The Otowi Historic District is a

historic district A historic district or heritage district is a section of a city which contains older buildings considered valuable for historical or architectural reasons. In some countries or jurisdictions, historic districts receive legal protection from c ...

in northern

Santa Fe County Santa Fe County ( es, Condado de Santa Fe; meaning ''Holy faith'' in Spanish) is located in the U.S. state of New Mexico. As of the 2010 census, the population was 144,170, making it New Mexico's third-most populous county, after Bernalillo Cou ...

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, Ker ...

, having four

contributing buildings In the law regulating historic districts in the United States, a contributing property or contributing resource is any building, object, or structure which adds to the historical integrity or architectural qualities that make the historic distric ...

and three

contributing structures In the law regulating historic districts in the United States, a contributing property or contributing resource is any building, object, or structure which adds to the historical integrity or architectural qualities that make the historic distric ...

including

Otowi Suspension Bridge The Otowi Suspension Bridge, spanning the Rio Grande River near San Ildefonso, New Mexico, is a wooden suspension bridge built in 1924. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1997. The bridge has been closed to vehicular tra ...

and was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

in 1975. Otowi (

Tewa The Tewa are a linguistic group of Pueblo Native Americans who speak the Tewa language and share the Pueblo culture. Their homelands are on or near the Rio Grande in New Mexico north of Santa Fe. They comprise the following communities: * ...

, ''p'otsuivi'', "gap where water sinks") is a place on the west bank of the

Rio Grande The Rio Grande ( and ), known in Mexico as the Río Bravo del Norte or simply the Río Bravo, is one of the principal rivers (along with the Colorado River) in the southwestern United States and in northern Mexico. The length of the Rio G ...

at the head of

White Rock Canyon White Rock is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Los Alamos County, New Mexico. It is one of two major population centers in the county; the other is Los Alamos (the county seat). The population was 5,725 at the 201 ...

. Established in 1886 with the name ''White Rock Cañon'', it was little more than a stop (with a salvaged

boxcar A boxcar is the North American ( AAR) term for a railroad car that is enclosed and generally used to carry freight. The boxcar, while not the simplest freight car design, is considered one of the most versatile since it can carry most ...

for a station building) and a river crossing on the D&RGW's Santa Fe Branch, the

narrow-gauge A narrow-gauge railway (narrow-gauge railroad in the US) is a railway with a track gauge narrower than standard . Most narrow-gauge railways are between and . Since narrow-gauge railways are usually built with tighter curves, smaller structur ...

railroad popularly known as the

Chili Line The Chili Line, officially known as the Santa Fe Branch, was a narrow-gauge branch of the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad (D&RGW). It ran from Antonito, Colorado, to Santa Fe, New Mexico. The Denver and Rio Grande Railway (D&RG) began co ...

. In 1923, nearby

Los Alamos Ranch School Los Alamos Ranch School was a private ranch school for boys in the northeast corner of Sandoval County, New Mexico (since 1949, within Los Alamos County), USA, founded in 1917 near San Ildefonso Pueblo. During World War II, the school was bought ...

requested a post office here using the ranch name. But a place near

Las Vegas Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...

already had that name, so three other names were submitted, and the US Post Office Department chose Otowi. A single-lane, suspension road bridge was built in 1924. The railroad was removed and the post office closed in 1941. When Los Alamos Ranch School was taken over by the

US Government The federal government of the United States (U.S. federal government or U.S. government) is the national government of the United States, a federal republic located primarily in North America, composed of 50 states, a city within a feder ...

in 1943 to become the secret Los Alamos nuclear physics laboratory, most passenger traffic serving the town and laboratory travelled on

New Mexico State Road 4 New Mexico State Road 4 (NM 4) is a state highway in Sandoval, Los Alamos, and Santa Fe counties in New Mexico, United States. It is significant as the main access route (in conjunction with NM 501 and NM 502) connecting the r ...

(now renumbered

NM 502 New Mexico State Road 502 (NM 502) is a state highway in New Mexico, United States of America. It is notable as the main access route to Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), Bandelier National Monument, Valles Caldera National Preserve, J ...

), crossing the river at Otowi (heavy freight traffic was routed further north, crossing the river at Española, due to limited loading on the suspension bridge). This place is the setting for Peggy Pond Church's historical memoir, ''The House at Otowi Bridge,'' (1959) which chronicles the life of

Edith Warner Edith Warner (1893–1951), also known by the nickname "The Woman at Otowi Crossing", was an American tea room owner in Los Alamos, New Mexico, who is best known for serving various scientists and military officers working at the Los Alamos Natio ...

from 1921 to 1951. She was postmistress and shopkeeper in the early years, and later the hostess of tearooms which became popular with scientists from the

Manhattan Project The Manhattan Project was a research and development undertaking during World War II that produced the first nuclear weapons. It was led by the United States with the support of the United Kingdom and Canada. From 1942 to 1946, the project w ...

References

{{authority control Historic districts on the National Register of Historic Places in New Mexico History of Santa Fe County, New Mexico Geography of Santa Fe County, New Mexico Northern Rio Grande National Heritage Area Traditional Native American dwellings National Register of Historic Places in Santa Fe County, New Mexico Native American history of New Mexico

See also

References