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The Commemorative Quarter for New Mexico





Our Genealogy Helper

Introduction ...

We have a couple of goals for our Gazetteer:

  • That it be a tool which helps us with planning our trips.
  • We're trying to shape our Gazetteer as a tool to help us understand the community in which our ancestors lived, the community that was part of their daily lives.
  • On our trips, we try to visit those places where our ancestors left their footprints.

By learning about Santa Fe (and the surrounding area) during the time that our ancestors lived, we hope to have a better understanding of both their community and its relationship to their lifes. We hope that this tool helps to give us an insight into their world.

As we add data and organize our Gazetteer to help with our family research, we will be adding to this our Genealogical Helper for Santa Fe. While we don't have information that is specific to any given person or family, we intend to expand our understanding about where and how people lived.

Neighboring Counties ...

When searching for family records, we have frequently made the mistake of not checking the neighboring counties.

For example, we have great-grandparents who lived in the northeast corner of their home county. During their lives, most doctors were in the next county to the east. Almost all of the nearby churches and cemeteries were in the county to the north.

So when searching for records, we had our best success by looking in neighboring counties instead of the county in which they lived:  their home county contained property and probate records; the county to the east contained birth and death records; the county to the north contained their burial records. If we hadn't included the neighboring counties, we would have missed many valuable sources of information.

If you're in a similar situation, we hope that the following information helps.

Santa Fe is located in Santa Fe County and is the County Seat.

To see how the shape of New Mexico's counties have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Santa Fe County: Bernalillo, Los Alamos, Mora, Rio Arriba, San Miguel, Sandoval & Torrance.

Below are the counties that are near Santa Fe. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Santa Fe:

  • Santa Fe County     (The home county of Santa Fe)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Santa Fe, with the one closest to Santa Fe listed first.
    • Agua Fria
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Tesuque
      (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Tesuque have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tesuque
      • Tesuque is located in Santa Fe County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Tesuque <1>
    • Seton Village
      (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Seton Village
      • Seton Village is located in Santa Fe County
    • Canada de los Alamos
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Canada de los Alamos have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Canada de los Alamos
      • Canada de los Alamos is located in Santa Fe County
    • Chupadero
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Chupadero have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chupadero
      • Chupadero is located in Santa Fe County
    • Rio en Medio
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rio en Medio
      • Rio en Medio is located in Santa Fe County
    • Eldorado at Santa Fe
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Eldorado at Santa Fe have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eldorado at Santa Fe
      • Eldorado at Santa Fe is located in Santa Fe County
    • Glorieta
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
    • La Cienega
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for La Cienega have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for La Cienega
      • La Cienega is located in Santa Fe County
    • Cuyamungue
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cuyamungue
      • Cuyamungue is located in Santa Fe County
    • Bonanza City ‑ Historic
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bonanza City have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bonanza City
      • Bonanza City is located in Santa Fe County
    • Lamy
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
  • Los Alamos County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Santa Fe, with the one closest to Santa Fe listed first.
    • White Rock
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for White Rock
      • White Rock is located in Los Alamos County
    • Los Alamos
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
  • Rio Arriba County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Santa Fe, with the one closest to Santa Fe listed first.
    • Chimayo
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
    • Espanola
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
    • Cordova
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
    • Santa Clara Pueblo
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Santa Clara Pueblo have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Santa Clara Pueblo
      • Santa Clara Pueblo is located in Rio Arriba County
    • Ohkay Owingeh
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
    • San Juan
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for San Juan
      • San Juan is located in Rio Arriba County
    • Truchas
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
    • Chamita
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chamita
      • Chamita is located in Rio Arriba County
    • El Duende
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for El Duende
      • El Duende is located in Rio Arriba County
    • Hernandez
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
    • Alcalde
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
    • La Villita
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for La Villita
      • La Villita is located in Rio Arriba County
  • San Miguel County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Santa Fe, with the one closest to Santa Fe listed first.
    • Holy Ghost ‑ Historic
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Holy Ghost
      • Holy Ghost is located in San Miguel County
    • Pecos
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pecos have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pecos
      • Pecos is located in San Miguel County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,313 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Pecos <1>
    • Cowles
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cowles
      • Cowles is located in San Miguel County
    • Rowe
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Ilfeld
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
  • Sandoval County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Santa Fe, with the one closest to Santa Fe listed first.
    • Cochiti Lake
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
    • Cochiti Pueblo
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
    • Pena Blanca
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pena Blanca have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pena Blanca
      • Pena Blanca is located in Sandoval County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Pena Blanca <1>
    • Domingo
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Domingo
      • Domingo is located in Sandoval County
    • Sile
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sile
      • Sile is located in Sandoval County
    • Kewa Pueblo
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)

For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Santa Fe, see our County-by-County Page for Santa Fe.

