San Francisco Plaza, New Mexico

Unincorporated community in New Mexico, United States
33°41′36″N 108°45′58″W / 33.69333°N 108.76611°W / 33.69333; -108.76611[1]CountryUnited StatesStateNew MexicoCountyCatronElevation5,725 ft (1,745 m)Population
 (2000)
 • Total0Time zoneUTC-5 (Mountain (MST)) • Summer (DST)MDTArea code575GNIS feature ID923678[1]

San Francisco Plaza was the name of three towns in Catron County, New Mexico, United States. Located in the San Francisco River Valley, the towns were settled by Spanish settlers in the 1860s. Today Middle San Francisco Plaza is called Middle Frisco, Lower San Francisco is called Lower Frisco, and Upper San Francisco was renamed Reserve when U.S. Forest Service headquarters were built there.

About

Located in the San Francisco Valley, Reserve was named Upper San Francisco Plaza by its original Hispanic settlers in 1874. Apaches made frequent attacks on the community, which sit within Apache hunting lands.[2] In the late 1870s Anglo settlers began arriving. They renamed Upper Frisco Plaza as Milligan's Plaza after a town merchant and saloon owner.

Lower San Francisco Plaza was the site of the legendary Frisco shootout of Elfego Baca in 1884.[3] The self-appointed deputy sheriff made a stand-off against a mob of Texas cowboys in Lower San Francisco Plaza in 1884,[4] quickly gaining a reputation as the hero of the Frisco shootout. Author Louis L'Amour included Upper San Francisco Plaza in his novel Conagher, calling it "The Plaza".[5] The Tularosa River flows into the San Francisco River at Middle San Francisco Plaza.

References

  1. ^ a b c U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: San Francisco Plaza, New Mexico
  2. ^ Collier, H.P. (1936) San Francisco Plaza, Catron County: Brief history. Workers Progress Administration. Retrieved 6/12/07.
  3. ^ Jun 2008 google maps Street View 33.6925922,-108.7672114 current address 163 NM-435 Reserve, New Mexico
  4. ^ Carter, R. (2004) SouthWestSlide: A journal of a journey across Desert Rat country. Archived 2007-08-22 at the Wayback Machine Retrieved 6/12/07.
  5. ^ (nd) Louis L'Amour's New Mexico Archived 2007-09-30 at the Wayback Machine TheHistoryNet.com. Retrieved 6/12/07.

External links

  • Elfego Baca & The “Frisco War”. Legends of America website.
  • Frisco, New Mexico, GhostTowns.com entry by Samuel W McWhorter.
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