Welcome to Bonito ...
Bonito is located in Lincoln County<1>.
While we don't have a date for the founding of Bonito, you might consider that their post office opened in 1882.
Bonito is 7,140 feet [2,176 m] above sea level.<2> In other words, the elevation of Bonito is about 1¼ mile [or ~2¼ km] above sea level.
Time Zone: Bonito lies in the Mountain Time Zone (MST/MDT) and observes daylight saving time
Area Code for Bonito: 575
Communities near Bonito ...
We have created a list of 10 communities that are near Bonito.
- Ruidoso
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Ruidoso Downs
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ruidoso Downs have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ruidoso Downs
- Ruidoso Downs is located in Lincoln County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,631 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Ruidoso Downs <3>
- Capitan
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Capitan have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Capitan
- Capitan is located in Lincoln County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,457 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Capitan <3>
- Carrizozo
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- Alto
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Alpine Cellars Village
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Alpine Cellars Village have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alpine Cellars Village
- Alpine Cellars Village is located in Lincoln County
- Nogal
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Hollywood
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Carrizo
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Fort Stanton ‑ Historic
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
To Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
We have a couple of sections for those tracing their genealogy.
We created a list of cemeteries that are in the area around Bonito. Our list includes the location of those cemeteries and we provide an overhead view. See our Cemetery List for Bonito.
Using the information from an 1895 Atlas, we've created a list of communities that were in the area of Bonito. Our list includes information such as whether the 1895 community had a post office or railroad service. See our List of 1890's Communities around Bonito.
We also have a detailed list of newspapers that have been published in the area around Bonito. See our Newspapers Page for Bonito.
TripAdvisor Tourism Pages for Bonito ...
Looking for more information about Bonito? A wonderful source is the TripAdvisor website. We always start with the TripAdvisor Tourism page, where you can read an overview with links that will help you find lodging, restaurants and attractions.
While we are unaware of a Tourism page that is specific to Bonito, there are neighboring communities that do have Tourism pages. A map of those communities can be found with our TripAdvisor Page for Bonito.
Adding Bonito to Our Gazetteer ...
We originally found mention of Bonito in both the FIPS-55 and the GNIS. For more information, see the FIPS and GNIS Codes sections on our Miscellaneous Page.
From our notes, the earliest published mention we've found for Bonito was in the document titled List of Post Offices from Cameron Blevins and Richard Helbock.<5>
From that list, the Bonito post office opened in 1882.
We also found Bonito in the book titled Business Atlas and Shippers' Guide (1895).
For more details, see References and Mentions for Bonito.
Footnotes ...
| <1> | If you're interested in how the shape of New Mexico's counties, including Lincoln, have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries. |
| <2> | The elevation is an estimate for the area around Bonito - it will be higher in some places and lower in others. |
| <3> | While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program. |
| <4> | The location has been supplied by the Geographic Names Information System - which is maintained by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). While these values should be definitive, we found that accuracy can vary and you should double-check the location if accuracy is required. |
| <5> | A copy of their list with background information can be found at:
https://cblevins.github.io/us-post-offices/data-biography/ |