Shalam Colony Historical Marker: Doña Ana County

Is it possible to live within a few miles of a historical site and have absolutely no idea that it ever existed? Well, of course it is, but let me rephrase that. Is it possible to be interested in the history of your area, and to even claim to be an expert on a few historical topics in your area, and have no idea about a historical site just five miles from your front door? I would have to say the answer to that is YES.

Shalam Colony (which you can see located on my custom map HERE) is part of what my wife referred to as the "dark history" of Las Cruces. Every town has its own oddball history according to her, and this is definitely true as it relates to the Las Cruces area of central Doña Ana County in south central New Mexico.

It's not so much that Shalam Colony is a dark place, but it does give me the creeps going out there and poking around.

Shalam Colony was started north of Las Cruces in 1884 by Dr. John Ballou Newbrough, a dentist from New York. The Land of Shalam was named after The Book of Shalam, a chapter in Oahspe, a new bible written by Newbrough, one that he claimed was not a sacred text, but rather a history of religion going back over 24,000 years.

The religious principles that led Newbrough and his followers, called "Faithists," to start Shalam Colony, included gathering the orphaned children of the world and raising them according to their strict principles.

It is claimed that the people of the village of Doña Ana, located 3 miles to the east, helped the Faithists survive their first year in New Mexico, until they were able to establish housing and crops of their own. New Mexico is known for its mild winters, thankfully for the Faithists, for if that winter was harsh, they might not have survived.

The colony grew, but had financial difficulty, and health issues, including the death of Newbrough from influenza. All of these issues led to the closing of the colony in 1901. The children living there were sent to orphanages in Dallas and Denver. When I first read about Shalam, I thought it had the makings for a very scary horror story, but the reality is much more pedestrian.

When I walked around in the area near the original colony, on Shalam Colony Trail near the Rio Grande, I enjoyed how quiet it was, but also how sinister the wind sounded blowing through the dormant pecan trees.

If you take the time to visit the Shalam historical marker, located on NM Route 185 (also known as Valley Drive if you're in Las Cruces, or the Old Hatch Highway if you're traveling North), it's worth your time to drive two miles to the west down Shalam Colony Trail, and turn off onto Rocky Acres Trail (right after the Rio Grande River). Go up about 200 yards, and there's a dirt road. Follow that dirt road about half a mile up to the Prehistoric Trackways National Monument. It's well worth the hiking, and is one of the premiere fossilized footprint trackways in the world.


If you'd like to read more about Shalam Colony, please check out the following links (the source of my research):

• Shalam Colony: A Utopian Experiment: Located at the NMSU Archives, a great source of New Mexico history. 
• Shalam Colony on New Mexico History.org
• Information About the Faithist Movement on Wikipedia
• Information pdf on the Shalam Colony Museum in Las Cruces (I haven't been there, but I'm going to make a trip soon)

Pat Garrett Murder Site Historical Marker

There are many sites in Southern New Mexico that are famous for their parts in the Lincoln County War. Lincoln County itself is located about 80 miles to the East of Las Cruces, and is a beautiful place to visit. The village of Lincoln itself is quaint, and full of history. My brother was married at a small church there, and the sense of history and of being in a place frozen in time is something that anyone interested in New Mexico history has to experience.

 Most history buffs are familiar with the most famous of tales to come out of this conflict, and that is the tale of Billy the Kid. Billy the Kid is a famous figure in Doña Ana County due to the fact that he resided from time to time in the village of Mesilla. He even famously escaped from the Mesilla Courthouse, and was a fugitive on the run for the rest of his short life.

The other side of the "Kid" saga is Pat Garrett. Garrett was born in Alabama, and grew up in the South. In 1880, Garrett became sheriff of Lincoln County, and was charged with tracking Billy the Kid. On July 14, 1881, Garrett tracked Billy to Fort Sumner, New Mexico, where he shot and killed the famous outlaw.

Pat Garrett worked primarily in southern New Mexico until 1896, when Colonel Albert Fountain of Mesilla went missing (the murder remains a mystery to this day, and the stories that are told about it can be quite entertaining and terrifying). In response, Garrett was named the sheriff of Doña Ana County. The story of Garrett tracking and arresting those who he thought responsible for Fountain's disappearance is quite interesting. The men were acquitted at trial.

Garrett spent his final years as a personal friend of President Theodore Roosevelt, who appointed Pat as a customs collector in El Paso, Texas.

Garrett settled in and owned land north east of Las Cruces near present day Highway 70. An eventual land dispute with a nearby land owner, Jesse Wayne Brazel, who was grazing goats on Garrett's land, led to Garrett being shot by Brazel, once in the stomach and once in the head.

The actual site of Garrett's murder is not where the historical marker is located. The marker is located in the parking lot of a daycare center, easily seen when traveling east on US Highway 70 (you can see this location marked on the map HERE).

The Friends of Pat Garrett has been hard at work trying to secure the actual spot of Garrett's murder for preservation now that suburban sprawl has started on the East Mesa of Las Cruces (I should know, I live up on the East Mesa). You can also learn a little more about the actual murder site of Garrett at Photography on the Net.