Las Ruedas, New Mexico

Most of the early day settlers of Rowe, New Mexico moved to the area where Rowe is today in the 1870's and 1880's from the Pecos River village of Las Ruedas.

Some good news in the 10th Anniversary Report for 2012 of the publication "New Mexico Land Conservancy, Honoring New Mexico's Land Heritage."

There is an article there titled "Jewel of the Pecos: Forked Lightning Ranch" which states in part " In 2000, actress Jane Fonda purchased the 2,400 acres that remained of the original ranch and in 2010, she decided to work with the NMLC to protect most of the ranch with conservation easements. These easements  not only conserve the prime riparian habitat along three miles of the upper Pecos River and surrounding watershed, but they also buffer the adjacent Pecos National Historic Park and the Santa Fe National Forest. The ranch also contains several old homesteads, including ruins of an old church and cemetery - remnants of a time when the Pecos River was a sustaining force for families that settled the area.

The "old homesteads, church and cemetery" mentioned in the article is the old village of Las Ruedas, the village of my maternal ancestors.

See additional information on Las Ruedas here;

http://nuevomejicano.blogspot.com/2009/08/1860-las-ruedas-new-mexico.html

and here;

http://nuevomejicano.blogspot.com/2011/02/more-on-las-ruedad-new-mexico.html

There is a certain comfort in knowing that the village will not be plowed under for some horse barns or some other buildings. My maternal great grandmother, Mariana Duran, the wife of Juan de Jesus Archuleta was the last person buried in that cemetery. Her body was transported back there from Rowe where she died in the 1920's.

This weblog contains several posts on Las Ruedas. Utilize the search option to find the posts in question.

Trinidad Ortiz, First Wife Of Thomas Tucker

Trinidad Ortiz was born Maria Trinidad Ortiz on June the 4th of 1844 and baptized on the 7th of June in 1844 in Santa Fe, New Mexico, the daughter of Jose Antonio Ortiz and Ysabel Pacheco, her padrinos were Jesus Romero and Ygnacia Ortiz. She was the eighth of nine children born to the couple. She was born 2 years prior to the American occupation of New Mexico but in all reality probably had no memories of the time prior to the American presence.

We know that about 1862 at the age of 18 she gave birth to a son out of wedlock. The son was named Samuel Ortiz.

Later, sometime in 1865, she ended up with Thomas Tucker, born circa 1837 in Pennsylvania, the publisher of the Santa Fe New Mexican newspaper. Their first three children were born prior to the marriage which occurred in the Catholic Church in Santa Fe on the 13th of October of 1870 The marriage occurred almost a whole month after the birth of their third child, Adelaida, on the 15th of September of 1870.

In the 1880 U.S. Federal Census Samuel Ortiz is listed as a printer and the step son of Thomas Tucker a publisher and living in the same house with Trinidad and the rest of the family. Samuel's father is not named but is listed as having being born in New Mexico as compared to his step father, Thomas Tucker, who is listed as having been born in Pennsylvania.

Over the years Trinidad was to have six additional children with Thomas Tucker. The last of these, Sara Isabel Tucker, was born September 22, 1893.

Some thing happened to the marriage of Trinidad Ortiz and Tomas Tucker between the birth of their last daughter, Sarah Isabel in 1893 and the time records show Thomas Tucker was living with another woman, Adela Martinez, in 1897.

What happened we can only guess at. But there must have been a divorce or more than likely an annulment of the marriage sometime between 1893 and when Thomas married for a second time on the 28th of February of 1902. The Catholic priest would not have married Thomas a second time to Adela had there not been a death or a an annulment.

This was a time of cultural conflict in New Mexico, the Americans had been here since 1846, or about 20 years before Trinidad and Thomas ended up together. She was not the first Hispanic woman to end up with an American, married or otherwise. but it was still a rare event.

Trinidad Tucker is listed as a widow in the 1910 U.S. Federal Census and is still enumerated in the 1930 Census. She was burried on the 13th of August of 1933 at the age of 89 in Santa Fe, New Mexico.

Thomas Tucker And His Two Wives

Wealthy financier William Henry Manderfield and partner Thomas Tucker bought the printing plant and The Santa Fe Republican newspaper, changing its name to The New Mexican, and later published The Daily New Mexican.

By 1864, Thomas Tucker was listed as co-owner. Under Manderfield, the newspaper was lively, political and opinionated.

On February 6, 1876 six day old Ignacia Archuleta who was born on January 31, 1876, the daughter of Juan de Jesus Archuleta and Mariana Duran, was baptized in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Her baptismal padrinos were Thomas Tucker and his wife Trinidad Ortiz. Ignacia was my maternal grandmother and hense the interest on my part.

Thomas Tucker was listed as a publisher in the 1880 U.S. Federal Census, he was born in Pennsylvania. He was also listed as a New Mexico Volunteer in the 1860's.

In 1881, Manderfield and Tucker left the paper and E.B. Purcell of Manhattan, Kan., became the owner.

