San Miguel County, New Mexico

Date: [unknown] [unknown]
Location: San Miguel County, New Mexico, United States

Welcome to San Miguel County, New Mexico!

... ... ... is a part of New Mexico history. Join: New Mexico Project Discuss: New Mexico

Contents 1 Brief Description 2 History/Timeline 3 Record Loss 4 County Records 5 Church Records 5.1 Catholic Churches 5.2 Presbyterian Churches 6 Other Sources 7 Cities/Towns 8 Sources

Brief Description

San Miguel del Bado County was one of the original seven territories established in 1846 when New Mexico was taken over by the United States. The county seat is in Las Vegas. It is located in the north central area of New Mexico, surrounded by Mora County to the north, Harding County to the east, Quay County to the southeast, Guadalupe County to the south, Torrance County to the southwest, and Santa Fe County to the west.

History/Timeline

Pecos Pueblo (originally Cicuyé in the Towa language) was the easternmost Indian settlement in New Mexico prior to the Spaniards arrival. There was a path from Pecos through the Sangre de Cristo Mountains to the Plains, allowing the Pueblo Indians to trade with the Plains Indians and to hunt buffalo. It was one of the biggest and best encomiendas in New Mexico but Spanish colonists avoided it due to the constant danger of attacks by the Plains Indians. By the 1780s, this danger was reduced by the treaty the Spanish signed with the Comanches.^[1]

In 1794, a petition was submitted for a land grant for the area. It was granted in 1803 for three groups and was named the San Miguel del Bado Land Grant. The Spanish moved in and the Pecos Indian population began to decrease, due to sickness and raids by plains Indians.^[2] By 1838 they were gone, with the few remaining families moving to the Jemez Pueblo.^[2]

After Mexico won independence from Spain, trade with the United States began with San Miguel del Bado being a major stop on the Santa Fe Trail.

Record Loss

No known history of record loss.

County Records

During the Colonial Periods with Spain and Mexico (1598-1846), all vital records were kept by the Catholic church. A list of land and probate records can be found in The Spanish Archives of New Mexico, Vol. 1, by Ralph Emerson Twitchell. Digital copies of the originals can be found on Ancestry in the "New Mexico, U.S., Land Records of New Spain, 1692-1846 (in Spanish)" record collection, series Collected Spanish Land Files.

County records are archived at the New Mexico State Records Center and Archives (1205 Camino Carlos Rey, Santa Fe, New Mexico 87507, (505) 476-7913, contact.srca@state.nm.us). Most records are not yet digitized.

Church Records

Catholic Churches

Some records are available online in the FamilySearch microfilm catalog. Some are only available at a Family History Library (FHL).

1. San Antonio Church, Pecos - These are the oldest records in San Miguel County. To find records before 1726, check Santa Fe.
   • Film #16,859, #16,855, and #16,856 - Baptisms 1725-1829, 1862-1956; Film #16,859 and #16,855 - Marriages 1699-1765, 1772-1904; Film #16,859, #16,855, and #16,858 - Burials 1727-1772, 1783-1829, 1862-1956, 1904-1956.
2. San Miguel Church, San Miguel (del Bado). The church and all the records were moved to Ribera in 1853. To find records before 1799, check Pecos, Santa Fe, Cochiti, and Galisteo.
   • Baptisms 1799-1829 - The FamilySearch Library does not have these records. They have been published in a book by the Hispanic Genealogical Research Center of New Mexico, available on their website.
   • Film #17,001 - Baptisms 1829-1853; Film #17,002 - Marriages 1829-1855, Burials 1829-1847.
   • Film #16,875 and #16,876 - Baptisms 1853-1956; Film #16,878 - Marriages; Film #16,879 - Burials.
3. Our Lady of Guadalupe Church, Sapello - to find records before 1860, check Mora, Las Vegas, Santa Cruz, Taos, or Picuris.
   • Film #1,930,436 - Baptisms 1861-1882, Marriages 1860-1882 (FHL only).
   • Film #1,930,437 - Burials 1860-1892 (FHL only).
4. Our Lady of Sorrow Church, Las Vegas
   • Film #16,811, #16,812, and #16,813 - Baptisms 1895-1902, 1852-1956; Film #16,811 and #16,814 - Marriages 1853-1956; Film #16,815 - Burials 1882-1956.
5. Immaculate Conception Church, Las Vegas
   • Film #16,806 and #16,807, Baptisms 1884-1956; Film #16,808 and #16,809 - Marriages 1885-1956; Film 16,810 - Burials 1904-1956.
6. San Geronimo Church, San Geronimo - many records can be found in the Sapello and Las Vegas books. The same priest often served all three churches.
   • Film #16,983 - Baptisms 1937-1954; Marriages 1938-1953; Burials 1937-1950.
7. San Isidro Parish, Chaperito
   • Film #1,930,437 - Baptisms 1876-1891; Marriages 1876-1898 (FHL only).
8. Our Lady of Guadalupe Church, Villanueva
   • Film #17,032 - Baptisms 1919-1956; Film #17,033 - Marriages 1919-1956, Burials 1937-1956.

