Cambray is a

locality Locality may refer to: * Locality (association), an association of community regeneration organizations in England * Locality (linguistics) * Locality (settlement) * Suburbs and localities (Australia), in which a locality is a geographic subdivis ...

in eastern

Luna County, New Mexico Luna County is a county located in the U.S. state of New Mexico. As of the 2010 census, the population was 25,095. Its county seat is Deming. This county abuts the Mexican border. Luna County comprises the Deming, NM Micropolitan Statistical ...

at an elevation of . It is located one mile west of the Doña Ana county line.Julyan, Robert (1998) "Cambray" ''The Place Names of New Mexico'' (revised edition) University of New Mexico Press, Albuquerque, New Mexico
page 55
Cambray was first a water stop on the

Southern Pacific Railroad The Southern Pacific (or Espee from the railroad initials- SP) was an American Class I railroad network that existed from 1865 to 1996 and operated largely in the Western United States. The system was operated by various companies under the ...

, then a stop along

U.S. Route 70 U.S. Route 70 or U.S. Highway 70 (US 70) is an east–west United States highway that runs for from eastern North Carolina to east-central Arizona. It is a major east–west highway of the Southeastern United States, Southeastern, Southern Unite ...

and U.S. Route 80. When the highway was realigned in 1956, Cambray slowly fell into decline and became a

ghost town Ghost Town(s) or Ghosttown may refer to: * Ghost town, a town that has been abandoned Film and television * Ghost Town (1936 film), ''Ghost Town'' (1936 film), an American Western film by Harry L. Fraser * Ghost Town (1956 film), ''Ghost Town'' ...

History

Cambray was established in 1892, the

drilled a well to create a water stop. The location was recognized by the

United States Postal Service The United States Postal Service (USPS), also known as the Post Office, U.S. Mail, or Postal Service, is an independent agency of the executive branch of the United States federal government responsible for providing postal service in the U ...

as a mailing destination in 1893. The main automobile route through Cambray was originally part of State Road 4. In 1917, the

Dixie Overland Highway The Dixie Overland Highway was an auto trail across the southern United States. It was conceived in July 1914 by the Automobile Club of Savannah, which envisioned a practical all-year driving route from Georgia to California. It was originally ...

, a transcontinental

auto trail The system of auto trails was an informal network of marked routes that existed in the United States and Canada in the early part of the 20th century. Marked with colored bands on utility poles, the trails were intended to help travellers in ...

, was established over Route 4 through Cambray and became the main highway between Deming and

El Paso, Texas El Paso (; "the pass") is a city in and the county seat, seat of El Paso County, Texas, El Paso County in the western corner of the U.S. state of Texas. The 2020 population of the city from the United States Census Bureau, U.S. Census Bureau w ...

. The

Bankhead Highway The Bankhead Highway was a United States cross-country automobile highway connecting Washington, D.C., and San Diego. The Bankhead Highway's beginnings can be traced back to 1916 when the Bankhead Highway Association was organized to promote the h ...

was added to the route in 1920, followed by the Old Spanish Trail in 1923. On November 11, 1926, the highway was added to the newly created

U.S. Highway System The United States Numbered Highway System (often called U.S. Routes or U.S. Highways) is an integrated network of roads and highways numbered within a nationwide grid in the contiguous United States. As the designation and numbering of these h ...

as U.S. Route 80. Cambray would enjoy a short but successful second life as a stop along new US 80 and

US 70 U.S. Route 70 or U.S. Highway 70 (US 70) is an east–west United States highway that runs for from eastern North Carolina to east-central Arizona. It is a major east–west highway of the Southeastern, Southern and Southwestern United States. ...

when the latter highway was also designated over the route. During the 1930s, the

Civilian Conservation Corps The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) was a voluntary government work relief program that ran from 1933 to 1942 in the United States for unemployed, unmarried men ages 18–25 and eventually expanded to ages 17–28. The CCC was a major part of ...

constructed a highway overpass over the Southern Pacific Railroad and built several

irrigation canals Irrigation (also referred to as watering) is the practice of applying controlled amounts of water to land to help grow crops, landscape plants, and lawns. Irrigation has been a key aspect of agriculture for over 5,000 years and has been develop ...

as part of the

New Deal The New Deal was a series of programs, public work projects, financial reforms, and regulations enacted by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in the United States between 1933 and 1939. Major federal programs agencies included the Civilian Cons ...

program. The CCC workers were housed in an auto court on the side of US 80 in Cambray and did most of their business at the town's general store. During the mid 20th Century, Cambray enjoyed a peak population of 75 residents. The end of the small town's success arrived in 1956, when US 70 and US 80 were re-aligned onto a new highway bypassing Cambray. Today, the newer route is part of

Interstate 10 Interstate 10 (I-10) is the southernmost cross-country highway in the American Interstate Highway System. I-10 is the fourth-longest Interstate in the United States at , following I-90, I-80, and I-40. This freeway is part of the originally pl ...

. The population fell to a single family and the roadside businesses closed. Many of the abandoned buildings fell into disrepair as Cambray became a

. The only dedicated road serving Cambray is still the former route of US 70 and US 80, now

New Mexico State Road 549 State Road 549 (NM 549) is a , paved state highway in Luna and Doña Ana counties in the U.S. state of New Mexico. NM 549's western terminus is within the city of Deming at the road's junction with I-10 Business. The road' ...

References

{{authority control Unincorporated communities in Luna County, New Mexico Unincorporated communities in New Mexico Ghost towns in New Mexico U.S. Route 80 1892 establishments in New Mexico Territory U.S. Route 70

History

See also

References