner of the Mesilla Plaza were owned for a short period of time before the start of the Civil War by a pair of brothers who are now considered legendary figures of the West. You might recognize one of the brother’s names: Judge Roy Bean.

Sam, the older brother, fought in the Mexican War and brought his brother Roy with him as he traveled down the Santa Fe Trail and the Chihuahua Trail (El Camino Real) to Chihuahua, Mexico. The brothers set up a business in Chihuahua before parting ways for a few years. Samuel was elected sheriff of Doña Ana County in 1854. Roy reunited with his brother in Mesilla where they ran their bar on one end of this corner and Samuel ran a business from the other.

Many stories told about them are mostly untrue mixed with moments of truth just like many characters of the Wild West.

Greetings from Fort Stanton Historic Site,Come join us Thurs., Sept. 17, 2026, 9 - 11 a.m. (MST) for our Fort Stanton Cl...
08/31/2026

Greetings from Fort Stanton Historic Site,

Come join us Thurs., Sept. 17, 2026, 9 - 11 a.m. (MST) for our Fort Stanton Clean Up day! Meet us at the Visitor's Center at 9 a.m. Feel free to bring gloves. We will provide garbage bags.

🚨NEW DATE - Join us Saturday, Sept 5 at Fort Selden Historic Site's Foodways Garden Harvest and Salsa Demo from 10 a.m. ...
08/31/2026

🚨NEW DATE - Join us Saturday, Sept 5 at Fort Selden Historic Site's Foodways Garden Harvest and Salsa Demo from 10 a.m. to noon!

Join Ranger Payton as we harvest and prepare the chiles and vegetables from our foodways garden. Participants will learn the process of roasting chiles, making your own delicious salsa and chile-based sauces, as well as a three sisters' stew. 🌽🌶️🫘🍲This year’s foodways garden is focused on Indigenous agriculture, specifically, corn, squash, and beans, known as the Three Sisters. The chile garden also tells the story of New Mexican agriculture.

🎟️Cooking outdoors is contingent on weather and fire restrictions. Admission is $10 for adults and $5 for children 16 and younger. Register to save your spot here: https://my.nmculture.org/56495/60655

Note: The original event was scheduled for Saturday, Aug. 29, 2026.

New Mexico Historic Sites is pleased to announce that Oscar Navarro, Instructional Coordinator Supervisor at Lincoln and...
08/30/2026

New Mexico Historic Sites is pleased to announce that Oscar Navarro, Instructional Coordinator Supervisor at Lincoln and Fort Stanton Historic Sites, has been awarded the Quarterly Employee Recognition Award. 🎉✨🎊

Oscar was selected for going above and beyond his normal duties at both Fort Stanton and Lincoln. He helped coordinate with the US Forest Service during the Seven Cabins Fire in Lincoln County earlier this year. He has been working on updating numerous exhibit spaces in the historic Courthouse at Lincoln and at the Fort Stanton Hospital. He also plays an important role in planning the annual site events, Fort Stanton Live and Old Lincoln Days.

Oscar is a native of El Paso, Texas, who holds a Bachelor of Art in History and Museum Studies from the University of Texas at El Paso. Throughout his career he has designed and curated many exhibits, as well as developed different educational programs and oral history projects. He was the Museum Director at Los Portales Museum and Information Center in San Elizario, Texas, prior to joining Historic Sites.

Next time you visit Lincoln or Fort Stanton, say hello and join Oscar for a fun program or activity to learn more about New Mexico history.

Good morning from Coronado Historic Site at Kuaua Pueblo!One of the most striking features of Coronado Historic Site is ...
08/29/2026

Good morning from Coronado Historic Site at Kuaua Pueblo!

One of the most striking features of Coronado Historic Site is the beautiful view we have of the Sandia Mountains. We’re taught that “sandía” comes from the Spanish word for “watermelon,” and that they were named so because of the pinkish hue the mountains get at sunset. While this is mostly true, did you know that the word’s origins go back even earlier?

