QUICKFACTS New Mexico Facts Statehood: Jan. 6, 1912 Capital: Santa Fe Flag: Red Zia on gold Ballad: Land of Enchantment Songs: Oh, Fair New Mexico and Asi Es Nuevo Mexico Motto: Crescit Eundo (It Grows As It Goes) Poem: A Nuevo Mexico Cookie: Biscochito Gem: Turquoise Bird: Roadrunner (Chaparral) Flower: Yucca Tree: Piñon Animal: Black Bear Fish: Rio Grande Cutthroat Trout
Silver City - Grant County Profile POPULATION: (2004) est. City: 12,500 County: 30,000 HOUSING: (2004) est. TOTAL HOUSEHOLDS City: 4,700 (500 unoccupied) COUNTY: 14,000 GOVERNMENT: Firefighters: 23 full time City Police: 30 State Police: 12 (10 officers, 2 sergeants) County Sheriff: 32 Officers TAXES: Gross Receipts: 7.25% (2007) City: $3,009,860 City Retail: $214,463,457 Per Capita Income: $17,409 Property: 17,397 Mills (Residential) 15,680 Mills (NonResidential)
Major Events Red Paint PowWow Chocolate Fantasia Tour of the Gila Silver City Blues Festival Wild Wild West Pro Rodeo Fourth of July Celebration Picamania Weekend at the Galleries Lighted Christmas Parade
Area Museums MUSEUMS: 3 Silver City Museum was founded in 1967. A restored Mansard/Italianate home built by H.B. Ailman with 20,000 objects relating to the peoples and history of southwest New Mexico. Admission is free. WNMU Museum celebrated its 30th Anniversary November 6, 2004. Home of Pottery and Artifacts of Prehistoric South-western Cultures. Available for viewing are historic photographs of Silver City and surrounding areas. Admission is free. Pinos Altos Historical Museum: Circa 1860shoused in a log cabin that once served as the 1st school house in Grant
County. Houses a great collection of mining artifacts and historic memorabilia. Admission is free.
Parks & Monuments City of Rocks State Park Gila Cliff Dwellings National Monument The Catwalk National Recreation Trail. (Glenwood)
Ghost Towns Mogollon: 75 miles NE US180 Shakespeare: 46 miles SE NM90 Steins: 63 miles SE NM90/I-10
Health Care MEDICAL Gila Regional Medical Center: 68 Beds, 43 Physicians Optometrists: 2 Dentists: 12 Clinics: 5 Chiropractors: 9 Fort Bayard Medical Center: Long term care facility with 4 Physicians offering services in Physical, Occupational and Speech Therapies, Geriatric care and Chemical Dependency unit. Pharmacies: 5 Acupuncturists: 2
Historic Sites SILVER CITY HISTORIC BUSINESS DISTRICT H. B. Ailman House built in 1881 houses the Silver City Museum. Bell Block constructed in 1897 and 1906 originally housed a saloon where straight drinks were sold for 12.5 cents Meredith & Ailman Bank built in 1882 was renamed the Palace Hotel in 1900. Silver City National Bank built in 1923, presently used as City Hall. O.S. Warren House built in 1885, is the only building on Main Street to survive the floods at the turn of the century. Mrs. O.S. Warren building built in 1900 was the former Colby’s Sporting Goods. El Sol Theatre building was built in 1934 to show Spanish-language films. W. H. White house built in 1901 was built of brick in the Hipped Box style for one of Silver City’s first dentists. Dr. W. H. White dental office built in 1887. Isaac N. Cohen House built in 1882 has the only remaining example of double-hung pocket shutters. Big Ditch Park was Silver City’s Main Street before the turn of the century
floods transformed it into an arroyo. Bennett Block on W. Yankie built in 1882 of adobe construction with brick facades. Max Schutz sample room on N. Texas was built to provide a meeting room for traveling salesmen. Goodell’s Feed Store on Yankie was built in 1905 and 1911 and remained a farmer’s supply outlet until the late 1970s. Victorian Homes, this architectural era spans the period of roughly 18251900. There are 31 homes still existing in the Silver City area. Walking Tours (3) offered by the Silver City Museum: Gospel Hill, La Capilla and Business District. Billy the Kid Cabin is located near the origin of his real home, this 1800s style cabin was donated by Ron Howard’s movie The Missing. La Capilla Chapel Replica, built on a hill on the south side of Silver City. The chapel was a local landmark and was utilized in pilgrimages and festivals for Our Lady of Guadalupe. PINOS ALTOS Fort Cobre Replica is 3/4 scale replica of the Santa Rita Del Cobre Fort (circa 1804) which originally was located at the Santa Rita open pit copper mine east of Silver City. Buckhorn Saloon & Opera House, circa 1860s This fine restaurant and saloon is authentically decorated with 1800’s memorabilia and photographs. Hearst Church. (circa 1898) built by the Hearst newspaper family and is the current home to the Grant County Art Guild. The gold used in decorating the Hearst Castle in California came from the Hearst Mine in Pinos Altos. FORT BAYARD Buffalo Soldiers: In 1866 Congress authorized the organization of four black regiments to help the “pacification” of the West. The Indians christened these men with their short curly hair the Buffalo Soldiers, a name which the Tenth Calvary proudly bore on its military crest. Fort Bayard National Historic Landmark/ National Cemetery. Established as a territorial post dating back to 1863, the fort has served as a military center of operations, army and VA hospital and continues today as a State Medical Center.
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Silver City Museum
LOCATED IN THE HISTORIC 1881 MANSARD/ITALIANATE HOME OF H.B. AILMAN, THE SILVER CITY MUSEUM IS one of 13 museums in New Mexico recognized by the American Assn. of Museums. Founded in 1967, the museum is focused on the regional history of Southwest New Mexico with over 20,000 related objects. Photo collections depict Silver City from the 1870s and include a significant collection from the 1930s and 40s. Native American artifacts from the Mimbres, Mogollon and Casas Grandes peoples number over 500 pieces, and there are exhibits from more recent Navajo and Apache groups. Extensive mining exhibits, early Anglo and Hispanic settler clothing, furnishings and even firearms are displayed. There is also memorabilia from native son Harrison “Jack” Schmitt, former astronaut and U.S. Senator. It is open every day except Monday, and is located at 312 West Broadway. The Museum Store features books and gifts depicting or influenced by local history and cultures.
Extensive Collection of Southwest Books & Fine Regional Gifts Tues.–Fri. 9-4:30 Sat.–Sun. 10-4 Closed Monday.
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www.ziapublishing.com www.ziapublishing.com
312 West Broadway 575.538.5921 silvercitymuseum.org
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