Villanueva is an

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a region that is not governed by a local municipal corporation. Widespread unincorporated communities and areas are a distinguishing feature of the United States and Canada. Most other countries of the world either have ...

and

census-designated place A census-designated place (CDP) is a concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only. CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the counterparts of incorporated places, such ...

in San Miguel 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, Ker ...

, United States. Known as La Cuesta until 1890, it is located along the

Pecos River The Pecos River ( es, Río Pecos) originates in north-central New Mexico and flows into Texas, emptying into the Rio Grande. Its headwaters are on the eastern slope of the Sangre de Cristo mountain range in Mora County north of Pecos, New Mexico ...

and

New Mexico State Road 3 New Mexico State Road 3 (NM 3) is a north-south state highway in the state of New Mexico. NM 3's southern terminus is at U.S. Route 54 (US 54) in the small town of Duran, and the northern terminus is at Frontage Road 2116 (FR 2116) ...

. Villanueva has the ZIP code 87583. The 87583

ZIP Code Tabulation Area ZIP Code Tabulation Areas (ZCTAs) are statistical entities developed by the United States Census Bureau for tabulating summary statistics. These were introduced with the Census 2000 and continued with the 2010 Census and 5 year American Community S ...

had a population of 234 in the 2010 United States census, compared to 267 in

2000 File:2000 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Protests against Bush v. Gore after the 2000 United States presidential election; Heads of state meet for the Millennium Summit; The International Space Station in its infant form as seen from ...

. A total of 211 residents of Villanueva in 2010 identified themselves as

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to Vic ...

Demographics

History

Prior to 1786, when a peace treaty was concluded with the

Comanche The Comanche or Nʉmʉnʉʉ ( com, Nʉmʉnʉʉ, "the people") are a Native American tribe from the Southern Plains of the present-day United States. Comanche people today belong to the federally recognized Comanche Nation, headquartered in La ...

, Spanish settlements in New Mexico were confined to 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 ...

valley. The reduced threat from Comanche raids permitted the expansion eastwards of Spanish settlements onto the

Great Plains The Great Plains (french: Grandes Plaines), sometimes simply "the Plains", is a broad expanse of flatland in North America. It is located west of the Mississippi River and east of the Rocky Mountains, much of it covered in prairie, steppe, an ...

. Villanueva was one of the settlements founded in the

Valley as part of that expansion. A principal reason for founding the Pecos Valley settlements was to defend the Spanish and Pueblan settlements in the Rio Grande valley from raids by

Apache The Apache () are a group of culturally related Native American tribes in the Southwestern United States, which include the Chiricahua, Jicarilla, Lipan, Mescalero, Mimbreño, Ndendahe (Bedonkohe or Mogollon and Nednhi or Carrizaleño an ...

and other Indian peoples. Villanueva, a

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...

colonial village, was founded in 1808 and originally called ''La Cuesta'' (Spanish, ''hill'' or ''slope'') because the village sits on top of a steeply sloping hill or

cuesta A cuesta (from Spanish ''cuesta'' "slope") is a hill or ridge with a gentle slope on one side, and a steep slope on the other. In geology the term is more specifically applied to a ridge where a harder sedimentary rock overlies a softer layer ...

overlooking the Pecos River.Geology of Villanueva area
/ref> La Cuesta was one of the communities located within the

San Miguel del Vado Land Grant The San Miguel del Vado Land Grant (also known as the San Miguel del Bado Land Grant) is one of the Spanish land grants in New Mexico. On November 24, 1794, 53 men submitted a petition for land and were granted temporary possession on November 24, ...

. The grant was approved by the Spanish government in 1794 and settlements established in the land grant area included Bernal, El Pueblo, Entrnosa, Guzano, La Cuesta, Las Mulas, Puertecito, San Jose del Vado, and

San Miguel del Vado San Miguel del Vado (, also spelled ''Bado'') is an unincorporated community in San Miguel County, New Mexico, United States. Description The community is located about south of Interstate Highway 25 and Ribera, a census designated place. The ...

. Families from La Cuesta established the community of Anton Chico, on the Pecos River downstream from La Cuesta, in 1822 and El Cerrito, downstream from La Cuesta, from 1824-1827. A church, still existing, was built in La Cuesta in 1831. By 1835 and thereafter, La Cuesta was one of the most populous settlements in the Pecos Valley. In 1845 La Cuesta probably had a population approaching 500 people. Many

Cibolero A Cibolero (plural: ''ciboleros'') was a Spanish colonial (and later Mexican) buffalo hunter from New Mexico. The Spanish word for buffalo as used in New Mexico is ''cibolo''; hence, the name ''Cibolero'' for buffalo hunter. Activities Ciboleros hu ...

s (buffalo hunters) and

Comanchero The Comancheros were a group of 18th- and 19th-century traders based in northern and central New Mexico. They made their living by trading with the nomadic Great Plains Indian tribes in northeastern New Mexico, West Texas, and other parts of the ...

s (traders with the

Plains Indians Plains Indians or Indigenous peoples of the Great Plains and Canadian Prairies are the Native American tribes and First Nation band governments who have historically lived on the Interior Plains (the Great Plains and Canadian Prairies) of N ...

), of the 19th century originated from La Cuesta and other Hispano communities along the Pecos River. In 1890, the community was renamed to Villanueva, for a prominent local family.

Climate

Villanueva has a BWk (Semi-arid cold

steppe In physical geography, a steppe () is an ecoregion characterized by grassland plains without trees apart from those near rivers and lakes. Steppe biomes may include: * the montane grasslands and shrublands biome * the temperate grasslands, ...

climate) under the

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, notabl ...

system. Under the

Trewartha climate classification The Trewartha climate classification (TCC) or the Köppen–Trewartha climate classification (KTC) is a climate classification system first published by American geographer Glenn Thomas Trewartha in 1966. It is a modified version of the Köppen ...

Villanueva has a BSK (Semi-arid steppe with hot summers and cool winters). Precipitation in the community is concentrated from May to October although an average of of snow is received each winter.

Area attractions

East of Villanueva is Villanueva State Park, a colorful canyon cut by the

Education

It is in the

West Las Vegas Schools West Las Vegas Public Schools is a school district based in Las Vegas, New Mexico, United States. The district covers a area in southern San Miguel County. Within the city of Las Vegas, the district serves areas located west of the Gallinas R ...

school district.

West Las Vegas High School West Las Vegas High School (WLVHS) is a public senior high school in Las Vegas, New Mexico and part of the West Las Vegas Schools District. Founded in 1947, it is the oldest high school in the city. The mascot of WLVHS is the Don, and the schoo ...

is the area high school.

References

External links

Villanueva community profile
* 1870 Census of La Cuesta (Villanueva)
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{{authority control Unincorporated communities in New Mexico Unincorporated communities in San Miguel County, New Mexico