What fun facts about New Mexico do you know? Did you know that New Mexico is home to more UNESCO World Heritage Sites than any other state in the country? Or how about the fact that Santa Fe is the highest elevated state capital at 7,000 feet above sea level? Another fact you may or may not know is that New Mexico is home to the first public building in America. Dating back over 400 years, the Palace of the Governors is still in use as a public building.
More than 400 years old, the Palace of the Governors is the oldest public building in continuous use in America.
Due to its age and historical significance, it's listed on the National Register of Historic Places and has the distinction of being a National Historic Landmark in New Mexico.
The Palace of the Governors started out as the government seat for the first Spanish governor of New Mexico. Over time, it was occupied by the Pueblo Indians, then the Confederacy during the Civil War, and then the military of New Mexico.
At the beginning of the 20th century, the building served several purposes. It housed the governor's and secretary's offices as well as the governor's residence, a library, a carriage house, and stables, among others.
So, did you know that New Mexico is home to the first public building in America? Have you visited the Palace of Governors yet? Let us know in the comments. To learn more about the Palace of the Governors, visit the New Mexico History Museum's website.
There are a number of ancient New Mexico cliff dwellings. Maybe you have been to some of the more well-known among them, like Chaco Canyon, Bandelier National Monument, or the Gila Cliff Dwellings. However, the Puye Cliff Dwellings in NM are an often overlooked gem. Take a look.
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Ancient Pueblo people lived at the Puye Cliff Dwellings for almost three centuries.
Nearly 1,500 people lived at the site, from roughly 1250 to 1577. These ancestors of today's Santa Clarans eventually moved off the cliffs down to the Rio Grande River Valley. The cliff site is about 10 miles away from today's Santa Clara Pueblo.
The ancient site has two main sections, the cliff dwellings and the mesa top. The cliff dwellings have two levels. The first runs along the base of the mesa. Pathways and stairs connect it to the shorter second level and the mesa above.
The cave-like dwellings were dug into the volcanic tuft. For additional space and storage, stone rooms were built onto the cave rooms. Though no longer standing, a few of the stone rooms have been reconstructed to give visitors an idea of what the site looked like.
The Puye Cliff Dwellings were the largest settlement on the Pajarito Plateau.
A large, multi-story complex stood on top of the mesa. While the exact number of rooms is unknown, one part of the complex, alone, had 173 ground-floor rooms, with more stories on top. They are among the oldest cliff dwellings in New Mexico.
From atop the mesa, visitors can look out across the Rio Grande Valley.
Hospitality mogul Fred Harvey made his name feeding and housing hungry railroad passengers at Harvey Houses. During the 1920s and 1930s, this Harvey House was part of Harvey's "Indian Detours" and hosted passengers traveling on the "Chili Line." In the early days, guests were conveyed to the Pueblo via covered wagon. Later, they arrived in Model Ts.
Three guided tours are available - a cliff dwelling tour, a mesa tour, or a combination.
Tours start on the hour and are led by guides from the Santa Clara Pueblo. When visiting Puye Cliff Dwelling, you will explore the dwellings, a kiva, and even petroglyphs, and the guides explain the site's significance and Pueblo culture.
Visit Puye Cliff Dwellings on the web for pricing and details on the available tours. The Inn at the Delta in Española, NM is a good place to stay while you're visiting the Puye Cliff Dwellings.
Have you visited Puye or any other New Mexico cliff dwellings? What did you think? We'd love to hear your stories in the comments below.
If you think New Mexico is a follower of the trends, think again. New Mexico has often been at the forefront of policy and invention. We've built world-changing devices and come up with some things that make everyday life a little better (or worse, in some cases... unfortunately). Below are 10 things invented in New Mexico. Which inventions from New Mexico did you know about already?
After just 20 months of work, the Manhattan Project scientists at Los Alamos National Laboratory completed construction of the first atomic bomb. It was detonated on July 16, 1945, at the Trinity Site on an Alamogordo bombing range.
The "water disruptor" uses a blade of water to pulverize targets. The device, developed by scientists at Sandia National Laboratories, was used by troops in Afghanistan to disable roadside bombs. Time magazine called the disruptor one of the 50 Best innovations of 2010.
The first personal computer came as a kit. The Altair 8800 was developed by Ed Roberts, co-owner of the Albuquerque calculator company, Micro Instrumentation and Telemetry Systems (MITS).
Sandia National Laboratories scientist, Willis Whitfield invented the cleanroom in 1962. His idea entailed a ceiling-to-floor forced-air system to help protect experiments from dust, microbes, and humidity. Today, cleanrooms are used in the manufacture of everything from semiconductors to screen prints.
This one was an accident. Frank Etscorn, a retired behavioral psychologist at New Mexico Tech accidentally spilled liquid nicotine on his arm. When the liquid made him nauseous, he realized that nicotine could be delivered via the skin.
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6. Required emergency personnel to carry overdose antidote kits
In April 2017, New Mexico became the first state to require that all state and local law enforcement officers carry antidote kits (naloxone) to help prevent deaths from opioid drug and heroin overdoses. New Mexico also was the first state to allow pharmacists to dispense naloxone without a prescription.
Also in 2017, New Mexico became the first state to outlaw practices intended to embarrass students with overdue lunch money accounts. The law also encourages schools to work with parents to resolve payment issues directly. This is in contrast to states like Alabama that stamp "I need lunch money" on children's arms. Yikes, Alabama.
New Mexicans (and probably some other folks) have been eating eggs rolled up in a tortilla for ages. However, the original owner of Tia Sophia's, a Santa Fe restaurant, claims he was the first to call the concoction a "breakfast burrito" and to put it on a menu. Tia Sophia's also claims that one of their waitress was the first to use the term "Christmas" when using both red and green chiles.
This one is under dispute. Texans have this funny idea that someone in San Antonio, Texas, invented it (Daisy Doolin, the mother of Fritos inventor Charles Doolin). The New Mexico version of the story says the Frito pie was invented in the 1960s by Teresa Hernández, who worked at the F. W. Woolworth's lunch counter (now the Five & Dime General Store) in Santa Fe. We'll stick to that story.
Remember those scientists from the atomic bomb? They may have had a part in the creation of the green chile cheeseburger too. During their off hours, the scientists hung out at the Owl Bar, a little joint in San Antonio, New Mexico, near the bomb test range. When the scientists got hungry, the bar's owner set up a grill behind the bar and started serving hamburgers topped with New Mexico chile.
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How many of these things invented in New Mexico did you know about? What other inventions, creations, or firsts should be on the list? Let us know your thoughts in the comments!
Feeling proud to hail from New Mexico? You should! Wear your state pride on your sleeve with this apparel from Wear Your Roots!
For related content, check out this fascinating video about Los Alamos, New Mexico:
