Deming is a city in Luna County

Luna County, New Mexico

-2010:Whereas according to the 2010 U.S. Census Bureau:*77.7% White*1.1% Black*1.3% Native American*0.5% Asian*0.0% Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander*2.6% Two or more races*16.8% Other races*61.5% Hispanic or Latino -2000:...

, New Mexico

New Mexico

New Mexico is a state located in the southwest and western regions of the United States. New Mexico is also usually considered one of the Mountain States. With a population density of 16 per square mile, New Mexico is the sixth-most sparsely inhabited U.S...

, United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

, located 60 miles (97 km) west of Las Cruces

Las Cruces, New Mexico

Las Cruces, also known as "The City of the Crosses", is the county seat of Doña Ana County, New Mexico, United States. The population was 97,618 in 2010 according to the 2010 Census, making it the second largest city in the state....

. The population was 14,116 at the 2000 census

United States Census, 2000

The Twenty-second United States Census, known as Census 2000 and conducted by the Census Bureau, determined the resident population of the United States on April 1, 2000, to be 281,421,906, an increase of 13.2% over the 248,709,873 persons enumerated during the 1990 Census...

. Deming is the county seat

County seat

A county seat is an administrative center, or seat of government, for a county or civil parish. The term is primarily used in the United States....

 and principal town of Luna County.
The city, founded in 1881 and incorporated in 1902, was an important port of entry

Port of entry

In general, a port of entry is a place where one may lawfully enter a country. It typically has a staff of people who check passports and visas and inspect luggage to assure that contraband is not imported. International airports are usually ports of entry, as are road and rail crossings on a...

 on the US-Mexican border until the Gadsden Purchase

Gadsden Purchase

The Gadsden Purchase is a region of present-day southern Arizona and southwestern New Mexico that was purchased by the United States in a treaty signed by James Gadsden, the American ambassador to Mexico at the time, on December 30, 1853. It was then ratified, with changes, by the U.S...

 of 1853. A nickname

Nickname

A nickname is "a usually familiar or humorous but sometimes pointed or cruel name given to a person or place, as a supposedly appropriate replacement for or addition to the proper name.", or a name similar in origin and pronunciation from the original name....

 was given to the city at the time of its founding, "New Chicago". It was expected that with the surge of railroad usage, that the city would grow drastically and resemble Chicago, Illinois.

Deming is named after Mary Ann Deming Crocker, wife of Charles Crocker

Charles Crocker

Charles Crocker was an American railroad executive.-Early years:Crocker was born in Troy, New York, to a modest family and moved to an Indiana farm at age 14. He soon became independent, working on several farms, a sawmill, and at an iron forge. In 1845 he founded a small, independent iron...

, one of The Big Four of the railroad industry.