San Miguel County () is a

county A county () is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesL. Brookes (ed.) '' Chambers Dictionary''. Edinburgh: Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, 2005. in some nations. The term is derived from the Old French denoti ...

in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its so ...

New Mexico New Mexico is a state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States. It is one of the Mountain States of the southern Rocky Mountains, sharing the Four Corners region with Utah, Colorado, and Arizona. It also ...

. As of the 2020 census, the population was 27,201. Its

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or parish (administrative division), civil parish. The term is in use in five countries: Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, and the United States. An equiva ...

Las Vegas Las Vegas, colloquially referred to as Vegas, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and the county seat of Clark County. The Las Vegas Valley metropolitan area is the largest within the greater Mojave Desert, and second-l ...

. San Miguel County comprises the Las Vegas Micropolitan Statistical Area, which is also included in the Albuquerque–Santa Fe–Las Vegas combined statistical area.

Geography

According to the

U.S. Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, 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 U.S. Census Bureau is part of the U ...

, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (0.4%) is water. The country is more than long from east to west and wide north to south and reaches from the

Great Plains The Great Plains is a broad expanse of plain, flatland in North America. The region stretches east of the Rocky Mountains, much of it covered in prairie, steppe, and grassland. They are the western part of the Interior Plains, which include th ...

to the

Rocky Mountains The Rocky Mountains, also known as the Rockies, are a major mountain range and the largest mountain system in North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch in great-circle distance, straight-line distance from the northernmost part of Western Can ...

. The highest elevation in the county is at Elk Mountain and the lowest elevation is on the

Canadian River The Canadian River is the longest tributary of the Arkansas River in the United States. It is about long, starting in Colorado and traveling through New Mexico, the Texas Panhandle, and Oklahoma. The drainage area is about . The eastern two thirds of the country is semi-arid

steppe In physical geography, a steppe () is an ecoregion characterized by grassland plains without closed forests except near rivers and lakes. Steppe biomes may include: * the montane grasslands and shrublands biome * the tropical and subtropica ...

grassland. The

Bell Ranch The Bell Ranch is a historic ranch in Tucumcari, New Mexico, United States of America. Owned by John Malone since 2010, it is one of the largest privately owned ranches in the United States. , Malone is the second largest land owner in the co ...

receives of precipitation annually, most in the summer months. The

conifer Conifers () are a group of conifer cone, cone-bearing Spermatophyte, seed plants, a subset of gymnosperms. Scientifically, they make up the phylum, division Pinophyta (), also known as Coniferophyta () or Coniferae. The division contains a sin ...

-clad higher elevations in the northwest corner of the country are cooler and receive more precipitation. Gascon (near Rociada) at an elevation of receives of annual precipitation. Wesner Springs at an elevation of on the slopes of Elk Mountain has a

subarctic climate The subarctic climate (also called subpolar climate, or boreal climate) is a continental climate with long, cold (often very cold) winters, and short, warm to cool summers. It is found on large landmasses, often away from the moderating effects of ...

(Dfc), receiving of precipitation annually.

Adjacent counties

* Mora County – north * Harding County – east * Quay County – southeast * Guadalupe County – south * Torrance County – southwest * Santa Fe County – west

National protected areas

* Las Vegas National Wildlife Refuge * Pecos National Historical Park (part) * Pecos Wilderness area (part) *

Santa Fe National Forest The Santa Fe National Forest is a protected national forest in northern New Mexico in the Southwestern United States. It was established in 1915 and covers . Elevations range from 5,300 feet (1600 m) to 13,103 feet (4000 m) at the su ...

(part)

History

San Miguel County was created in 1846 by the conquering United States' army in the

Mexican-American War Mexican Americans are Americans of full or partial Mexican descent. In 2022, Mexican Americans comprised 11.2% of the US population and 58.9% of all Hispanic and Latino Americans. In 2019, 71% of Mexican Americans were born in the United State ...

. New Mexico became part of the United States in the

Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo officially ended the Mexican–American War (1846–1848). It was signed on 2 February 1848 in the town of Villa de Guadalupe, Mexico City, Guadalupe Hidalgo. After the defeat of its army and the fall of the cap ...

of 1848. The boundaries of the country often changed until 1923 when its current boundaries were established. In 1835, prior to the American conquest, the Mexican government granted land to individuals and communities in what became San Miguel County. The largest grant was the Las Vegas Grant of (674 sqmi). Most of the grant land was designated as

common land Common land is collective land (sometimes only open to those whose nation governs the land) in which all persons have certain common rights, such as to allow their livestock to graze upon it, to collect wood, or to cut turf for fuel. A person ...

to be used by all the grantees and their descendants. The grant lands quickly attracted settlers, mostly Hispanics, to the frontier of New Mexico in a region still menaced by Native American (Indian) raids. The

Santa Fe Trail The Santa Fe Trail was a 19th-century route through central North America that connected Franklin, Missouri, with Santa Fe, New Mexico. Pioneered in 1821 by William Becknell, who departed from the Boonslick region along the Missouri River, the ...

, first travelled in 1821, passed through the county, linking New Mexico to the United States. The establishment of Fort Union nearby in 1851 increased the security of the region and provided employment for residents and a market for Las Vegas products. The coming of the railroad in 1879 expanded a market for ranch land and stimulated the livestock industry, especially of sheep for

wool Wool is the textile fiber obtained from sheep and other mammals, especially goats, rabbits, and camelids. The term may also refer to inorganic materials, such as mineral wool and glass wool, that have some properties similar to animal w ...

. The railroad company also harvested much of the timber in the country to make railroad ties. Anglo cattle ranchers moved into the area from Texas. By 1890, a few, mostly Anglo, ranchers controlled one-half of the grazing lands in San Miguel County. Chapter 11: Resistance and Reliance in Territorial New Mexico from ''The History of New Mexico.'' Homesteaders also moved into San Miguel County, claiming of land as allowed by the

1862 Homestead Act The Homestead Acts were several laws in the United States by which an applicant could acquire ownership of government land or the public domain, typically called a homestead. In all, more than of public land, or nearly 10 percent of t ...

. Both large ranchers and small homesteaders built homes, barns, and fenced grant land with

barbed-wire Roll of modern agricultural barbed wire Barbed wire, also known as barb wire or bob wire (in the Southern and Southwestern United States), is a type of steel fencing wire constructed with sharp edges or points arranged at intervals along the ...

, ignoring the claims by Hispanic residents of their rights to use the common land for crops, grazing, and timber harvest. With Hispanic residents losing land and access to irrigation water to speculators, ranchers, and homesteaders, the secretive Gorras Blancas, "White Hats," burst on the scene in San Miguel County in 1889. The night riding Gorras Blancas destroyed fences and burned barns and other buildings. The Gorras Blancas were successful in gaining public support, eliminating many fences, and preserving access to common lands, but the movement faded in the early 1890s and the march toward converting common lands into private ownership soon resumed. By 2004, of the original land of the Las Vegas grant, only remained in common ownership.

Demographics

2000 census

As of the 2000 census, there were 30,126 people, 11,134 households, and 7,537 families living in the county. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), 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 geog ...

was . There were 14,254 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 56.22%

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

, 0.78%

Black Black is a color that results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without chroma, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness.Eva Heller, ''P ...

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 1.82% Native American, 0.54% Asian, 0.08%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...

, 36.21% from other races, and 4.33% from two or more races. 77.96% of the population were

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race. There were 11,134 households, out of which 34.60% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.50% were

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

living together, 16.40% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.30% were non-families. 26.60% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.20% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.58 and the average family size was 3.10. In the county, the population was spread out, with 27.40% under the age of 18, 10.90% from 18 to 24, 27.00% from 25 to 44, 22.90% from 45 to 64, and 11.70% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 96.70 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.90 males. The median income for a household in the county was $26,524, and the median income for a family was $31,250. Males had a median income of $27,307 versus $22,588 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the county was $13,268. About 19.90% of families and 24.40% 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 27.80% of those under age 18 and 25.90% of those age 65 or over.