Tomas Tucker and the woman he was later to marry, Trinidad Ortiz lived together and had three children sans the benefit of a Catholic marriage. They were finally married on the 13th of October in 1870 and were still married on October 8, 1893 when their daughter Sara Isabel was being baptized.

It appears that Tomas was living with Adela Martinez, also without the benefit of a Catholic marriage, as  by 1897 he and Adela Martinez were the proud parents of Rogerio C. Tucker born on February 25, 1898.

Trinidad Ortiz was baptized on the 7th of June in 1844 and died at age 89 and was buried on August 13, 1933, so something happened (a divorce, an annulment?) to their marriage between the date Sarah Isabel was born to Trinidad in 1893 and the date Rogerio was born to Adela in 1898.


Later yet, the 28th of February in 1902 to be exact, Thomas Tucker was married again, this time to Adela Martinez. Of this marriage Father Joseph Hintzen noted "Because they were on their deathbed, in order to receive the sacraments, I married Thomas M. Tucker, from Santa Fe with Adela Martinez, from Santa Fe. The witnesses were Julian Vigil and Francisca Mares."

As for his second marriage, better late than never as the old saying goes.

Lynette LaBurquena and Chicharron on the New Mexico State Fair

Check out the site below.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xoK1NjB85c4&feature=autoplay&list=UUhHcqlZQhVr8QYAxN8Wl8-g&playnext=1

Very good and very funny.

Genealogy, Are You Sure, Or Do You Think You Are Sure

Most people think they know where they come from and who is related etc. Some others are kidding themselves about one thing or another. Some ancestors were hiding things from the family and it is surprising when you discover the truth. Maybe it is a birthday you had all wrong, maybe it is a name that was changed for some reason or another.

One thing I find in doing in depth genealogical work is that folks who learned about their ancestors by word of mouth or "every one knows" etc., are wrong as much as they are right. Or there is a snippet of truth in a much larger story of one relative or another. This is especially true with people, usually children, that died young. Some people seem to think that the only children their grandparents had were the ones that survived.

There are so many family myths, omissions and out right lies. Those along with perceptions a person has about your family make up a fuzzy picture. Sometimes a real fuzzy picture of what a persons family was really like.

For Hispano New Mexicans who were already here when the Americans invaded and took over New Mexico there are many sources of information.

1. The Hispanic Genealogical Research Center of New Mexico is probably the best of the whole bunch. Their Great Name Database is not perfect but very, very good. Their quarterly journal and publications are great and worth every cent.
2. The New Mexico Genealogical Society is a very good reference and their quarterly journal and other publications publications are very good.
3. The U.S. Federal Census is available on line and offers good information. They start in New Mexico in 1850 and get progressively better with each census there after. The 1940 U.S Federal Census was just released in April of this year. It, and the 1880 census are available for free.
4. History books on New Mexico/Mexicans offer some good information on Hispano New Mexicans.
5. The Latter Day Saints search engine available for free is good also. Especially this latest version which was introduced lately. I use their ancestry program  (PAF-5) exclusively to document our findings. It is available for free at their website and I have found it superior to any that I have bought, paid a lot of money for and discarded.

Be careful with books written right before or after the American occupation of New Mexico in 1846. The folks coming here had a hatred of New Mexicans that showes up in their writings. You have to over look it and remember that our ancestors did not think very highly of them either.

Jeramiah Was a Bullfrog

"Im a hard knock flyer and a rainbow rider and a straight shooting son of a gun"

Vuida a los Quince Anos

Click on the image to make it larger

Ana Maria Lopez, the daughter of Manuel Lopez and Maria Gertrudis Rael was born circa 1818 somewhere in New Mexico, probably San Miguel del Vado or maybe Santa Fe. She married Jose Francisco Griego, the son of Jesus Maria Griego and Maria Guadalupe Garduno, at San Miguel del Vado on September 4, 1831 when she was 13. A little on the young side, but not uncommon in those times, especially when you consider that her father is listed as deceased at the time of this marriage.

One (1) year, seven (7) months, three (3) weeks and three (3) days later on April 28 1833 she was remarrying. This time to Pedro Antonio Gallegos the son of Domingo Gallego and Juana Romero, age 27 born circa 1806 somewhere in New Mexico. The second marriage was performed again at San Miguel del Vado.

A little over a year later on May 18, 1834 she was baptizing her son Jose Felis Gallegos who was born 2 days previous in San Miguel del Bado.

She had better luck with her second husband as she was living at the Plaza de los Garcias in what today is San Miguel County, New Mexico in 1845.

Listed in the 1850 U.S. Federal Census with her husband and 3 children in Tecolote, New Mexico,

Assuming that she observed the traditional one year of mourning (luto) of the passing of her first husband, Jose Francisco Griego,  before remarrying it would appear that Jose Francisco must have died sometime prior to April of 1832. She was actually only married 7 or 8 months before her first husband died.