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Santa Fe ...

An ongoing effort between the Library of Congress and the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) has resulted in the National Digital Newspaper Program (NDNP).

To share their results, the partnership has created the Chronicling America website. The goal of this partnership is to assemble a database about the current and historic newspapers of the United States. This includes a growing collection of scanned images from selected papers. All of it available to the public on their website.

Using information that we've taken from the Chronicling America website, we've identified 115 newspapers that have been published in the area around Santa Fe.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

  • A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Santa Fe. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Santa Fe and those printed in the larger area surrounding Santa Fe.
  • An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 29 miles [46.7 km]<3> of Santa Fe.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we first visit the websites from Cyndi's List, FamilySearch and Genealogy Trails. These helpful websites offer the information directly or else point to where you can find it. Their information is open to everyone.

To help you get started, the following links will take you to the pages that are relevant to Santa Fe:

Cemeteries Near Santa Fe ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Santa Fe.

This is a new section and is likely to have errors. If you find an error, such as a missing cemetery or we have the wrong name, please let us know. If you know of them, we would also appreciate learning about previous or alternate names.

If you need information about a burial or interment, photos, transcripts, how to contact the cemetery or local authorities, please visit our selection of Genealogy Websites (see below).

If not found below, our Cemetery List for Santa Fe covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.

The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Santa Fe, with the one closest to Santa Fe listed first.

Nearby Communities in 1895 ...

We've built the following list with information that came from an Atlas published by Rand McNally in 1895. The Atlas had details such as the population of the community (which appears to have come from the 1890 Census) and whether there was a post office and/or railroad service available. We also indicate if the community no longer exists and is now historic.<6>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Santa Fe had a population of 6,185 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service. In 2020, Santa Fe had a population of 84,996 people.

These communities are listed based on their distance from Santa Fe, with the one closest to Santa Fe listed first.

  • Glorieta
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
  • Lamy
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
  • Pojoaque
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pojoaque have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pojoaque
    • Pojoaque is located in Santa Fe County
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Pojoaque <1>
  • Jacona
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Jacona have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jacona
    • Jacona is located in Santa Fe County
  • Pecos
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pecos have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pecos
    • Pecos is located in San Miguel County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,313 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Pecos <1>
  • Waldo ‑ Historic
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Waldo have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waldo
    • Waldo is located in Santa Fe County
  • Los Cerrillos
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Los Cerrillos
    • Los Cerrillos is located in Santa Fe County
    • Los Cerrillos has also been known as:
    • Cerrillos
  • Rowe
    (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
  • Santa Cruz
    (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
  • Espanola
    (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
  • Ortiz ‑ Historic
    (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ortiz have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ortiz
    • Ortiz is located in Santa Fe County
  • Chamita
    (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chamita
    • Chamita is located in Rio Arriba County
  • Alcalde
    (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)

We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Santa Fe. See our List of 1890's Communities around Santa Fe.

The official website for Santa Fe: www.santafenm.gov/

The official website for Santa Fe County: www.co.santa-fe.nm.us/

The official website for State of New Mexico: www.newmexico.gov/

Footnotes ...

<1>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<2>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.
<3>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'point-to-point' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Santa Fe) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Santa Fe. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 35.6776, Longitude: -105.9539    
<4>The Find-a-Grave website is an excellent research tool with information about a cemetery's location and interments. They also offer a forum for their members which can provide additional help. More information about Find-a-Grave can be found on their website: findagrave.com.
<5>An 'estimated' location is one where we have been given GPS coordinates, but are unable to verify the accuracy of those coordinates. That said, we have some confidence that we have placed the marker near the actual location. A typical reason for being unable to verify a location is that it might be on private property or maybe historic and gone without an obvious trace.
<6>We use the term 'Historic' broadly and it generally means that the community no longer exists. However, it can also mean that the community might still exist, but was significantly larger or had a more 'official' existence in the past than it does now. Unfortunately our sources of data have proven to be unreliable. If you can provide us with more specific information about Santa Fe, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 07 Apr 2024