Polvadera, New Mexico
Encyclopedia
Polvadera is an unincorporated community
in Socorro County
in central New Mexico
, USA. It is located on the west bank of the Rio Grande
, near the mouth of the Rio Salado
, and on the western spur of El Camino Real de Tierra Adentro.
had established the province of Santa Fe de Nuevo México
, when Spanish settlers came north and settled among the Piro Pueblo Indians
. The name of the original Piro pueblo there is unknown and its ruins, which may have been destroyed by the meandering of the Rio Grande, have not been excavated. In 1629 Apache
s destroyed the pueblo of Polvareda. It was subsequently rebuilt, but was abandoned as a result of the Pueblo Revolt
of 1680, and because of further Apache raiding after the reconquest was not resettled again until the early 19th century after Governor Fernando Chacón reopened the area for settlement.
Apache and Navajo raids continued until after the American Civil War
when the US Army began a strenuous interdiction policy
. The town was attacked as late as 1846 by over a hundred Navajo who made away with a large number of livestock.
Camp Connelly, sometimes called Fort Connelly, was established by Colonel Canby
in 1862 adjacent to Polvadera, on land leased from the then governor Henry Connelly
. Lt. William Brady
was sent there as a recruiting officer to process volunteers. Camp Connelly was only maintained until the end of the civil war in 1865.
The Santa Fe Railroad came through in 1882 and the Post Office in Polvadero was established in 1895. The current church of San Lorenzo was built in 1898.
Polvadera has always been subject to the flooding of the Rio Grande. Major floods occurred in 1898, which destroyed the church, in 1929, and 1937. Formerly, the major diversion of Rio Grande water for irrigation in Socorro County occurred at Polvadera; however, after the floods of 1929 a new diversion was built upstream at San Acacia.
In 1958 when Interstate 25
was being built down the Rio Grande valley, Polvadera was not given an exit, the nearest exit provided was at Lemitar a few miles to the south.
, it had large areas devoted to grapes for the production of wine. More recently chile
has been the main crop.
Unincorporated area
In law, an unincorporated area is a region of land that is not a part of any municipality.To "incorporate" in this context means to form a municipal corporation, a city, town, or village with its own government. An unincorporated community is usually not subject to or taxed by a municipal government...
in Socorro County
Socorro County, New Mexico
-2010:Whereas according to the 2010 U.S. Census Bureau:*75.1% White*1.1% Black*11.7% Native American*1.2% Asian*0.0% Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander*2.8% Two or more races*8.1% Other races*48.5% Hispanic or Latino -2000:...
in central 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...
, USA. It is located on the west bank of the Rio Grande
Rio Grande
The Rio Grande is a river that flows from southwestern Colorado in the United States to the Gulf of Mexico. Along the way it forms part of the Mexico – United States border. Its length varies as its course changes...
, near the mouth of the Rio Salado
Rio Salado (New Mexico)
The Rio Salado is tributary of the Rio Grande in the U.S. state of New Mexico. From its source in northeast Catron County it flows about generally east to join the Rio Grande just north of Polvadera and about north of Socorro. The name Río Salado is Spanish for "salty river".-Course:The Rio...
, and on the western spur of El Camino Real de Tierra Adentro.
Name
The name may be based upon a Piro name for the place, but altered in form because polvareda means dusty in Spanish, which, as US Army Lt. Emory noted in 1846, it certatiny is. Other spellings of the name include Pulvidera and Pulvedera. The church in Polvadera was dedicated to San Lorenzo and his feast day, August 10, is the local fiesta.History
Polvadera was founded as a farming community in the 1620s after Juan de OñateJuan de Oñate
Don Juan de Oñate y Salazar was a Spanish explorer, colonial governor of the New Spain province of New Mexico, and founder of various settlements in the present day Southwest of the United States.-Biography:...
had established the province of Santa Fe de Nuevo México
Santa Fe de Nuevo México
Santa Fe de Nuevo México was a province of New Spain and later Mexico that existed from the late 16th century up through the mid-19th century. It was centered on the upper valley of the Rio Grande , in an area that included most of the present-day U.S. state of New Mexico...
