Hatch is a village in Doña Ana County,

New Mexico ) , population_demonym = New Mexican ( es, Neomexicano, Neomejicano, Nuevo Mexicano) , seat = Santa Fe, New Mexico, Santa Fe , LargestCity = Albuquerque, New Mexico, Albuquerque , LargestMetro = Albuquerque metropolitan area, Tiguex , Offi ...

, United States. The population was 1,648 at the 2010 census. The town is experiencing moderate growth, along with its outliers of Salem, Arrey,

Derry Derry, officially Londonderry (), is the second-largest city in Northern Ireland and the fifth-largest city on the island of Ireland. The name ''Derry'' is an anglicisation of the Old Irish name (modern Irish: ) meaning 'oak grove'. The ...

, and Rincon. Hatch is widely known as the "Chile Capital of the World," for growing a wide variety of peppers, especially the New Mexican cuisine staple, and one of New Mexico's state vegetables, the

New Mexico chile New Mexico chile or New Mexican chile (Scientific name: ''Capsicum annuum'' 'New Mexico Group'; es, chile de Nuevo México, ) is a cultivar group of the chile pepper from the US state of New Mexico, first grown by Pueblo and Hispano communiti ...

History

Hatch was originally settled as Santa Barbara in 1851; however, Apache raids drove the farmers away until 1853, when the nearby Fort Thorn was established.Julyan, Robert Hixson (1998) "Hatch " ''The place names of New Mexico'' (2nd ed.) University of New Mexico Press, Albuquerque, NM, p. 162, Fort Thorn closed in 1859, and the town was abandoned again in 1860. It was not until 1875 that it was re-occupied and at that time it was renamed "Hatch" for Indian fighter

Edward Hatch Edward Hatch (December 22, 1832 – April 11, 1889) was a career American soldier who served as a general in the Union Army during the American Civil War. After the war, he became the first commander of the 9th U.S. Cavalry Regiment, a buffalo so ...

, who was then commander of the military

District of New Mexico The District of New Mexico was a military district of the United States Army in the Territory of New Mexico that existed from 1865 to 1890. The District of Arizona and the District of New Mexico replaced the Department of New Mexico from June 27 ...

.Archuletta, Phil T. and Holden, Sharyl S. (2003) "Hatch" ''Traveling New Mexico: A Guide to the Historical and State Park Markers'' Sunstone Press, Santa Fe, NM, page 111,

Geography

Hatch is located at (32.664919, -107.158668). According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of th ...

, the village has a total area of , all land. The village is located just off

Interstate 25 Interstate 25 (I-25) is a major Interstate Highway in the western United States. It is primarily a north–south highway, serving as the main route through New Mexico, Colorado, and Wyoming. I-25 stretches from I-10 at Las Cruces, New Mexi ...

, about northwest of Las Cruces, and approximately northwest of

El Paso, Texas El Paso (; "the pass") is a city in and the seat of El Paso County in the western corner of the U.S. state of Texas. The 2020 population of the city from the U.S. Census Bureau was 678,815, making it the 23rd-largest city in the U.S., the ...

Demographics

It is part of the Las Cruces

Metropolitan Statistical Area In the United States, a metropolitan statistical area (MSA) is a geographical region with a relatively high population density at its core and close economic ties throughout the area. Such regions are neither legally incorporated as a city or tow ...

. As of the

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses inc ...

of 2000, there were 1,673 people, 538 households, and 402 families residing in the village. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical term.Matt RosenberPopu ...

was 540.2 people per square mile (208.4/km). There were 635 housing units at an average density of 205.0 per square mile (79.1/km). The racial makeup of the village was 46.03%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White ...

, 0.36%

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

, 0.96% Native American, 0.24%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the Pacific Islands. As an ethnic/ racial term, it is used to describe the original peoples—inhabitants and diasporas—of any of the three major subregions of O ...

, 50.03% from

other races Other often refers to: * Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy Other or The Other may also refer to: Film and television * ''The Other'' (1913 film), a German silent film directed by Max Mack * ''The Other'' (1930 film), a ...

