Datil National Forest

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Datil National Forest was a United States National Forest established in western New Mexico by the U.S. Forest Service in 1908. [1] It was merged into another and ceased in 1931.

Contents

History

Datil National Forest was formed from the part of the also new Gila National Forest and other public lands. It began in 1908 with 1,255,883 acres (5,082.38 km2). The Magdalena National Forest and other areas were added in 1909. [2]

The entire Datil National Forest lands were transferred to the jurisdictions of the Cibola National Forest (primarily) and Gila National Forest in 1931. [3] The name was discontinued. [4]

Present day

The former Datil Forest area is part of the Magdalena Ranger District of the Cibola National Forest. It is located in the Datil Mountains, to the north of the town of Datil, in Catron and Socoro Counties. [5]

See also

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Gila National Forest

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Mogollon Mountains

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Magdalena Mountains

The Magdalena Mountains are a regionally high, mountain range in Socorro County, in west-central New Mexico in the southwestern United States. The highest point in the range is South Baldy, at 10,783 ft, which is also the tallest peak in Socorro County. The range runs roughly north-south and is about 18 miles (28 km) long. The range lies just south of the village of Magdalena, and about 18 miles (28 km) west of Socorro. The Magdalena Mountains are an east-tilted fault-block range, superimposed on Cenozoic calderas. The complex geologic history of the range has resulted in spectacular scenery, with unusual and eye-catching rock formations. They form part of the western edge of the Rio Grande Rift Valley, fronting the La Jencia Basin. The mountains remain isolated and natural due to the absence of any significant human development within or near the range.

Whitewater Baldy

Whitewater Baldy is the highest point of the Mogollon Mountains and the 3rd highest mountain in Southern New Mexico, after Sierra Blanca Peak and Lincoln County's Lookout Mountain. It is located in Catron County in the Gila Wilderness, part of the Gila National Forest. It lies about 15 miles (24 km) east of the town of Glenwood.

San Mateo Mountains (Socorro County, New Mexico)

The San Mateo Mountains are a mountain range in Socorro County, in west-central New Mexico in the southwestern United States. The highest point in the range is West Blue Mountain, at 10,336 ft. The range runs roughly north-south and is about 40 miles (64 km) long. It lies about 25 miles (40 km) north-northwest of the town of Truth or Consequences and about 30 miles (48 km) southwest of Socorro. They should not be confused with the identically named range in Cibola and McKinley counties, north of this range.

Apache Kid Wilderness Protected wilderness area in New Mexico, United States

Apache Kid Wilderness is a 44,626-acre (18,060 ha) Wilderness area located within the Magdalena Ranger District of the Cibola National Forest in the state of New Mexico. Straddling a southern portion of the San Mateo Mountains of southwestern Socorro County, the area is characterized by rugged, narrow, and steep canyons bisecting high mountain peaks exceeding 10,000 feet (3,000 m). The highest peak is West Blue Mountain which reaches an elevation of 3,151 metres (10,338 ft).

Big Burros National Forest was established by the U.S. Forest Service in New Mexico on February 6, 1907 with 156,780 acres (634.5 km2). On June 18, 1908 Big Burros was combined with Gila National Forest and the name was discontinued.

Gallinas National Forest was established as the Gallinas Forest Reserve by the U.S. Forest Service on November 5, 1906 to protect 78,480 acres (317.6 km2) of land in the Gallinas Mountains NW of Corona, New Mexico. The area became a National Forest on March 4, 1907. On July 2, 1908 the area was transferred to Lincoln National Forest, a forest area SE of Corona. In 1958 the Gallinas forest area was transferred to the Cibola National Forest, where it became a part of the Mountainair Ranger District, headquartered in Mountainair, New Mexico.

Magdalena National Forest was established as the Magdalena Forest Reserve by the U.S. Forest Service in New Mexico on November 5, 1906, with 153,781 acres (622.33 km2). It became a National Forest on March 4, 1907. On July 1, 1908, San Mateo National Forest was added. On February 23, 1909, the forest was combined with Datil National Forest

Manzano National Forest was established as the Manzano Forest Reserve by the U.S. Forest Service in New Mexico on November 6, 1906 with 459,726 acres (1,860.45 km2). It became a National Forest on March 4, 1907. On April 16, 1908 Mount Taylor National Forest and other lands were added. On September 10, 1914 Zuni National Forest was added. On December 3, 1931 the name was changed to Cibola National Forest and further lands were added.

Zuni National Forest was established by the U.S. Forest Service in Arizona and New Mexico on March 2, 1909 with 670,981 acres (2,715.36 km2) from parts of the Zuni and Navajo and other tribal lands. On September 10, 1914 Zuni was transferred to Manzano National Forest. The lands are now part of the Cibola National Forest.

Mogollon-Datil volcanic field Volcanic field in western New Mexico, United States

The Mogollon-Datil volcanic field is a large silicic volcanic field in western New Mexico. It is a part of an extensive Eocene to Oligocene volcanic event which includes the San Juan volcanic field in southwestern Colorado, the Trans-Pecos volcanic field in west Texas and north central Mexico, the Boot Heel volcanic field in the bootheel of southwestern New Mexico and adjacent areas of Arizona and Mexico; and the vast volcanic field of the Sierra Madre Occidental of western Mexico. The Mogollon-Datil volcanic field was formed in "four discrete pulses representing synchronized activity of two separate cauldron complexes".

Datil Mountains

The Datil Mountains are a small range on the northern edge of the Mogollon-Datil volcanic field, just northwest of the Plains of San Agustin in the U.S. state of New Mexico. The range lies in Socorro and Catron Counties, north of the town of Datil, New Mexico and takes its name from the Spanish word for “date,” dating back over two hundred years. In The Place Names of New Mexico, Robert Julyan suggests two possible explanations for the name: 1) that “the seedpods of the broad-leafed yucca sufficiently resembled dates” or 2) “the Spanish applied the name to the fruit of the prickly pear cactus.” The area includes the major ridgeline of Madre Mountain, which is sacred ground to the Acoma, Laguna, and Zuni tribes, as well as several other unnamed peaks and ridges.

Bear Mountains

The Bear Mountains lie just north of the village of Magdalena and north of the Magdalena Mountains in New Mexico. The Bear Mountains are located within the Magdalena Ranger District of the Cibola National Forest. There are two Inventoried Roadless Areas (IRA) within the Bear Mountains: the Scott Mesa IRA and the Goat Spring IRA. The Bureau of Land Management’s Sierra Ladrones Wilderness Study Area stretches to the northeast of the Bear Mountains and connects the Bear Mountains with the 230,000-acre Sevilleta National Wildlife Refuge to the east. The world-renowned Very Large Array lies to the southwest of the Bear Mountains.

Bearwallow Mountain Andesite A geologic formation in New Mexico

The Bearwallow Mountain Andesite or Bearwallow Mountain Formation is a geologic formation exposed in and around the Mogollon Mountains of southwest New Mexico. It has a radiometric age of 27 to 23 million years, corresponding to the late Oligocene to early Miocene epochs.

References

  1. Datil N.F. established on June 18, 1908
  2. Magdalena N.F. added on February 23, 1909
  3. Cibola N.F. merge on December 24, 1931
  4. Davis, Richard C. (September 29, 2005). "National Forests of the United States" (PDF). Forest History Society.
  5. "Magdalena Ranger District". Cibola National Forest. U.S. Forest Service. 2008-08-25.