2010 census

As of the 2010 census, there were 29,393 people, 11,978 households, and 7,275 families living in the county. The population density was . There were 15,595 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 66.6% white, 1.7% American Indian, 1.4% black or African American, 0.8% Asian, 0.1% Pacific islander, 25.4% from other races, and 3.9% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 76.8% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 6.3% were

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

, 5.3% were English, and 1.6% were American. Of the 11,978 households, 28.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 38.6% were married couples living together, 14.9% had a female householder with no husband present, 39.3% were non-families, and 32.5% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.34 and the average family size was 2.95. The median age was 40.7 years. The median income for a household in the county was $32,213 and the median income for a family was $42,888. Males had a median income of $35,176 versus $28,351 for females. The per capita income for the county was $18,508. About 15.7% of families and 24.8% of the population were below the

, including 29.6% of those under age 18 and 22.7% of those age 65 or over.

Communities

City

(county seat)

Villages

* Mosquero (part) * Pecos

Census-designated places

* Conchas Dam * East Pecos * North San Ysidro *

Pueblo Pueblo refers to the settlements of the Pueblo peoples, Native American tribes in the Southwestern United States, currently in New Mexico, Arizona, and Texas. The permanent communities, including some of the oldest continually occupied settlement ...

* Ribera *

Rowe Rowe may refer to: Places *Rowe, Massachusetts, U.S. *Rowe, New Mexico, U.S. *Rowes Bay, Queensland, a suburb of Townsville Australia *Rowe, now Rówek, Poland Other *Rowe (surname) *Rowe (musician), solo project of Becky Louise Filip, former mem ...

* San Jose * Sena *

Soham Soham ( ) is a town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the district of East Cambridgeshire, in Cambridgeshire, England, just off the A142 road, A142 between Ely, Cambridgeshire, Ely and Newmarket, Suffolk, Newmarket. Its population ...

* Tecolote * Tecolotito * Villanueva

Other communities

* Bernal * El Cerrito * El Porvenir * Garita *

Holy Ghost Most Christian denominations believe the Holy Spirit, or Holy Ghost, to be the third divine Person of the Trinity, a triune god manifested as God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit, each being God. Nontrinitarian Christians, who ...

* Ilfeld * Montezuma * Rociada * San Miguel del Vado * Sapello * Serafina * South San Ysidro * Tererro * Trementina * Valles de San Geronimo

Ghost town

* Las Ruedas

Education

Public school districts include: �
Text list
/ref> * Las Vegas City Public Schools * Pecos Independent Schools * Santa Rosa Consolidated Schools * West Las Vegas Public Schools Tertiary education institutions in San Miguel County include: * Armand Hammer United World College of the American West * Luna Community College * New Mexico Highlands University Native American Preparatory School, a private school, was in operation in the county until 2002. – Clippin
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Newspapers.com Ancestry.com LLC is an American genealogy company based in Lehi, Utah. The largest for-profit genealogy company in the world, it operates a network of genealogical, historical records, and related genetic genealogy websites. It is owned by The ...

. ''Canku Ota'', June 1, 2002.

Notable people

Antonia Apodaca Antonia Apodaca (November 1, 1923 – January 25, 2020) was an American musician and songwriter known for her performances of traditional New Mexico music. She came to wider prominence through her performances in the ''La Música de los Viejitos' ...

(1923–2020) born in Rociada, folk musician and composer * Margaret Larkin (1899–1967), born in

, writer and musician * María Dolores Gonzáles (1917–1975), leader in bilingual education in New Mexico

Politics

San Miguel County has traditionally been heavily Democratic. The last time it voted Republican for president was 1956, and from 1992-2020 no Republican cracked 30% of the vote.

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...

broke through this particular record in 2024, when he carried 34.99% of the vote; his performance in the county was the best by a Republican presidential candidate since Reagan in 1984.

References

External links

* {{Coord, 35.47, -104.83, display=title, type:adm2nd_region:US-NM_source:UScensus1990 1852 establishments in New Mexico Territory Populated places established in 1852 Hispanic and Latino American culture in New Mexico