Hagan is 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), an American Western film by Harry L. Fraser
* ''Ghost Town'' (1956 film), an American Western film by All ...
in
Sandoval County,
New Mexico
)
, population_demonym = New Mexican ( es, Neomexicano, Neomejicano, Nuevo Mexicano)
, seat = Santa Fe
, LargestCity = Albuquerque
, LargestMetro = Tiguex
, OfficialLang = None
, Languages = English, Spanish ( New Mexican), Navajo, Ke ...
,
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
, about southeast of
San Felipe Pueblo
San Felipe Pueblo ( Eastern Keres: Katishtya, Navajo ''Tsédááʼkin'') is a census-designated place (CDP) in Sandoval County, New Mexico, United States, and is located 10 miles (16 km) north of Bernalillo. As of the 2000 census, the CDP p ...
.
History
In 1902 the New Mexico Fuel and Iron Company was established to develop coal mines in the locality. The name "Hagan" was chosen for the site in 1904, named after a local official of the
AT&SF
The Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway , often referred to as the Santa Fe or AT&SF, was one of the larger railroads in the United States. The railroad was chartered in February 1859 to serve the cities of Atchison and Topeka, Kansas, and ...
Railroad, no doubt to encourage the extension of a railroad spur to serve the mines. Initially, coal was hauled by wagon to the railroad main line at San Felipe. Work on the spur was begun in 1908 but was suspended within months, stalling development of the community of about 60 residents for a decade.
In 1919 a "gentleman entrepreneur",
Jean Justin DePraslin of
, convinced investors to put up nearly $450,000 to develop the Hagan Coal Mine, including housing, mine buildings and a power plant. A further $300,000 was raised for a new railroad, the
Rio Grande Eastern, and the line was completed in May 1924. As well as the coal, the railroad hauled brick and tile from a brick factory adjacent to the ruins of
Tonque Pueblo, a few miles north of the town.
DePraslin developed Hagan as an ambitiously planned community intended for 500 residents. Over 100
adobe structures were built by ''adobero'' Abenicio Salazar of
Bernalillo
Bernalillo () is a town in Sandoval County, New Mexico, United States. As of the 2010 census, the town population was 8,320. It is the county seat of Sandoval County.
Bernalillo is part of the Albuquerque Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Histor ...
with a team of 100 laborers and 60 masons over a period of three years, in the
Pueblo Revival
The Pueblo Revival style or Santa Fe style is a regional architectural style of the Southwestern United States, which draws its inspiration from Santa Fe de Nuevo México's traditional Pueblo architecture, the Spanish missions, and Territor ...
style which was popular at the time. The town was well supplied with electricity and running water. Water was piped from a spring away, to a reservoir above the town. The general store was a two-story structure which housed a bank, post office, barber shop and pool hall as well as the general mercantile. An eight-grade school was set up to serve 70 pupils.
The town grew from 1924 to 1930 and the population peaked at about 200 people, mostly Italian and Slavic miners from the coalfields of
Raton and
Dawson, and local Hispanics from
Madrid
Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the Largest cities of the Europ ...
and
Los Cerrillos. But in the early 1930s the miners hit a layer of
shale which soon widened, eventually choking off coal production. By 1933 the railroad, never profitable, ceased operation and was dismantled, and in 1939 the Hagan Mine closed down.
Present day
Only the foundations and a few brick walls of the power plant, general store, reservoir, and a few smaller buildings remain. The site is visible from Indian Service Road 844/Madera Road which follows the railroad grade from San Felipe, but the ruins are on private land owned by the Diamond Tail Ranch and are usually not open to the public except by occasional organized tours.
Notes
References
* Harris, L.G. & Porter, P. ''Ghost towns alive: trips to New Mexico's past''. University of New Mexico Press, 2003.
* Myrick, D. "The Rio Grande Eastern Railway Corporation." In: ''New Mexico’s Railroads: A Historical Survey''. University of New Mexico Press, 1990.
{{Sandoval County, New Mexico
Ghost towns in New Mexico