Truchas is a census-designated place in Rio Arriba County, New Mexico, United States. [1] Located along the scenic High Road to Taos, it is halfway between Santa Fe in the south, and Taos to the north.
Truchas has the ZIP code 87578. [2] The 87578 ZIP Code Tabulation Area, which includes the nearby village of Cordova, New Mexico, had a population of 560 at the 2010 census. [3]
Straddling a high ridge, the community began as the Nuestra Señora del Rosario, San Fernando y Santiago del Rio de las Truchas Grant, a Spanish land grant in 1754 and, due to its geography and location, remained a relatively unchanged outpost over the centuries. The land grant is commonly known as the Truchas Land Grant, gaining its name from the river that provides the water for irrigation of the land. Truchas is the Spanish word for trout.
Nuestra Señora del Rosario is also the name of the early nineteenth-century church in the center of the village. The church contains two large altar-screens ( reredos ) by the renowned santero Pedro Antonio Fresquis. One screen is dated 1821, and there are other fine examples of early nineteenth-century santero art in the church. [4]
The community remains remote, located at 8000 feet above sea level. A paved road did not enter the community till the early 1970s. These very same issues made the community attractive to artists moving to Northern New Mexico for its thriving arts scene, particularly after Robert Redford's The Milagro Beanfield War (1988) was filmed there. The arrival of the artist has altered the traditional pace of agricultural life among the original Spanish settlers, at times leading to tensions, which have more recently receded. There are also a number of vacation and second homes in the village and in the surrounding area.
Because the community had remained unchanged for so long, it still operates under many of the original Spanish land grant bylaws; for example, cars must share the roads with livestock.
The community has close views of the Truchas Peaks (nearly 5,000 feet above the community) and of the Española Valley.
Questa is a village in Taos County, New Mexico, United States. The population was 1,770 at the 2010 census. The village has trails into the Rio Grande Gorge, trout fishing, and mountain lakes with trails that access the Sangre de Cristo Mountains that overlook the area. Questa is on the Enchanted Circle Scenic Byway, near the confluence of the Rio Grande and the Red River. The "Gateway to the Rio Grande del Norte Monument", its visitors can drive to an overlook of the Red River meeting the Rio Grande in the depth of the gorge. The Carson National Forest parallels Questa to the east. The Columbine Hondo Wilderness and Latir Peak Wildness are in the Carson National Forest close to Questa.
The Spanish Missions in Texas comprise a series of religious outposts established by Spanish Catholic Dominicans, Jesuits, and Franciscans to spread the Catholic doctrine among area Native Americans, but with the added benefit of giving Spain a toehold in the frontier land. The missions introduced European livestock, fruits, vegetables, and industry into the Texas area. In addition to the presidio and pueblo (town), the misión was one of the three major agencies employed by the Spanish crown to extend its borders and consolidate its colonial territories. In all, twenty-six missions were maintained for different lengths of time within the future boundaries of the state of Texas.
Las Trampas or just Trampas, is an unincorporated hamlet in Taos County, New Mexico. Founded in 1751 to settle the Las Trampas Land Grant, its center retains the original early Spanish colonial defensive layout as well as the 18th-century San José de Gracia Church, one of the finest surviving examples of Spanish colonial church architecture in the United States. The village center was designated a National Historic Landmark District in 1967. The population in 2023 was 43.
The Catholic Church in Puerto Rico is part of the worldwide Catholic Church in communion with the pope in Rome. The 78 municipalities in Puerto Rico have a Catholic church which is located in the downtown area, normally across from the central plaza.
Villanueva is an unincorporated community and census-designated place in San Miguel County, New Mexico, United States. Known as La Cuesta until 1890, it is located along the Pecos River and New Mexico State Road 3. Villanueva has the ZIP code 87583. The 87583 ZIP Code Tabulation Area had a population of 234 in the 2010 United States census, compared to 267 in 2000. A total of 211 residents of Villanueva in 2010 identified themselves as Hispanic.
Pilar is an unincorporated community in Taos County, New Mexico, United States. It is located on the Rio Grande.
El Prado is an unincorporated suburb on the north side of Taos, in Taos County, New Mexico, United States. It is generally bounded on the south by the town of Taos, to the east by Taos Pueblo lands, to the north by Arroyo Seco and Arroyo Hondo, and to the west by the Rio Grande Gorge. The elevation is 7,123 feet. U.S. Route 64 and New Mexico State Roads 150 and 522 run through El Prado.
The 56-mile (90 km) High Road to Taos is a scenic, winding road through the Sangre de Cristo Mountains between Santa Fe and Taos.. It winds through high desert, mountains, forests, small farms, and tiny Spanish land grant villages and Pueblo Indian villages. Scattered along the way are the galleries and studios of traditional artisans and artists drawn by the natural beauty. It has been recognized by the state of New Mexico as an official scenic byway.
Carson is an unincorporated community in southwestern Taos County, New Mexico, United States. Named after frontiersman and Taos resident Kit Carson, Carson was founded c. 1908, when the surrounding area was opened for homesteading. Carson is a low-density rural residential area.
Francisco Antonio Marín del Valle was Governor and Captain General of New Mexico, between 1754 and 1760.
Cordova is a census-designated place in Rio Arriba County, New Mexico, United States.
Costilla is a census-designated place in Taos County, New Mexico, United States. Its population was 205 as of the 2010 census. Costilla has a post office with ZIP code 87524. State roads 196 and 522 intersect in the community.
La Madera is a census-designated place in Rio Arriba County, New Mexico, United States. Its population was 154 as of the 2010 census. La Madera has a post office with ZIP Code 87539.
San Cristobal is a census-designated place in Taos County, New Mexico. Its population was 273 as of the 2010 census. San Cristobal has a post office with ZIP code 87564, which opened on February 16, 1932.
San Jose is a census-designated place in San Miguel County, New Mexico, United States. Its population was 137 as of the 2010 census. San Jose has a post office, with ZIP code 87565. Exit 319 of Interstate 25 serves the community.
Talpa is a settlement in Taos County, New Mexico, located 6 miles south of the town of Taos along New Mexico Highway 518.
Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish or Nuestra Senora de Guadalupe is located just west of the Taos Plaza at 205 Don Fernando Street in downtown Taos, New Mexico.
Tres Piedras is an unincorporated community in Taos County, northern New Mexico, United States, adjacent to Carson National Forest.
36°02′37″N105°48′40″W / 36.043611°N 105.811111°W
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| Footnotes | ‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties | |
