Southwestern New Mexico’s MainStreet Communities: Silver City, Deming and Las Cruces
Whether it’s seeing rare natural rock monoliths, or following the footsteps of Billy the Kid through ghost towns and city streets, Southwestern New Mexico’s MainStreet communities offer visitors a base to explore a great combination of natural wonders and old west history
The Gila Cliff Dwellings National Monument sits only 44 miles away from Silver City, but plan for 2 hours to make the twisty trip. You will be rewarded with an incredible look into history, from the prehistoric Mogollon people who lived there in 100A.D., to the Pueblo people who built their cliff homes here 800 years ago. The “Trail of the Mountain Spirits National Scenic Byway” is a 93 mile loop that will take you from Silver City to the Gila, as well as the gold mining town of Pinos Altos, the historic San Lorenzo church, and back into town. 70 miles north of Silver City is Catwalk National Scenic Trail a metal causeway that clings to 250 foot canyon walls, suspended so that visitors can look down at the waters below. Only a half hour away is City of Rocks State Park, home to a collection of 30 million year old monolithic rock formations that look kind of like a naturally formed Stonehenge. The formations are rare and know to exist in only 6 other places in the world. One of the worlds largest open pit mines, the Santa Rita has been in operation since 1799. 15 miles east of Silver City, there are no facilities here, just a spectacular giant pit!
Around 80 miles north of Silver City is the ghost town of Mogollon. Established in 1889 as a mining site, the town grew to 6,000, then emptied as the mines failed. The entire site has been added to the National Register of Historic Places. Another “ghost town” lies just over an hour east of Silver City: Hillsboro. Since around 200 people still live there, it is technically not a “ghost town,” but it once was the county seat and was home to 10,000 residents!
35 miles south of Deming is Pancho Villa State Park. Here, you can relive the history of Pancho Villa’s raid and the response by famed U.S. General “Black Jack” Pershing by visiting the adobe Hoover Hotel, the restored Columbus railroad depot, and the old U.S. Customs Service building. 14 miles southeast, you’ll find Rockhound State Park, the perfect place for…you guessed it, rock hounds who scour the hills looking for rock specimens. If you aren’t afraid of ghosts, a 50 mile drive west will put you in the west’s most authentic ghost town, Shakespeare Ghost Town. This National Historic Site that lets you walk down the same streets as Billy the Kid and tour 1800’s era old west buildings.
While in Las Cruces, take a short drive a few minutes south to Mesilla, to see what an 1800’s border town looked like, complete with the San Albino Church built in 1855. Billy the Kid was put on trial here for murder! Ft. Selden State Monument 13 miles north, contains the ruins of a late 1800’s U.S. Army fort, where a young Douglas MacArthur once lived. Continuing 2 hours north of Las Cruces, the El Camino Real International Heritage Center chronicles the history of 400 year old “Royal Road” as it connected the 1500 mile distance between Mexico City and Santa Fe.
