The Mesilla Valley in southern New Mexico is an oasis in the Chihuahuan desert. It has attracted people for hundreds of years to its bosques of cottonwood trees, its life giving water, and its opportunities. Up and down the Mesilla Valley, from the healing waters at Radium Springs to the historic village of Mesilla, from the mountain ranges that border the east and the west to New Mexico State University, and from the agricultural communities of the south valley, this south-central part of New Mexico illustrates why the state is called the Land of Enchantment. Historic photos from local archives and contemporary pictures show how people lived, worked, and played. This book continues the program by the Public History Program at New Mexico State University to publish local histories of the communities of New Mexico. The two previous books, Santa Fe: An Historic Walking Tour and Las Cruces: The City of Crosses also utilized historic photographs to tell to history of these New Mexican cities. However, The Mesilla Valley is the first book in a new series that the Public History Program has created in collaboration with Sunstone Press. The New Mexico Centennial History Series features books written by local historians about their towns and communities, and the important people who have made New Mexico what it is today. The series not only commemorates the centennial of New Mexico's statehood in 1912, but celebrates the entire history of the state.
Customer Reviews:
Avg. Customer Rating: 4.0 / 5.0
I enjoyed this book.:
The Mesilla Valley: An Oasis in the Desert (New Mexico Centennial History Series)
This book was a refreshing recap of some of the events that molded the Mesilla Valley area. The pictures allowed me visual glimpses of the people, cultures and events that structured its growth to what it is today. It was concise and informative without being tedious. I enjoyed it!
Historical Truth vs. Fakelore:
One would think a state Centennial History Series would be truthful. One of the glaring falsehoods in this book is the use of the recent nickname "City of Crosses" as being synonymous with the actual name. The facts reveal the City is the one installing the crosses for economic purposes backed by no historical facts. In Professor Hunner's previous book, "Las Cruces", which goes by the singular title and not that conjured up by Professor Hunner, who is paid by the city to promote the nickname, he mocks the... more info
