The New Mexico is a State of the south of the the United States, bordered in the west by the Arizona, in north by the Colorado, in the east by the Texas and in the south by the Mexico. One of the four States of the Furnace Corners, New Mexico has a surface of 314  926 km ² and are populated of 1  819  046 inhabitants (2000). Its form is close to a square of 650 side km. The capital of New Mexico east Santa Fe.

Prehistory

The Tradition Folsom date of the beginning of the 20th century. At that time, one thought, the history of the Amerindians started towards: 10000 years, with the arrival of the migratory waves from Siberia. Tens of bisons killed by means of lances and points found in the bones of the bisons, make it possible to go back the discovery in the Thirties to a prehistoric camping with Lindenmeier (Colorado) which was analyzed and gone back to: 12000 years.

The Cave of Pendejo located at about fifteen kilometers of Sacramento, reveals dates of human occupations even older tonic until: 55000.

The Cave of Sandia, localized close to Albuquerque, in New Mexico, was gone back to: 25000 years with: 27000 years. Many tools, points of lances and bones of mammoths made it possible to carry out this dating.

History

New Mexico was yielded by the Mexico, with the California, the Nevada, the Utah, the Arizona and part of the Colorado in 1846, after the américano-Mexican Guerre. Thereafter, it became Territoire of the United States (on a very broad surface including Arizona), it is only since the January 6th 1912 that New Mexico has the statute of State.

See also: Territory of New Mexico, Purchase Gadsden

The Pueblos Indians

The first Indians exploited the resources of the area and developed an original culture several millenia ago. The Amerindian ruins testify to this old occupation in the area of Santa Fe and the caves mountains of Sandia whose highest top is the peak of Sandia (3  255 m of altitude) close to Albuquerque. The Indians Pueblos are their successors: they built small towns in particular in the valley of the Río Grande.

The first Spaniards to contact the pueblos are Cabeza de Vaca and his/her Esteban companion. Fray Marcos de Niza compared the villages pueblos to the legendary gold cities. The Conquistador Francisco Vásquez de Coronado then carried out a forwarding to find these cities in 1540 - 1542. It establishes its camp in current the Coronado State Monument in 1541. But its passage raised the hostility of the natives who were finally crushed by the Spaniards. The three principal villages pueblos are Zuni, Santo Domingo, and Laguna.

Spanish colonization

The Spaniards launched out in the exploration of New Mexico as of the 16th century: Francisco Vásquez de Coronado is one of the first to visit the area. Juan de Oñate share of Mexico in 1598 and bases a village called San Juan, on the current site of Santo Domingo. It sends Vicente de Zaldivar to crush the Indians Acoma; he massacres 500 men and the survivors either are reduced in slavery or amputees of a foot for the old men of more than 21 years. During the forwardings launched against the Tompiros Indians, 800 natives are killed and their pueblos is shaven. Oñate acquires a sanguinary reputation and many Amerindians leave their villages to find refuge in the mountains, where they die of cold and hunger. Oñate must leave its post of governor. In 1609, Pedro de Peralta founds the town of Santa Fe and the Spanish projection constrained the Pueblos Indians to be taken refuge near the Apaches. Spain took possession of the Indian territories of New Mexico which was integrated into the News-Spain. The Spaniards installed missions (Picuris Pueblo, Pecos Pueblo) and forts (Santa Fe, El Paso) to frame the natives, but this framing was never sufficient. New Mexico was not a colony of settlement: one counted 250 Spaniards in 1630. A slave company is set up with the system of the Encomienda. Between the years 1630 and 1680, a difficult context (dryness, famine, epidemic of Variola, attacks of the Apaches) pushes Pueblos to be revolted. They attack the colonists or the franciscains with Taos-Jemez (1639), San Juan and Santa Fe. In 1680, the Great Revolt is organized by Popé, a Chaman of the tribe of the Tewa. It coordinated the rebellion by sending cords tied to announce the beginning of the insurrection against the Spaniards. The latter ends in the massacre of almost 400 Spaniards, in the destruction of the churches and the catch of Santa Fe, with the assistance of Apaches. Pueblos then required the end of the Spanish presence and the release of all the slaves of News-Spain. In 1698, the governor ends up restoring the order after having massacred and having reduced in slavery hundreds of Amerindians. Only the Hopi S remain unsubdued; the others must pour a tribute in kind and maintain the palate the governor.

In 1842, New Mexico counts 63  498 hearts of which the third is composed of Indians.

Conquest of the West

Mining and the breeding of cattle contributed to the expansion of the population of New Mexico at the end of the 19th century. The arrival of the minors and the peg ladders led to the creation of typical small towns of the Wild West . The outlaws and the Shérif S regularly défraient the cuffs of the newspapers of which famous the Billy The Kid and Pat Garrett.