My guess is that she would have observed the mourning period, or close to it and then remarried as soon as possible. A 14 year old widow would have a hard time on her own and maybe her mother or in laws were not able to provide for the young widow.

The mystery of the death of her first husband remains.

Rowe, New Mexico Neighborhoods in the 1950's

Click on the image to make it larger.

La Sagrada Familia Catholic Church in Rowe, New Mexico

Yes, even a town with fewer than 300 people had neighborhoods or barrios and the neighborhoods had names, especially in New Mexico. There was no east side, south side or any other side for that matter. There was no bad part of town, there were just different neighborhoods. And besides, for the most part we were all related in one way or another. There were very few folks that weren't related.

1. El Switche - Because of a switch in the railroad tracks is my guess. The E.T. Padilla and Trader Horn stores were located there. The post office and the AT&SF Train depot were located in that neighborhood.
2. Los Colles (Coyes) - Down the road heading toward the Pecos River. Old Indian pit houses were located in the vicinity and may have had something to do with the name.
3. El Rincon - This Neighborhood was located at the base of Rowe Mesa as you drove out of town towards Las Vegas. It was sort of tucked away in the woods at the base of the mesa.
4. Abajo or Las Caleras  - This neighborhood was located across U.S. 85 and the AT&SF tracks from El Rincon. There was a place where you could get cal (calsomine) at some bluffs by the arroyo.
5. Aya Arriba - This was located between the roads going to Santa Fe and Pecos. It was called Arriba because you had to go up the road. Mostly the Atliano Ortiz family and their relatives there.
6. Rowe proper - This was the rest I guess. The neighborhoods that did not have a name fell in here. Included the areas by the church and the old schoolhouse.

Los Tres Benjamin Tapia's de San Miguel del Bado, New Mexico

Click on the image to make it larger.

The first Benjamin was born to Aparacio Tapia and Maria Emilia Urioste in January of 1895 probably in San Miguel del Bado, New Mexico. He was listed in the 1900 U.S. Federal Census as being 5 years of age and living with his father, mother and older sister Agrapina in San Miguel del Bado, New Mexico.

This 1st Benjamin must have died as a young boy because by the time the 1920 Census there is a 2nd Benjamin listed as being 8 years of age living in the household. This would put his birth date at sometime in 1912. Too old to be the Benjamin listed in the 1900 Census. The 1920 Census is a bit off on this birth date, in reality this Benjamin was born in 1908.

Birth and baptismal information for the 2nd Benjamin comes from page 124 of the publication Bautismos, San Miguel del Vado, 1 January 1900 - 25 May 1912 published by the Hispanic Genealogical Research Center of New Mexico. It lists this Benjamin  as being born on the 21st of December of 1908 and being baptized on the 5th of January of 1909. The padrinos were Miguel Ortiz and Trinidad Duran.

Sad to say but this Benjamin died at an earlier age than his brother whom he was named after because the 3rd Benjamin was born on 13 of March of 1911. Birth and baptismal information for the birth of the 3rd Benjamin comes from page 160 of the publication Bautismos, San Miguel del Vado, 1 January 1900 - 25 May 1912 published by the Hispanic Genealogical Research Center of New Mexico. His padrinos were Matias Lopez and Marcelina Sandoval.

It was not unusual in New Mexico at the time this was going on for parents to name newborn children for siblings that had passed away. A way to mitigate the grief of losing a young child. Aparacio Tapia and Maria Emilia Urioste went through this three different times with sons named Benjamin.

My own maternal grandfather, Roman Benavidez, was named after a brother of the same name that had died earlier. Roman Benavidez and his wife Ignacia Archuleta went on to lose a child by the name of Emilia only to name their next daughter Emilia. A way to mitigate the grief felt for the loss of their other child.

New Mexico Education, 1875 Style.

School In Watrous, New Mexico

This image (click to enlarge) comes from page 18 of the publication New Mexico's best Ghost Towns written by Phillip Varney and published by the University of New Mexico Press in 1981. My father, like his father before him, was born in Watrous or the surrounding area. One or both most likely attended this school. My father left in the 1930's along with most of his relatives.

The following three paragraphs come from page 71 of the book Maxwell Land Grant, A New Mexican Item authored by William A. Keleher and first published by in 1942 by the Royal Press and a revised edition published be the Argosy-Antiquarian LTD, New York, N.Y. in 1962.

Educationally, New Mexico in 1875, according to reports compiled by W.G. Ritch, Secretary of the Territory, was not in any too flourishing a condition.

Ritch's report shows that there were 128 public schools in the territory with 143 teachers and 5,420 pupils. In forty of the schools English and Spanish were taught. There were in addition 31 private schools, in 21 of which both languages were taught, with a total of 998 pupils.

There were also eight Pueblo Indian Schools with 10 teachers and 170 scholars. There were 10 institutitions of secondary instruction, with about 45 teachers and 400 scholars.