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Baldy Mountain, June, 2006, Kathy Weiser
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On
the eastern rim of the Moreno Valley, Mt. Baldy dominates the horizon.
Gold was discovered on its slopes in 1866 and the gold rush was on.
Elizabethtown,
to the west of the highway, built up quickly to accommodate the rush of
miners, and was dubbed "E-Town" by the locals.
Elizabethtown
has long since become a ghost town; however, at one time it was the county
seat of Colfax County and the largest settlement in Northern
New Mexico.
Early settlers and miners were "squatters" because
everything that could be seen for miles was part of the
Maxwell Land Grant, the largest ever recognized
by the United States government.
E-Town
quickly became the epitome of the
Wild West,
complete with range wars, lynchings, claim jumping and land scams.
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A Dutch company who later purchased
Maxwell's
Land Grant, even tried to sell parcels of "St. Louis of the
Southwest" to easterners, picturing a Mississippi-style paddleboat on
the tiny Cimarron River. E-Town was ripe for such characters as
Black Jack Ketchum and
Clay
Allison who were frequent visitors.
Return to
Eagle Nest by continuing on
Highway 38.
Enjoy your trip!!!
Eagle Nest Lake
Today, Kathy Weiser, July, 2003
Elizabethtown
Museum, photo by Kathy Weiser, July, 2003
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Red River, New Mexico, June, 2006, Kathy Weiser.
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The Klondike Mine in May, 2004, David
Alexander.
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