S U M M E R 2 0 0 9Volume 24 Number 3Pr e s e r v a t i o nN E W M E X I C O

Mount Taylor Designated aTraditional Cultural Property

The newsletter of the New Mexico State Historic Preservation Office

NM SHPO Takes

US/ICOMOS Top Spot

oaring to 11,301 feet and visible for hundreds of miles, Mount Taylor becamethe focus of international attention when the Cultural Properties Review

Committee listed the mountain and its guardian peaks in the State Register of CulturalProperties on June 5.

The unanimous decision—reported in state, national andinternational media—designatedMount Taylor a TraditionalCultural Property in recognitionof the spiritual qualities it hasheld for five New Mexico tribesfor thousands of years, and set aprecedent for the way the statelooks at sacred lands. It also bal-anced concerns raised by privatelandowners that their propertyrights could be curtailed by the TCP designation. The Register nomination broughtforth by the pueblos of Acoma, Laguna and Zuni, the Hopi Tribe and Navajo Nationfound private property generally was fenced off and inaccessible physically and spiri-tually by the tribes, and did not contribute to the mountain’s sacred qualities. Privatelandholdings were excluded from the listing.

“I would like to thank the tribes for bringing the nomination forward, for sharingtheir closely held spiritual beliefs and making all of us more aware of the importanceof Mount Taylor,” said CPRC Chairman Alan “Mac” Watson. “In the same regard,the private property owners and others with rights to Mount Taylor who expressedtheir concerns deserve thanks for helping us achieve a balance that lets this committeehelp preserve the varied—and sometimes perceived as conflicting—interests of all theparties involved.”

The Historic Preservation Division worked with the tribes in developing the nomi-nation over a 15-month period. They provided statements of significance, individuallyand collectively, often revealing deeply held spiritual beliefs never before shared out-

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Acoma “Sky City” with Mount Taylor in the background.

ow big of a jump is it fromNew Mexico’s premier preserva-

tion post to leading national efforts toform international alliances to engageprofessionals to study, conserve andinterpret historic buildings, districts, andsites worldwide?

During a June fact-finding trip toTaos Pueblo, the nation’s oldest livingcommunity, departing State HistoricPreservation Officer Katherine Slickproved the leap is not such a vast one.

“The bridge was already there withTaos Pueblo’s designation as a WorldHeritage Site,” she said. “WhatU.S./ICOMOS can do is provide aninternational aspect, bringing togetheragencies and individuals who face similarissues and share how they worked togeth-er to resolve the challenges facing them.

see Mount Taylor page 8

SHPO Katherine Slick and part of her staff..

see SHPO, page 9

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9 what’swhat’s happeninghappeningHPD’s New E-Newsletter

HPD has published a newsletter for 30years with the first edition, “The Newsletter,”a typed, legal sheet mimeographed with nophotographs, appearing in 1979. It wasreplaced by Frontera, and by 1984 publishedunder the masthead Preservation New Mexicocomplete with photographs and a real lay-out. Today, 3,000 people receive the printedition of our newsletter.

HPD is joining numerous other StateHistoric Preservation Offices around thecountry in turning to electronic media tokeep its constituents informed of preserva-tion strides in New Mexico and beyond.With our Summer edition, HPD beginspublishing the summer and fall editionselectronically. Our Annual Report andCalendar of Events will remain as print edi-tions for winter and spring.

We are excited to join the electronicage of publishing and look forward to yourcontinued readership. If our newsletter wasforwarded to you, and you would be like toplaced permanently on the e-distributionlist, please send an e-mail totom.drake@state.nm.us. Contact him, also,if you would like to contribute a story, ideaor photograph to Preservation New Mexico.Our goal is to circulate as much informa-tion from as many sources as possible tothe greatest number of readers. Your par-ticipation is appreciated.

New Mexico MainStreet managers andboard members attended special sessionson preservation planning, law and protect-ing community character hosted by NewMexico MainStreet and HPD. Meeting inLas Cruces at the rehabilitated Court JuniorHigh School in July, participants attendedsessions by Deputy SHPO Jan Biella,Preservation Specialist Dorothy Victor,consultant and former HPD reviewerElizabeth Oster and former SHPO and

current MainStreet program associate ElmoBaca. There was an emphasis on planningfor reviews of publicly funded projects,licensing, permitting and preservation suc-cess stories that build on the historic char-acter of MainStreet districts.

Court is located in the Alameda DepotHistoric District. HPD reviewed rehabilita-tion of the WPA school, which now ishome to the Alma d’Arte Learning Center,a charter high school for the arts. The Cityof Las Cruces is commended for providingeducational programs in a building onceperceived by the community as an eyesore.And a bit of trivia, former SHPO MikeTaylor attended Court Junior High duringhis school days in Las Cruces.

Former CPRC chairman and state his-torian, Estevan Rael-Gálvez, is the newdirector of the Hispanic Cultural Center inAlbuquerque. He served on the committeefor eights years, seven of them as chair-man. He replaces former cultural centerexecutive director Eduardo Díaz, whoresigned last December to become directorof the Smithsonian Latino Center inWashington, D.C.