, when Spanish settlers came north and settled among the Piro Pueblo Indians
Piro Pueblo
Piro Pueblo : The Piros were a Native American Pueblo people that lived in a number of pueblos in the Rio Grande Valley around modern Socorro, New Mexico, USA. The now extinct Piro language was in the family of Tiwa languages...
. The name of the original Piro pueblo there is unknown and its ruins, which may have been destroyed by the meandering of the Rio Grande, have not been excavated. In 1629 Apache
Apache
Apache is the collective term for several culturally related groups of Native Americans in the United States originally from the Southwest United States. These indigenous peoples of North America speak a Southern Athabaskan language, which is related linguistically to the languages of Athabaskan...
s destroyed the pueblo of Polvareda. It was subsequently rebuilt, but was abandoned as a result of the Pueblo Revolt
Pueblo Revolt
The Pueblo Revolt of 1680, or Popé's Rebellion, was an uprising of several pueblos of the Pueblo people against Spanish colonization of the Americas in the province of Santa Fe de Nuevo México.-Background:...
of 1680, and because of further Apache raiding after the reconquest was not resettled again until the early 19th century after Governor Fernando Chacón reopened the area for settlement.
Apache and Navajo raids continued until after the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
when the US Army began a strenuous interdiction policy
Apache Wars
The Apache Wars were a series of armed conflicts between the United States and Apaches fought in the Southwest from 1849 to 1886, though other minor hostilities continued until as late as 1924. The Confederate Army participated in the wars during the early 1860s, for instance in Texas, before being...
. The town was attacked as late as 1846 by over a hundred Navajo who made away with a large number of livestock.
Camp Connelly, sometimes called Fort Connelly, was established by Colonel Canby
Edward Canby
Edward Richard Sprigg Canby was a career United States Army officer and a Union general in the American Civil War, Reconstruction era, and the Indian Wars...
in 1862 adjacent to Polvadera, on land leased from the then governor Henry Connelly
Henry Connelly
Henry Connelly was the Republican Governor of the New Mexico Territory during the American Civil War. He was appointed by President Lincoln and served from September 4, 1861 until July 6, 1866. During his term, the territory broke into two, and then three during Connelly's tenure due to the Civil...
. Lt. William Brady
William J. Brady
William J. Brady was the sheriff of Lincoln County during the Lincoln County Wars in New Mexico, United States. He was killed in an ambush, aged 48, in which Billy the Kid took part.-Early life:...
was sent there as a recruiting officer to process volunteers. Camp Connelly was only maintained until the end of the civil war in 1865.
The Santa Fe Railroad came through in 1882 and the Post Office in Polvadero was established in 1895. The current church of San Lorenzo was built in 1898.
Polvadera has always been subject to the flooding of the Rio Grande. Major floods occurred in 1898, which destroyed the church, in 1929, and 1937. Formerly, the major diversion of Rio Grande water for irrigation in Socorro County occurred at Polvadera; however, after the floods of 1929 a new diversion was built upstream at San Acacia.
In 1958 when Interstate 25
Interstate 25
Interstate 25 is an Interstate Highway in the western United States. It is primarily a north–south highway. I-25 stretches from Interstate 10 at Las Cruces, New Mexico, , to Interstate 90 in Buffalo, Wyoming, .Interstate 25 is the main north–south expressway through...
was being built down the Rio Grande valley, Polvadera was not given an exit, the nearest exit provided was at Lemitar a few miles to the south.
Economy
Polvadera is primarily a farming community. Before ProhibitionProhibition in the United States
Prohibition in the United States was a national ban on the sale, manufacture, and transportation of alcohol, in place from 1920 to 1933. The ban was mandated by the Eighteenth Amendment to the Constitution, and the Volstead Act set down the rules for enforcing the ban, as well as defining which...
, it had large areas devoted to grapes for the production of wine. More recently chile
Chili pepper
Chili pepper is the fruit of plants from the genus Capsicum, members of the nightshade family, Solanaceae. The term in British English and in Australia, New Zealand, India, Malaysia and other Asian countries is just chilli without pepper.Chili peppers originated in the Americas...
has been the main crop.
Attractions
Nearby, to the west of the community, is San Lorenzo Canyon, a popular hiking and picnic spot.External links
- "1997 Economic Census: ZIP Code Statistics 87828 (Polvadera, NM)", US Census Bureau
- "Polvadera, United States", Falling Rain Genomics, Inc.