The Salinas Pueblo Missions National Monument is a complex of three Spanish missions located in the U.S. state of New Mexico, near Mountainair. The main park visitor center is in Mountainair. Construction of the missions began in 1622 and was completed in 1635.

History

Once, thriving Native American trade communities of Tiwa and Tompiro language-speaking Pueblo people inhabited this remote frontier area of central New Mexico. They had an extensive area of pueblo dwellings and related kivas and other structures.

Early in the 17th century Spanish Franciscans believed the area ripe for their missionary efforts. However, by the late 1670s the entire Salinas District, as the Spanish had named it, was depopulated of both Indian and Spaniard. What remains today are austere yet beautiful reminders of this earliest contact between Pueblo Indians and Spanish Colonials: the ruins of three mission churches, at Quarai, Abó, and Gran Quivira, and the partially excavated pueblo of Las Humanas or, as it is known today, the Gran Quivira pueblo.

The site was first proclaimed Gran Quivira National Monument on November 1, 1909. Administered by the National Park Service, the National Monument for this site was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on October 15, 1966. On December 19, 1980, the footprint of the site was enlarged to include two New Mexico State Monuments on November 2, 1981. The enlarged site was renamed on October 28, 1988.

Quarai Ruins

The Quarai Ruins are located about 8 miles north of Mountainair, at about 6650 feet (2026 m) above sea level. There is a visitor center and a 0.5 mile (0.8 km) trail through the ruins. In a forest, an interpretive sign reads that when Francis Gardes traveled through the area, he heard birds sing a song called "When Explorers Came". Francis Gardes's trail became Francis Garde National Historic Trail, and it passes through Quarai.

Abó Ruins

The Abo Pueblo community was established in the 11th century on the edge of the existing pueblo culture, and often attracted roaming Nomadic Tribes of the eastern plains.

San Gregorio de Abó Mission (located in Mountainair, New Mexico) was one of three Spanish missions constructed in or near the pueblos of central New Mexico. These missions, built in 1600s, are now a part of the Salinas Pueblo National Monument which includes San Gregorio de Abó Mission, Quarai and Gran Quivera.

The mission at Abo was established in 1625 by Fray Francisco Fonte.

Gran Quivira Ruins

The Gran Quivira Ruins are located about 25 miles south of Mountainair, at about 6500 feet (1981 m) above sea level. There is a small visitor center near the parking lot. A 0.5-mile (0.8 km) trail leads through partially excavated pueblo ruins and the ruins of the uncompleted mission church.

The Gran Quivera Historic District was listed separately on the National Register of Historic Places in 2015.

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File:Quarairuin.JPG|Mission ruins at Quarai

File:Aboruins.JPG|Mission ruins at Abó

File:Kiva and church at Abo.jpg|Kiva at Abó

File:Gran Quivira Ruins in Salinas Pueblo Mission National Monument, New Mexico.jpg|Pueblo and mission ruins at Gran Quivira

File:Salinas basin.jpg|A map of the 17th-century pueblos in the Salinas area including the three surviving ruins in the National Monument: Quarai, Abo, and Gran Quivira

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See also

  • National Register of Historic Places listings in Socorro County, New Mexico
  • National Register of Historic Places listings in Torrance County, New Mexico
  • List of National Historic Landmarks in New Mexico
  • List of national monuments of the United States

References

Further reading

  • Official NPS website: Salinas Pueblo Missions National Monument
  • American Southwest, a National Park Service Discover Our Shared Heritage Travel Itinerary
  • Gran Quivira: A Blending of Cultures in a Pueblo Indian Village, a National Park Service Teaching with Historic Places (TwHP) lesson plan

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