CPRC member Clarence Fielderreceived an NAACP Lifetime Award. Heand two other individuals were honored aspart of the Juneteenth celebration, whichcommemorates the June 19, 1865,Emancipation Proclamation signed byPresident Lincoln. It coincided with thecentennial of the NAACP, the nation’s old-est civil rights organization, which formedin response to racially motivated lynchingsand the 1908 race riot in Springfield, theIllinois capital and birthplace of PresidentAbraham Lincoln.

CPRC Vice-Chairwoman BethO’Leary’s The Handbook of Space Engineering,Archaeology and Heritage was published inJune. Co-written with Ann GarrisonDarrin, the book puts forth that a betterexplanation of space exploration can behad from examining what remains in spacefrom the 27,000 tons of material that hasbeen launched into orbit. Just as archaeolo-gists excavate and document objects onEarth, space archaeologists understand thevalue of investigating and preserving mate-rial culture left behind during space explo-ration. The authors illustrate how archaeol-ogy offers novel historical and technologi-cal perspectives on humankind’s vast,recent, and ongoing experience in space.

HPD–MainStreet Partnership

Court Junior High School

CPRC Kudos and Transitions

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S u m m e r 2 0 0 9

1 Mount Taylor is a TCP

1 SHPO Katherine Slick’s Big Move

2 What’s Happening at HPD?

3 Grant News - Apply for a grant in August

3 Forgotten Taiban Recognized

6 Clayton Historic District & New Listings

HISTORIC PRESERVATION DIVISION

PRESERVATION NEW MEXICOVolume 23 | Number 3

Preservation New Mexico is published bi-monthly by the New Mexico Historic PreservationDivision, Department of Cultural Affairs.Preservation New Mexico is edited, designed andproduced by Tom Drake, HPD Public Relations.Readers are invited to submit information andarticles for publication. On request, PreservationNew Mexico is available electronically on theHPD’s website: www.nmhistoricpreservation.org.

Send photographs, stories and ideas via e-mailto Tom Drake, tom.drake@state.nm.us., or phonehim at: 505-827-4067.

This publication is financed with federal fundsfrom the National Park Service, U.S. Departmentof the Interior and other sources. The contentsand opinions do not necessarily reflect the viewsor policies of the Department of the Interior.

HPD programs receive federal financial assis-tance for identification and protection of historicproperties. Under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of1964, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of1973, and the Age Discrimination Act of 1975, asamended, the U.S. Department of the Interior pro-hibits discrimination on the basis of race, color,national origin, disability or age in its federallyassisted programs. If you believe you have beendiscriminated against in any program, activity, orfacility as described above, or if you desire furtherinformation, please write to: Office of EqualOpportunity, National Park Service, 1849 C Street,N.W., Washington, D.C. 20240.

New Mexico Historic Preservation DivisionBataan Memorial Building407 Galisteo, Suite 236

Santa Fe, NM 87501

photo credits:p.1 photo: Tom Pederson (SHPO);Tom Drake (Acoma)p.2 HPD file photosp.3 Taiban photos courtesy: Diane Williamsp 4 & 5 Awards photos: Tom Drakep. 6 Clayton photos: Harvey Kaplan p. 7 Acoma: John Murphey; Register photos, HPD filesp. 8 Leaving the Capitol: Tom Drakep. 9 Mt Taylor photo courtesy US Forest Service:

Taiban photos courtesy Diane Williamsp.10 SHPO staff: Tom Pederson

Editor’s Note: The history of Taiban and itsPresbyterian church were documented in 2008by architectural historian Diane Williamsthrough an HPD Historic Preservation FundSmall Grant, and with support from propertyowner Susanne Eldridge. Research, oral histo-ries and large format film photography docu-mented the community and church, and wereused in a State Register nomination that willbe considered by the CPRC in August.

Ms. Williams, with the New Mexico Farmand Ranch Heritage Museum and New MexicoState University, collected oral histories fromTaiban residents. The resulting information pro-vides a framework to preserve the churchthrough written and visual documentation ofthe building and the town. Ms. Williams’ arti-cle is presented as part of her grant research.

he drive between Fort Sumner andClovis almost looks almost uninhabited.Weathered caprock cliffs, rolling plains,and endless sky are timeless features dis-turbed only by a few small towns and scat-tered colonies of wind turbines. Freighttrains and highway traffic speed towarddestinations beyond the dry llano.

But in the early twentieth century,towns along this stretch of U.S. 60/84—St. Vrain, Melrose, Tolar, Taiban and

many of its sister communities on theeastern plains, the church is unlike anyother surviving building along this route.

Taiban is at the western edge of thellano estacado, where sunshine is abundant,and water is not. The community wasestablished in 1906 on the Belen Cut-off,a new line built across the eastern plainsby the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe rail-road. It was one of many new towns set-tled between 1905 and 1915 on the east-ern plains.

Promoters and their advertisementsbrought hopeful and hardy homesteadersinto the Taiban area with the promise offree land suitable to dry land farming.Wheat, corn and other crops did well forthe first few years, but repeating dry andwet cycles played havoc with farmers’crops and their dreams. Within a fewyears some farmers switched to livestock,while others sold out and moved togreener lands.

Both the railroad and the highwayshaped Taiban, and its sister communitiesto the east and west, but neither couldsustain the community in the face ofdrought, diminishing groundwaterreserves, the Great Depression, the DustBowl and two world wars. Today, notrains stop at Taiban, either for passen-gers or freight, and no businesses operateto make it worth their while. Only the

LaLande—were occupied by hundreds ofresidents, farmers and ranchers, and boast-ed many more buildings than seen today.All but Melrose are home to fewer than 20residents, and LaLande is uninhabited.Most towns lack buildings, and farms andranches are gone. The church at Taiban isone of the few survivors of the area’s ear-liest settlement.

Eight people live in Taiban, but in1909 the town thrived as an agriculturalservice center, home to as many as 400people. One of its few surviving buildingsis the 1908 Taiban Presbyterian Church,now surrounded by a lost community ofvacant lots where once stood a two-storystone and masonry high school and a mixof commercial and residential buildings.Visible from a distance and set back fromthe road, the church built in a style widelyused in rural New England with Greekrevival pedimented windows and Neo-Classical details, sometimes seems amirage. But it still has much to tell of anearly twentieth-century settlement on NewMexico’s eastern plains, and is a remnantof the once-thriving Anglo-American set-tlement of the area. While the story of therise and decline of Taiban is similar to

Preservation Grants AvailableApply for a Small Grant in August

Persons interested in writing Register nominations, holding local workshops onthe International Building Code and the Adobe Code adopted by the state in2006, or developing education and outreach programs in celebration of NewMexico’s Centennial in 2012 are encouraged to apply for grants through HPDthat are available in beginning in August. These are only some of the areasemphasized for funding in the current grant cycle.

Due to current budget demands, funds available for the annual Small Grantsare about half that in 2008, or $25,000. Grant awards generally range from$2,000 to $7,500 and have funded conditions assessments, community preserva-tion events and workshops, and archaeological surveys.

Many of New Mexico’s eight Certified Local Government municipalities met aJuly 31 deadline to apply for $71,600 in grants reserved for communities thathave adopted preservation ordinances and committed to inventorying their his-toric resources. The grants can fund cultural resource surveys, Register nomina-tions, compiling and printing walking tour booklets, feasibility studies and con-struction drawings for historic property improvements, and assistance with preser-vation outreach, education and conferences.

Silver City, Deming, Columbus, Lincoln County, Albuquerque, Santa Fe, LasVegas and Taos are CLGs. Los Alamos is applying to be certified. HPD encour-ages other communities to seek HPD and the National Park Service certification.

Grant Helps Document Forgotten Plains Settlement

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One of Taiban’s few remaining structures is thePresbyterian Church

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2009 Heritage Preservation Month — SACRED PLACES

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Lifetime AchievementChamiza Foundation founders Gifford and Joann Phillips, of Santa Fe, have awarded 339 grants totaling$2.4 million toward sustaining pueblo culture in New Mexico over the last 20 years. Language revitalization,education and youth programs, traditional arts instruction, and preserving tribal traditions have benefitedgreatly from the Phillip’s generosity. The foundation focuses on preserving living traditions as model lifewaysrather than as antiquities for study by historians and scholars.

Individual AchievementJohn R. Roney has been an archaeologist for 30 years. Now retired, he made numer-ous contributions to preserving and protecting cultural resources in a career highlightedby outstanding achievements in research and public outreach. He was district archaeol-ogist for BLM’s Albuquerque office. Mr. Roney keeps his hand in the field by volunteer-ing with HPD to digitize cultural resource surveys for our New Mexico CulturalResources Information System database of 160,000 cultural sites.

Phillip A. Young almost single-handedly resurrected HPD’s volunteer SiteWatch pro-gram, increasing the number of volunteer site stewards monitoring cultural resourcesstatewide from 20 to 200 inside of a year. One of his first jobs was as a roadieto the psychedelic rock group Strawberry Alarm Clock. In his 20s he became an

archaeologist with the National Park Service, and later worked as a law enforcement specialist and firemanagement officer. He retired from HPD in 2008.

Heritage OrganizationEighteen youths in the Town of Bernalillo Youth ConservationCorps learned some of their community’s history when theymanufactured adobe blocks and restored the historic SenaMortuary, now established as the New Mexico Wine Museumin Bernalillo. The YCC helped save the 1920 mortuary whichnearly was destroyed in a 1989 fire and faced demolition. It was expertly restored downto its original dirt floors and a ghost sign denoting the building’s original use.

The partnership between the Center for DesertArchaeology in Tucson and the Salmon RuinsMuseum, in Bloomfield, N.M., led to the curation of

important artifacts, insightful research and scholarly publications that provided new insights intoChaco culture. The museum and the center interpreted 35 years of archaeology, made theirfindings available to the public and curated 1.5 million artifacts and photographs at a newfacility made possible through a Save America’s Treasure’s grant. Larry Baker, of the museumand Bill Doelle, of the center, accepted the awards.

Heritage PublicationSunstone Press and its president, James Clois Smith, Jr.for 35 years have published out-of-print and new booksabout individuals and events that shaped New Mexico’s history. Based in Santa Fe, Sunstone in2007 launched the Southwest Heritage Series with publication of The Death of Billy the Kid, byJohn William Poe, originally published in 1933. More than 300 books are included in the series,including works by Oliver La Farge, Mary Austin, Nina Otero-Warren, Mabel Dodge Luhan,Edgar Lee Hewett and Fray Angelico Chavez.

The colorful history told in Tularosa Basin & the CoeRanch is available to the public because of a miti-gation project by Fort Bliss. The base needed tostraighten a curve in War Road used for tank

maneuvers, which required altering some of the historic features of the Coe Ranch. FeistyMary Mayhill Coe Blevins (1863-1953) story is told in the resulting publication, whichwon awards for Fort Bliss and HNTB Corporation employees Melissa Widenfeld andSally Victor; and the MIRATEK Corporation, of El Paso, which produced the attractivebooklet. A

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H e r i t a g e P r e s e r v a t i o n A w a r d s : A c h i e v e m e n t s i nP h i l a n t h r o p y , P u b l i c a t i o n a n d G r a s s r o o t s P r e s e r v a t i o n

The City of Hobbs and Van Citters Historic Preservation, LLC were recognized for “Keep ‘Em Flying”The Story of Hobbs Army Air Field. Decommissioned in 1948, much of the physical history of the aban-doned airfield was erased when the city located the Hobbs Industrial Air Park there. Preservation-minded city officials decided to fund the well-illustrated “Keep ‘Em Flying” publication to document theearly twentieth-century history, and made it available to the public. Mayor Gary Don Reagan, BillDodge, of Van Citters; and Hobbs planner Joe Dearing accepted awards.

State Historian’s Award for Excellence in New Mexico HeritageScholarshipPasó Por Aqui is a series of publications devoted to the Neuvomexicano literary heritage publishedby the University of New Mexico Press since 1991. The series has featured out-of-print Hispanic liter-ature dating back 400 years that otherwise was lost to future generations. New fiction and poetryinspired by the the literary tradition has become a part of the series, which was launched with publi-cation of the Historia de la Nueva Mexico written by Gaspar Perez de Villagra in 1610. Pasó PorAqui would not have been possible without editors Dr. A. Gabriel Meléndez and Dr. Genaro Padilla(pictured) and and the backing of UNM Press Editor-in-Chief Clark Whitehorn.

Community Preservation PlanningThe Santa Fe Plaza Cultural Landscape Report is abouttwo-inches thick. It records the history of a belovedgathering place from its Pre-Columbian origins throughthe ca. 1600 arrival of the Spanish, the Territorialperiod, early statehood and up to today’s music per-

formances and art fairs. The City of Santa Fe; National Park Service; Dr. KurtAnschuetz, of Albuquerque; landscape architect Judy Kowalski, of MorrowReardon Wilkinson Miller Ltd Landscape Architects, of Albuquerque; andUniversity of New Mexico Preservation and Regionalism Professor Chris Wilsonreceived awards for contributions to what is the premier reference guide for preserv-ing this National Historic Landmark. Mayor David Coss accepted for the city with Charlie Haekcer, NPS; Baker Morrow andWilson .

Citizen Advocacy “Rita Hill” “Rita Hill drew sympathetic national attention when in the name of preserving open spaceand downtown Lordsburg’s once-thriving business center, she temporarily blocked construc-tion of a massive Interstate exchange in 1973. She moved a shack onto ranchland she’downed that had been condemned to complete the project. Equipped with a transistor radio,cot, rifle and a Porta Potti, she didn’t budge for months until the sheriff removed her byforce and put her in jail. The CPRC presented the award named in her honor for the firsttime in 2009 to Santa Fe attorney Richard Ellenberg and architect Rad Acton for theirdiligence in working with the state, Santa Fe County and private developers to redesignbuildings that threatened the historic streetscape of Santa Fe.

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The Cultural Properties ReviewCommittee and HPD have presentedHeritage Preservation Awards for 37 yearsand honored award winners at celebratoryreception. The ceremony launchedHeritage Preservation Month on May 2,this year honoring New Mexico’s sacredplaces. Preservation Month was celebratedby dozens of communities, parks andmonuments statewide with special events

commemorating their local history, and by HPD issuing its annual poster, this yearthemed on sacred places. Contact HPD to be a part of it in 2010.

Chief Deputy Attorney General Albert Lama (l) washonorary presenter; CPRC members Phillip Shelley,Craig Hoopes, Estevan Rael-Gálvez, SHPOKatherine Slick, the CPRC’s Nancy Wirth andChairman Alan “Mac”Watson with Lifetime winnerJoann Phillips.

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The Jericho Crickets (Scott Geister, Laura Cowanand Meg Acton) opened the ceremony.

New in the RegistersDowntown Clayton is New Mexico’s Newest Historic District

owntown Clayton owes muchof its look and its economic

roots as a trade center to the railroad.Most of the buildings that line its down-town streets were built before 1930 andtrace their architectural influences fromthe East and Midwest more so than fromthe regional styles of New Mexico.

Forty-four of those buildings nowcomprise the Clayton CommercialHistoric District, listed in the StateRegister in April and recommended forinclusion in the National Register ofHistoric Places by the Cultural PropertiesReview Committee in June. Listing prop-erties in the State or National registersoften draws welcomed attention and canbe a catalyst for change and renewedeconomic activity stimulated by state andfederal tax credits and low-interest loans,which are available through HPD.

Properties listed in the State Registerof Cultural Properties are eligible forrehabilitation tax credits of up to$25,000 and 3-percent interest loansthrough HPD, while commercial proper-ties listed in the National Register can

benefit from addi-tional federal taxcredits that canoffset 20 percentof associatedexpenses. Tax cred-it projects on theaverage have a pos-itive return of $3for every dollarinvested, accordingto state figures. Adecision onNational Registerstatus is expectedthis summer.

Initial survey work that eventuallydetermined 80 percent of the district’sbuildings were eligible for the Registerswas funded by New Mexico MainStreetand the Economic DevelopmentDepartment. Clayton MainStreet hiredconsultants Heather Barrett andShannon Papin, who received a $6,000grant from HPD, to research the area’shistory, expand survey work, draft andcomplete the nomination. They workedwith Clayton MainStreet BoardPresident Nancy Leighton, formerowner of the historic Luna MovieTheater, who polled property owners inthe district and helped establish strongsupport from 24 of the 26 owners withbuildings in the district.

“We thought it would be a goodthing for Clayton,” Ms. Leighton said inregards to establishing the district.

Clayton is divided into four quad-rants by established transportationroutes. Because more recent commer-cial activity developed along U.S. 87,

most of the district’s historic architectureis largely unaltered, and many of thetypes of businesses—a barber shop, fineclothing, hardware and drug stores—operate to this day. Much of the town’seconomic activity still centers on ranch-ing, the railroad and the courthouse

All but seven of the buildings foundin the six-block area that comprises thedistrict retain the look and feel associatedwith a late nineteenth and early twentiethcentury small western town. The build-ings range from one to four stories,including the B & H Feed Supply ware-house and its rare wooden grain elevatorat the western edge of the district alongthe former Fort Worth and Denver

Railroad tracks laid in 1888. The arrivalof train service led to Clayton—selectedbecause it is halfway between Trinidad,Colorado, and Amarillo, Texas—estab-lishing itself as the banking and tradecenter for northeastern New Mexico andthe Texas Panhandle, and eventually asthe Union County seat.

The oldest building in the district isthe Eklund Hotel, which closed in Aprilafter re-opening five years ago. In May,Governor Bill Richardson and Lt.Governor Diane Denish visited the townlandmark, and asked First National Bankof New Mexico President Craig Reeveshow the state could help in re-openingthe hotel, and its bar and restaurant.

Historic Clayton

Partnerships Resultedin Nomination

Luna Theater with B&H Feedstore as a backdrop.

DContributing storefronts on Main Street date from1915. Though some are vacant, Sam’s Trading Postand the Shrine of the Testaments are open for busi-ness. Clayton’s Old West Days is held August 22.

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New in the RegistersAcoma Curio Shop

Encino School

Tillotson House

Since then an Associated Press storydrawing attention to the hotel’s dilemmahas appeared in newspapers statewide, butalso in the Minneapolis Star Tribune andKansas City Star, and papers in Chico,California; Texas; and Greenville, NorthCarolina. The National Trust for HistoricPreservation’s Southwest Office featuredthe hotel in its quarterly newsletter.

Built in the Commercial style in phas-es beginning in 1888, it was fully rehabili-tated using a $200,000 preservation loanfrom HPD and state and federal tax cred-its. It re-opened to great fanfare in 2003,but the economic downturn resulted inforeclosure and the loss of 41 jobs associ-ated with the hotel. It was the first defaultin the 20-year history of HPD’s loanprogram.

Three of the district’s buildings,including the hotel, previously were listedin the National Register. The Luna withits eye-catching, moon-faced marqueestops travelers who often pull over tophotograph it. The theater recently waspurchased by Clayton MainStreet with a$180,000 New Mexico MainStreet SpecialAppropriation grant made possible by the Looking from the balcony of the Eklund.

