La Mesilla, New Mexico

With visiting going well, we decided that it would be fun to see some of the local points of interest to get a better feel for the culture. To start, we headed for the old town of La Mesilla, NM, a short distance from Las Cruces KOA. With 97 degree temperatures outside, we didn't do too much walking around, but managed to get into the cool of several shops downtown. Several vendors were showing their goods in the square in the middle of town, as well.

La Mesilla has a very interesting history; you'll recognize a few names in the following paragraphs on its history.

After the Mexican War ended in 1848, the Mexican government commissioned Cura Ramon Ortiz to settle Mesilla. He brought families from New Mexico and from Paso del Norte (modern Ciudad Juarez) to populate the Mesilla Civil Colony Grant, which by 1850 had more than 800 inhabitants.

On November 16, 1854, a detachment from nearby Fort Fillmore raised the U.S. flag here confirming the Gadsden Purchase; thus, the Gadsden territory was officially recognized as part of the United States. In 1858, the Butterfield stage began its run through Mesilla. During the Civil War, Mesilla was the capital of the Confederate Arizona Territory.

Mesilla's most notorious resident, Billy the Kid, was sentenced to death at the county courthouse, but escaped before the sentence was carried out. Legendary hero Pat Garrett eventually tracked down and killed the Kid; later, Garrett was mysteriously murdered in an arroyo just outside of Las Cruces. He is buried in a local cemetery.

Don and Pat were our guides for a trip around the area to see some of the architecture in a few neighborhoods. Louise liked the adobe architecture ... but not the heat ... or the wind this day!