, and 2.39% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, 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 viceroyalties for ...

or Latino of any race were 79.20% of the population. There were 538 households, out of which 43.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.7% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognized union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between ...

living together, 14.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.1% were non-families. 20.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.11, and the average family size was 3.63. In the village, the population was spread out, with 35.7% under the age of 18, 9.7% from 18 to 24, 24.3% from 25 to 44, 17.9% from 45 to 64, and 12.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 30 years. For every 100 females, there were 94.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.9 males. The median income for a household in the village was $21,250, and the median income for a family was $23,819. Males had a median income of $21,923 versus $17,188 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population. Per capita i ...

for the village was $14,619. About 28.5% of families and 34.5% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 50.1% of those under age 18 and 14.6% of those age 65 or over. Ristras and sacks, Hatch NM

Economy

The Hatch Chile Festival is an annual event that occurs each

Labor Day Labor Day is a federal holiday in the United States celebrated on the first Monday in September to honor and recognize the American labor movement and the works and contributions of laborers to the development and achievements of the United St ...

. This event attracts people worldwide to a place known as the chile capital of the world. The small town has accommodated up to 30,000 people for this event. This small farming community is known worldwide for raising renowned chiles. By 2012, Hatch chiles were being marketed under their name in most major urban markets in the US. Other crops such as

onion An onion (''Allium cepa'' L., from Latin ''cepa'' meaning "onion"), also known as the bulb onion or common onion, is a vegetable that is the most widely cultivated species of the genus '' Allium''. The shallot is a botanical variety of the on ...

cotton Cotton is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective case, around the seeds of the cotton plants of the genus '' Gossypium'' in the mallow family Malvaceae. The fiber is almost pure cellulose, and can contain minor pe ...

, and

corn Maize ( ; ''Zea mays'' subsp. ''mays'', from es, maíz after tnq, mahiz), also known as corn (North American and Australian English), is a cereal grain first domesticated by indigenous peoples in southern Mexico about 10,000 years ago. The ...

are also raised there.

Irrigation 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 devel ...

of local farms is accomplished by wells pumping ground water along with surface water irrigation ditches. These divert water from 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 ...

and two lakes approximately north of Hatch named Caballo (

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 ...

for "horse") and Elephant Butte Reservoir (named after a rock formation in the middle of the lake that looks similar to an elephant). Hatch is northwest of

Las Cruces, New Mexico Las Cruces (; "the crosses") is the second-largest city in the U.S. state of New Mexico and the seat of Doña Ana County. As of the 2020 census the population was 111,385. Las Cruces is the largest city in both Doña Ana County and southern Ne ...

, on

, and south of

Spaceport America Spaceport America, formerly the Southwest Regional Spaceport, is an FAA-licensed spaceport located on of State Trust Land in the Jornada del Muerto desert basin north of Las Cruces, New Mexico, and southeast of Truth or Consequences. Wit ...

, a new purpose-built

spaceport A spaceport or cosmodrome is a site for launching or receiving spacecraft, by analogy to a seaport for ships or an airport for aircraft. The word ''spaceport'', and even more so ''cosmodrome'', has traditionally been used for sites capable ...

being built by the New Mexico Spaceport Authority (NMSA) with

state State may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State * ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States * ''Our S ...

and county funding.New era draws closer: Spaceport dedicates runway on New Mexico ranch
''

El Paso Times The ''El Paso Times'' is the newspaper for the US city of El Paso, Texas. The newspaper has an approximate daily circulation of 65,000 and 125,000 on Sundays. The paper is the only English-language daily in El Paso (when the ''El Paso Herald-Pos ...

'', 2010-10-23, accessed 2010-10-25. ''"two-thirds of the $212 million required to build the spaceport came from the state of New Mexico... The rest came from construction bonds backed by a tax approved by voters in Doña Ana and Sierra counties.''" In 2012, the NMSA announced it would be building a spaceport visitor's center in Hatch.

Education

Hatch Valley Public Schools Hatch Valley Public Schools is a school district headquartered in Hatch, New Mexico. In addition to Hatch, the district's area includes Garfield, Placitas, Rincon, Rodey, and Salem. History In February 2021, during the COVID-19 pandemic in N ...

is the local school district.

References

External links

*
Hatch Chile Festival 2008
Creative Commons gallery at Flickr {{authority control Villages in Doña Ana County, New Mexico Villages in New Mexico Populated places established in 1851 Populated places established in 1875 1851 establishments in New Mexico Territory 1875 establishments in New Mexico Territory New Mexico populated places on the Rio Grande