State Legislature this year. Funds were setaside for initial rehabilitation of the the-ater and its sign, which has been dam-aged by large trucks.

The former Clayton Public Librarycompleted as a New Deal WorksProgress Administration project in 1939is in the Pueblo Revival style. Although anew library was built in 1975, the WPAbuilding still is used by civic groups formeetings and community events.

Other notable buildings are the redbrick R.W. Isaac’s Hardware Company onMain Street built in 1909 and still operat-ing as a hardware store. The Farmers andStockmen’s Bank Building constructed inthe Decorative Brick Commercial styleca. 1925 is for sale. The J.C. Penney’sStore was built as early as the late 1890s,according to community lore, and givenits Art Deco tile work and other detailingby the famed retailer around 1936. TheMethodist Episcopal Church built in1919 with Spanish Baroque-style detailingonce also was a community center com-plete with bowling alley. It now housesthe Herzstein Memorial Museum.

Clayton Historic District

The Acoma Curio Shop is an adobe witha rare, mining town false-front built ca.1916 by Lebanese immigrant Abdoo H.Fidel. He worked with nearby AcomaPueblo to sell authentic crafts tomotorists traveling Route 66. Fidel’sunique business—it was neither a tradingpost nor a tourist trap—was shortlived,yet the building has weathered changewell and is the only intact rural curio inNew Mexico. Retaining a high degree of

integrity with its original window open-ings and interior finishes, the single-room building is currently a gallery andis one of the last active business in SanFidel, a small community in CibolaCounty. It was listed in the State Registerby the CPRC in December 2008 andforwarded to the National Park Servicefor inclusion in the National Register.

Built low to ground and in durablebrick, Encino School was constructed in1923 to consolidate students attendingfar-flung schools in eastern TorranceCounty. Still the dominant structure ofthe town’s landscape of adobe homesand fading businesses, the school servedthe area for 60 years before succumbingto a 1983 consolidation that transferredstudents to a new school in GuadalupeCounty. It was listed in the State Registerin December 2008 for representing earlyschool consolidation trends and for itsarchitecture by E.R. Berry.

Built between ca. 1882 and 1889 as asequence of three log cribs on a rubblestone foundation, the five-room ThomasC. Tillotson house illustrates earlyAnglo-European settlement along RioPenasco. It began as a chosa, or dugoutfor protection at the height of theLincoln County War in 1878 and waslater converted into log cribs.

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Mount Taylor, from Page 1

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side their communities. The nominationdemonstrates that the mountain and itssurrounding mesas—344,729 acres with316,456 contributing resources such asshrines, pilgrimage trails, springs, miner-al-and-plant gathering sites, burial sites,view sheds and structures—fulfills fed-eral TCP guidelines that it be rooted intraditions and history, and important tomaintaining cultural identity in the mod-ern world.

“The nomination clearly establishesthis landscape as a Traditional CulturalProperty worthy of protection andpreservation,” said Katherine Slick,State Historic Preservation Officer anddirector of HPD. “At the same time,the tribes have established in their nom-ination that private landholdings on themountain no longer contribute to theelements that give Mount Taylor its cul-tural significance, and that the privateproperty does not need to be affordedthe protections provided by a StateRegister listing.”

The TCP boundaries were decidedby the location of six “guardian peaks,”the mesas of San Mateo, Jesus, la Jara,Horace, Chivato and Bibo, which sur-round the mass of Mount Taylor. Theboundaries roughly follow those of theCibola National Forest Mount TaylorRanger District, an area determined bythe U.S. Forest Service as eligible forthe National Register, and thereforeprotection under the National Historic

Preservation Act. TheTCP is 434,767 acres,but 89,938 acres ofprivate lands withinthe boundary arenoncontributing,establishing a344,729-acre culturalproperty.

Different guardianpeaks hold more sig-nificance for certaintribes, while othersascribe more value to

the mountain as a whole. AcomaPueblo, for example gives great impor-tance to Mount Taylor’s San MateoMesa from where their ancestors chose35-foot ponderosa pine timbers to buildthe nearly 360-year-old San Esteban delRey Mission, and carried them 30 miles,seeking to impart a spiritual quality tothe mission whose construction resultedin the deaths of many of their people.The Hopi view the mountain as a com-munity cultural site. They have demon-strated that 28 of their deities, 26 Hopiand 10 Tewa clans have close culturalconnections to Mount Taylor. Theyview the shrines and archaeological siteson the mountain as the footprints oftheir ancestors.

The CPRC took aninnovative step by ask-ing private propertyowners whose land wasnot already excludedfrom the TCP to comeforward within 14 daysafter the meeting withnotarized legal descrip-tions of their land so asemi-permanent mapof the resource couldbe established. Severallandowners providedthem in the days fol-lowing the June 5

meeting. The map will be modifiedperiodically over time if additional pri-vate property is identified. The provi-sion reflects common preservationpractices that allow the shape andscope of historic districts to be alteredbased on the changing conditions of adistrict’s contributing and non-con-tributing resources.

