Where Gumbo Was #497
If I wasn’t curious, I might have missed an excellent museum in Las Cruces. I always enjoy learning about the history and backbone of a destination. I dig for facts.
I decided to visit New Mexico Farm & Ranch Heritage Museum after reading that the sprawling museum celebrates rural New Mexico, the past, and the present.
I started in the Heritage Gallery. Past a large stagecoach and into a beautifully designed space, I found a recreated colonial home at the center of the Spanish Colonial section of the gallery. The home is made of adobe plaster and wood. It includes two rooms – a living room and a courtyard. New Mexico’s Spanish Colonial period was from 1598, when the Spanish first settled in the region, to 1821.
Another exhibit, Wheels & Gears, features vehicles and equipment, including a 1936 half-ton International Harvester pickup truck, a 1924 Model T Roadster, a delivery wagon from 1895, and a 1900 buckboard wagon used on a ranch near Grants, New Mexico, to name a few.
Creative arts are celebrated in the museum. I watched Merle Paul put the last finishes on a woven shawl made on a triangle weaving loom this day. There are other exhibits, including beautiful art and several historic photographs.
After I visithe galleries, I join other guests on a golf cart for a “Back 20” tour. A friendly and knowledgeable guide shows us farm animals and antique farming equipment.
We cross a bridge known as the Pecos River Bridge and the Rio Hondo Bridge, the state’s second-oldest highway bridge. It marks the gateway for visitors to cross the Tortugas Arroyo to reach outdoor exhibits, barns, fields, and livestock facilities.
Although there is a vast display of farm implements of the past, my favorite feature of the tour is seeing the many animals raised in the state: Navajo Churro and Debouillet sheep and cattle, including Corrientes, Texas Longhorns, Herford, Black Angus, Brangus, American Brahman, Charolais, and Holstein.
Anyone interested in history, farming, and culture will enjoy this museum and appreciate all the friendly employees making sure the museum’s story is respected. I highly recommend it.
Congratulations to George G, who correctly identified the mystery site!