Watermelon was introduced to Spain via North Africa sometime around the tenth century. Due to the source of that arrival, “sandía” actually comes from the Arabic word “sindiyya” referring to the Sindh region of South Asia. Curiously, the fruit is native to Africa rather than Sindh, but there is speculation that trade for superior varieties came from that direction. After passing from culture to culture across the span of centuries, watermelon was finally brought to New Mexico during the 1500s where it was even adopted as a cultivate among Pueblo communities.

Image: Sandia Mountains as seen from Kuaua Pueblo (top), artistic representation of the Sandia Mountains in Bernalillo’s Rotary Park (bottom).

Bosque Redondo Memorial has launched our Junior and Bark Ranger program yesterday! We gave away our first Junior Ranger ...
08/29/2026

Bosque Redondo Memorial has launched our Junior and Bark Ranger program yesterday! We gave away our first Junior Ranger books to Fort Sumner elementary students. Instructional Coordinator Rebekha Crockett and Site Manger Aaron Roth explained the new program, our activity book, and taught them more about our site's history. We also inducted four new Bark Rangers to the site. Meet Ranger Ekho, Bilbo, Ginger, and Whiskey! Ask for an activity book, complete it, and earn a badge to become a certified junior ranger!

🚨POSTPONED - Fort Selden Historic Site's Foodways Garden Harvest and Salsa Demo will not be happening on Saturday, Aug. ...
08/28/2026

🚨POSTPONED - Fort Selden Historic Site's Foodways Garden Harvest and Salsa Demo will not be happening on Saturday, Aug. 29, 2026. We apologize for the inconvenience, and we will announce a new date with the details are firm.

Greetings from Fort Selden!When Fort Selden was established in 1865, a United States Army private would be looking forwa...
08/27/2026

Greetings from Fort Selden!

When Fort Selden was established in 1865, a United States Army private would be looking forward to $16 per month. That is the purchasing power of only about $327 in 2026! Many of the soldiers at Fort Selden would spend the time following payday gambling, drinking in the bar at the Post Trader’s Store, or with the women of Leasburg and other nearby communities.

This illustration shows soldiers being paid by a paymaster in Atlanta, GA around 1964.

📸 Frank Leslie’s "The Soldier in Our Civil War: A Pictorial History of the Conflict, 1861-1865," illustrating the valor of the soldier as displayed on the battlefield, Volume 2.

🎉Today is the launch of the New Mexico Historic Sites Junior Ranger Program! Visit one of our sites and take a deeper di...
08/27/2026

🎉Today is the launch of the New Mexico Historic Sites Junior Ranger Program! Visit one of our sites and take a deeper dive to learn more about each site’s history in a fun and interactive way.

📓✏️To participate, request an activity booklet from the front desk of the site you are visiting. After completing the activities, return the book to the front desk where you will make an oath to protect the site and share its history for future generations. Participants will receive a certificate and a wooden ranger badge. Participation is free. Visit all of our sites to collect all eight badges!

🐾We also have a special Bark Ranger program for our four-legged furry friends. Ask at the visitor center desks for more info. (Even the Los Luceros sheep and goat are in on it!)

🔗https://nmhistoricsites.org/junior-ranger

Photos 1-4 by Tira Howard Photography for NMDCA. Photos 5-9 by NMHS staff.

Greetings from Lincoln Historic Site,Are you an active-duty service member looking for something to do Labor Day weekend...
08/26/2026

Greetings from Lincoln Historic Site,

Are you an active-duty service member looking for something to do Labor Day weekend? This is a friendly reminder that both Lincoln and Fort Stanton Historic Sites (as well as the other 6 historic sites) are proud members and supporters of the Blue Star Museums program. Labor Day weekend, Sept. 5-7, is the last weekend to use this program for this year.

If you are an active-duty service member, you and up to 5 family members can get into Lincoln and Fort Stanton Historic Sites for FREE! We hope you had a good summer break. We'd like to encourage you to look into the Blue Star Museums program to see all the museums and historic sites that offer free admission for you and your family.

https://www.arts.gov/blue-star-museums-map

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725 Camino Lejo
Santa Fe, NM
87505

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