From March 2008 until the publiccomment period was closed on May 20,2009, HPD and other state entitiesreceived approximately 2,000 letters ande-mails addressing the Mount Taylornomination. By a 4-1 ratio, peopleexpressed support for it. At a May 15public hearing held by the CPRC, 64people registered to speak in support oflisting the mountain and 47 in opposi-tion. The nomination incorporates con-cerns raised during the hearing and incorrespondence HPD received during a15-month period.

“This nomination has engenderedstrong emotions and thoughtful discus-sion among many New Mexicans aswell as within the ranks of local, stateand federal government staff mem-bers,” said Department of CulturalAffairs Secretary Stuart Ashman.“Certainly the value of Mt. Taylor as aTraditional Cultural Property has neverbeen in question, but neither has beenthe importance of balancing the spiritu-al beliefs of our Indian tribes and the

Leaving the Capitol following the decision June 5.

Mt. Taylor TCP boundary map showing the guardian peaks.

Establ ishing the TCP

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inherent rights of private propertyowners. I have great respect for all thegroups and individuals who workedtogether to make this nomination suc-cessful.”

The nomination follows a year ofinvestigation, collaboration and consul-tation among the tribes since an emer-gency listing was approved in June2008. The revised nomination morefully develops how different elementsof the landscape hold greater signifi-cance to one tribe than to another.

“The nomination achieves thetribes’ goal of finding common groundin their differing beliefs that includestheir respective historic and culturalaffiliation with the mountain,” saidSlick. “The survival of the mountain,which they see as a living, breathingspiritual being, is what is essential fortheir traditional and cultural practicesto continue.”

And ultimately, that was the goal ofestablishing the TCP. The tribes’ desireand need to be consulted over activitiesthat could harm or destroy MountTaylor’s cultural sites, which have pro-vided meaning to their lives for morethan a millennium was the drivingforce behind the nomination. The TCPdesignation protects culturally signifi-cant lands by giving the tribes the rightto consult with state agencies overprojects on the mountain that require

stateapproval.It is aright thatshould beenjoyedby all whoascribecultural,spiritualor emo-tional sig-nificanceto a place,buildingor object.

Cibola National ForestSupervisor K.C. Karchner at theRiconada Mt. Taylor Division,1925.

post office and a few buildings, includingthe 1908 church, suggest humanity.

Taiban’s church took two years to planand build, and served Presbyterians,Methodists and Baptists. All communitymembers, regardless of denominationwere invited to attend Sunday services.The church also was a community center,and long after church services ceasedaround 1936, it continued to function asan important gathering place.

Vacant for many years, the church isan endangered resource. Within the lastfew years, vandals destroyed historic win-dows, doors and design elements. Thechurch’s bell tower and bell were removedand its furnishings sold four years ago; in1996 the interior brick chimney that vent-ed the heating strove was removed.

But, the church remains as a tangiblelink to the short-lived settlement and theagricultural history of east central NewMexico. While the church’s long term sur-vival is uncertain, knowledge of its histo-ry and significance support that hope.

Even if Taos weren’t a World HeritageSite, U.S./ICOMOS provides preservation-ists in this country with connections to thebest practices worldwide.”

Ms. Slick began her new position asdirector of the U.S. National Committee ofthe International Council on Monumentsand Sites based in Washington, D.C., inJuly, while at the same time wrapping upduties as director of the state HistoricPreservation Division. She said the TaosPueblo visit with Pueblo Governor RubenRomero and Tribal Secretary Luis Zamoraillustrates how organizations at differentlevels can work together with a local entityto enhance a preservation cause. TaosPueblo is inscribed on the UNESCOWorld Heritage List, one of only 20 U.S.sites on the list of nearly 900 worldwide.

ICOMOS, with its scientific commit-tees of experts in architecture, culturallandscapes, archaeology and heritagetourism based in countries around theglobe, advises the UNESCO WorldHeritage Centre and provides resources toenhance local preservation efforts and tra-ditional means people use to maintainresources significant to their patrimony.

“Look at the structures of Taos Puebloand the strong cultural traditions that havebeen used for perhaps 1,000 years to buildand maintain them, and it’s a small, closedgroup that does this work,” Ms. Slick saidof the 100 or so pueblo members whoreplaster the mud walls of the main struc-tures each year, timing the process aroundNew Mexico’s summer monsoons. “Nowyou share with them information on howYemen or Tibet preserves similar sites andwhat’s in their experience that can bepassed on to Taos Pueblo.”

Ms. Slick’s new job may not be so dif-ferent from her old one. As New MexicoSHPO, she led the state’s senior preserva-tion agency, which advises federal agencies,local and tribal governments, and the gen-eral public on historic preservation in NewMexico. She brought to the job a commu-nity-based preservation background sprin-kled liberally with national endeavorsincluding two terms as a board member onthe National Conference of State HistoricPreservation Officers, 18 years as advisorand trustee to the National Trust forHistoric Preservation and an appointmentby President Bill Clinton to the federalAdvisory Council on Historic Preservation.