Geography

Main cities

  • Alamogordo - close to White Sands

  • Albuquerque - more big city of the State
  • Artesia
  • Carlsbad - close to the national park
  • Clovis
  • Deming
  • Farmington
  • Strong Sumner - site of the tomb of Billy The Kid
  • Gallup - on the Road 66
  • Grants - on the Road 66
  • Hobbs
  • Tired Cruces - second city of the State
  • Los Alamos
  • Portales
  • Rio Rancho
  • Roswell - especially known for the crushing of an UFO in 1947
  • Santa Fe - capital of the State
  • Shiprock - in the reserve Navajo
  • Socorro - close to the Broad Very Array
  • Sunland Park
  • Truth gold Consequences
  • Tucumcari - on the Road 66

Mountains

  • Sandia Mountains

Interesting sites

  • Archeological sites
New Mexico shelters many Amerindian archeological sites:
    • Site pre-Clovis: prehistoric habitat of the Cave of Pendejo gone back to 55.000 years.
    • Site Clovis;
    • Aztec Ruins National Monument offers stone constructions of the 12th century;
    • With the National Bandelier Monument, one finds caves which were occupied during centuries and drawings;
    • the Chaco Culture National Historical Park presents the ruins of villages Anasazi of our era. Classified with the inheritance of Humanity of UNESCO;
    • the town of Santa Fe is one of oldest of the United States. It was founded at the beginning of the 17th century.
  • natural curiosities:
    • Carlsbad Caverns: 83 separate caves of which most famous are those of Carlsbad Cavern. They represent the deepest caves of the country (486,8 meters). The park entered on the list of the World heritage of UNESCO in 1995;
    • El Malpais National Monument (volcanic formations);
    • Rock'n'roll Hound State Park (semi-precious stone layer);
    • White Sands National Monument (the largest white sand desert of the world);

Policy

New Mexico is a State poor and preserving south-west of the the United States, with a great minority (42%) Hispanic and of democratic tradition . Thus, according to the census of 2004, 50% of the voters were registered on the electoral rolls as democrats, 33% as republicans and 17% were not affiliated.

A State with the tuning fork of the national vote

New Mexico is a State pivot with its five Great Electors. At the time of the presidential elections, it is always with the tuning fork of the national vote since 1912 except by twice only in 1976, where Gerald Ford arrives at the head against Jimmy Carter, and in 2000 where Al Gore beats by 366 votes the republican George W. Bush. In 2004, the voters of New Mexico voted for George W. Bush to 49,84% compared with 49,05% for John Kerry.

A democratic State locally of tradition

Since 2002, the governor of the State is Bill Richardson and the lieutenant-governor is Diane Denish, both democrats. The Secretary of State, the Attorney General and the secretary with the treasure are also democratic.

The assembly of the State includes/understands a room of the representatives of 70 seats and a senate of 42 seats. At the time of the legislature 2007 - 2008, the room is controlled by 42 democratic representatives and the senate by 24 Democratic senators.

At the federal level, the two senators of the State to the American Congress are Jeff Bingaman (democratic) and Pete Domenici (republican) while two of the three elected officials of New Mexico to the room of the representatives are republican. In 2004, 50% of the registered voters on the electoral rolls were recorded as democrats against 33% of republican S.

Culture

Traditional architecture, to the geometrical forms is adapted to the difficult weather conditions of the desert. It inspires still certain contemporary architects, of New Mexico and besides.

Close to Santa Fe, in the old Indian site of Tronis, in full desert, one can observe a curious phenomenon, very visited since his discovery about the years 1960, by professor West. As of the summer solstice, at dawn, during ten minutes, the rays of the sun passing through a crack of the rock lights a stone which strongly scintillates. Perhaps the Amerindians used this stone as calendar. Many inscriptions are engraved there, letting think of their prehistoric life.

Languages

New Mexico is the only state of the the United States to have two official languages: the Spanish and the English.

The majority of the population (56%) is of Mexican origin (in particular of immigration) and thus speaks Spanish. The English is from now on minority, it is spoken only by 28% about the population about New Mexico. However, 5% of the population of this state are bilingual English/Spanish.

It is estimated that 11% of the population speak about the Amerindian Langues.

Science and technologies

This State interests much the archeologists because of an old prehistoric occupation. It is especially known for the nuclear physics laboratory of Los Alamos, built close to Albuquerque to produce and test the American atomic bomb which was to put an end to the Second world war and with the hegemonic ambitions of Hitler. It is on July 16th, 1945, which the first atomic bomb test exploded in the basin of Tularosa.

See too

  • Earthship S, ecological dwellings whose first camp was created in New Mexico (Taos).

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