Presbyterian Churches

Presbyterian church records are found on Ancestry.com, "U.S. Presbyterian Church Records, 1701-1970."

1. Presbyterian Church of Trementina
   • Baptisms, p. 136, 1902-1939; Marriages, p. 194, 1903-1940; Deaths, p. 213, 1904-1951.
2. First Presbyterian Church, Las Vegas
   • Baptisms, image 460, p. 136, 1880-1937; Marriages, image 488, p. 194, 1880-1926.
   • Baptisms, image 128, 1941-1961; Marriages, image 142, 1941-1960; Burials, image 164, 1945-1961.
   • Baptisms, image 39, p. 95, 1958-1964; Marriages, image 41, p. 122, 1959-1970.
3. Spanish Presbyterian Church, Las Vegas
   • Baptisms, image 195, p. 184, 1890-1919; Marriages, image 203, p. 190, 1919-122.
   • Baptisms, p. 242, 1931-1958; Marriages, p. 292, 1934-1958.

Other Sources

1. Hispanic Genealogical Research Center of New Mexico - They have books that have been extracted and translated from the Archdiocese of Santa Fe Archives. The current list includes Baptisms and Marriages for San Miguel del Bado, Sapello, Las Vegas (Our Lady of Sorrow), and Chaparito. They also have a Burials book for Las Vegas. The books are available for purchase on their website.
2. New Mexico Genealogical Society - They have books that have been extracted and translated from the Archdiocese of Santa Fe Archives. Currently, the following books are available for purchase on Amazon:
   • New Mexico Baptisms: San Miguel del Bado Church, Vol. I: 1829-1844.
   • New Mexico Baptisms: San Miguel del Bado Church, Vol. II: 1844-1853.
   • New Mexico Marriages: San Miguel del Bado Church: 1829-1878.
   • San Miguel del Bado, NM Burials, 1798-1850. Also includes Pecos from 1796-1829 and Ribera from 1847-1850.

Cities/Towns

• Bernal, also known as Bernal Springs
• Chapelle
• Conchas Dam
• El Cerrito
• El Porvenir
• Ilfeld, originally known as June
• Las Vegas, also known as Las Gallinas
• North San Ysidro
• Pecos, formerly known as Levy
• Pueblo, also known as El Pueblo
• Ribera
• Rociada, originally known as Rincón de Tecolote
• Rowe
• San Geronimo, formerly known as Los Valles de San Gerónimo del Tecolote
• San Jose
• San Miguel del Bado
• Sapello
• Sena, also known as Puertecito
• South San Ysidro
• Tecolote
• Tecolotito
• Tererro (not a typo)
• Trementina
• Villanueva, formerly known as La Cuesta

Sources

1. ↑ "Juan Bautista de Anza," New Mexico History, State Records Center & Archives, (https://newmexicohistory.org/2012/06/27/juan-bautista-de-anza/ : 9 Jun 2023).
2. ↑ ^{2.0 2.1} Julyan, Robert. The Place Names of New Mexico, (Albuquerque, NM: University of New Mexico Press, revised edition 1998), pp. 260-261.