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Taiban Church with school in background, ca.1925.

Taiban Airport, ca. 1950.

The church ca. 1955.

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She’ll be taking that experience plus 6.5years as New Mexico SHPO to US/ICO-MOS where she’ll apply it to a largerpreservation playing field. Although, as inthe case of Taos Pueblo, one that sillinvolves HPD and keeps preservation local.

Ms. Slick said reflecting on her tenureat HPD that broadening people’s approachand appreciation of preservation was oneof the main goals she set after beingappointed by Governor Bill Richardson in2003. Although she’d taken a similarapproach in earlier positions—she was co-founder and past president of the NewMexico Heritage Preservation Alliance,board member of the New MexicoCommunity Foundation served on the LasVegas Citizens Committee for HistoricPreservation and as the town’s MainStreetpresident— she said holding the SHPOpost provided an official platform toemphasize a more inclusive approach topreservation.

“When preservation happens right, it isone of the most democratic processespossible,” she said.

During her tenure, HPD has addedmore than 100 listings to the State andNational Registers, involved communities

statewide in the annual celebration ofHeritage Preservation Month each Mayand increased the scope of the division’sgranting activities. Its public profile ismuch higher than it was six years ago.

Register nominations focused equallyon resources such as gas stations and spar-ingly preserved churches in forgotten andunderserved communities as much as theydid on landmark architecture and struc-tures whose history related to internationalevents. The concept of what should bepreserved and why was challenged whenthe shack-like High Bay building at V-Sitein Los Alamos was preserved with a SaveAmerica’s Treasures grant. Prior to theeffort, many doubted the value or preserv-ing the site where the atomic bomb credit-ed with ending World War II was assem-bled and the atomic age began.

Ms. Slick actively found opportunitiesto expand knowledge and appreciation ofour heritage by using archaeological sur-veys and scenic and historic markers forpublic interpretation and outreach by fed-eral, state and local governments. She alsoinitiated the first preservation law coursesat the University of New Mexico for cul-tural resource professionals and attorneys.

The number of preservation tax creditprojects increased and became more

sophisticated, contributing to the econom-ic diversity of towns and cities in the state.She has worked with the Bureau of LandManagement and the National ParkService on world heritage and a nomina-tion of El Camino Real de Tierra Adentrocurrently being developed for the NationalRegister.

“Leaving the Historic PreservationDivision was one of the toughest deci-sions I’ve had to make in my career, whichhas been filled with addressing compellingsituations that have required many difficultdecisions,“ said Slick. “I’m very proud ofwhat’s been accomplished at HPD undermy watch and am grateful to have workedwith a diverse professional staff withexpertise in many different areas. “It’sunfortunate that folks sometimes view theSHPO as making projects more difficultand time consuming. In my experience,staff in State Historic Preservation Officesacross the country are some of the bestproblem solvers I’ve ever met.”

When asked to choose a highlight fromher HPD years, she quickly responded thatone of the most fascinating was the con-current decisions by the CulturalProperties Review Committee to allow aroad extension through PetroglyphsNational Monument and Los ImaginesHistoric District in Albuquerque with con-ditions, and granting a permit to excavatethe site of pueblo ruins in Santa Fe for theSanta Convention Center. In the case ofthe road, there was a decided lack of con-sultation between the City of Albuquerqueand tribal interests while Santa Fe andTesuque Pueblo openly embraced theprocess. She said the two incidents sharplycontrasted with one another and provedthe point that when parties enter consulta-tion in good faith there are benefits toboth sides. The pueblo and Santa Fe tothis day enjoy a collaborative relationship.

As a parting thought, Ms. Slick choseto emphasize a recurring theme of hertenure which is that identifying and under-standing the resources before a project is“signed, sealed and delivered” to HPD isessential, not only to the preservationprocess but to making good decisions forstewarding cultural resources before theproject is undertaken.

She hopes that even in a time of finan-cial constraints there can be more oppor-tunities to inventory the state’s vast cultureso the Registers can be maintained andused as effective planning tools integral toNew Mexico’s future.

HPD staff past and present, from back row left: Anna La Bauve, Lou Haecker, former ArchaeologicalRecords Management Section Manager Bill Doleman, Dorothy Moore, Melinda Wheeler, Shalie Gasper,Robyn Powell, former SiteWatch Coordinator Phil Young, Norm Nelson, former State ArchaeologistGlenna Dean, Harvey Kaplan, Tonya Fallis, Cordelia Snow, Susie Hart, Albuquerque CLG and historicplanners Maryellen Hennessy and Ed Boles, Dorothy Victor, Pilar Cannizzaro. Seated: interim SHPO JanBiella, Michelle Ensey, interim Director Sam Cata, SHPO Katherine Slick, Tom Drake, former CPRC mem-ber Estevan Rael-Gálvez, Patrick Lucero, former Register Coordinator John Murphey, Scott Geister.

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HPD Memories