Que paso con Maria Viviana Martín? Preguntas y mas preguntas?

Maria Viviana Martín was born on December 1, 1827 in Potrero, New Mexico in what is now Rio Arriba County, the daughter of  Bernardo Martín and Maria Apolonia Gutierrez. Viviana died the 27th of October in 1897 in Mora County, New Mexico, most probably in the area of current day Watrous, New Mexico where she lived with her family. She is listed in the 1870 and 1880 U.S. Federal Census at La Cueva, Mora County, New Mexico. Over time she lived with 3 seperate "Americano" men and had at least 7 children with them.

We need to keep in mind that this was the period when there were no non Hispanic or non Native American women in New Mexico. There were no American or what we would call "Anglo" women in the area then. So, if an American man wanted a woman, his choices were limited to what was available.

The first man she lived with and had children with was James Bonney, an Englishman, whom she ended up with in 1845 when she was 18 years old. James Bonney died about 1846. The second man was Daniel Eberle from Switzerland whom she met and moved in with in about 1848, Daniel died about 1855. The 3rd man was Friedrich (Frank) Metzgar from Prussia, whom she had a relationship with which started in 1856, Metzgar died about about 1885. So Maria Viviana outlived all three of them.

It seems like Maria Viviana never actually went through the process of marrying any of the fathers of her 7 children, anyway no record of any marriage has been found. This is odd on several levels.

1. In that time period 99.99% of New Mexican's were Catholic and usually ended up married by the church. Non of her relationships were relationships with benefit of marriage nor can any record be found of any baptisms of any of her children. Her parents were Catholic, she was baptized. Some of her decendants when they married, did so in the Catholic Church. So far as any of the records show.
2.  She ended up having children with 3 "Americanos", non of whom were from the Unites States. All of the fathers of the 7 children were "Americanos", there is no record of her having children with a local Hispanic or Native American.
3. She is always found in the U.S. Federal Census with her children but none of her "common law" husbands were ever enumerated with her and her family, their children. Did she actually live with them, or just fathered the children?

Living with men and having children with them, while not unheard of, was uncommon in those days in New Mexico. Add to that the fact that non Hispanic men were few in the province then and you have another riddle. Now if a person was looking for non Hispanic men, the area around La Junta (Watrous) was the place to be. This time period included the time just prior to the American occupation and was the height of use on the Santa Fe Trail. Commerce was hot and heavy then, especially at and near La Junta (Watrous).

The population of non New Mexicans was the highest in the area around La Junta de los Rios (Watrous). And her relationships started prior to Fort Union coming to the area. Loma Parda, if it was there, had not reached its heyday. That would happen after the military established Fort Union.

Did Maria Viviana move to the area with her parents, Bernardo Martín and his wife and her mother, Maria Apolonia Gutierrez? Or did she somehow make the move by herself? She probably moved with her parents as they both died in the area, Bernardo in 1869 and Apolonia in 1870. My guess is that she moved with her parents in their quest for work and or land in the pre American period, but when the Santa Fe trail was going full blast.

Anyway, she ended up living the rest of her life in the area adjacent to current day Watrous. And the questions remain, even current  family members have questions. No matter how you look at it, Maria Viviana Martín was a very unusual woman for her time, very unusual.