The U.S. Census Bureau continually strives to ensure an accurate

count of the people of the United States. For this reason, it has 

always embraced the hiring of a diverse workforce that is 

representative of the local communities. In the middle of the 

19th century, the United States expanded west into areas 

formerly governed by Spain and Mexico. Since many of the 

citizens and local officials only spoke Spanish, the Census Office 

quickly realized that it needed to employ workers fluent in the 

language. The establishment of a permanent Census Bureau in 

1903 and increased immigration from Cuba and Central and 

South America expanded the need for Spanish-speaking 

employees both in the field and at headquarters.

Pedro Valdez was born in 1825 in Taos, New Mexico. Pedro’s 

father, Buenaventura Valdez, descended from some of the first 

Spaniards to come to New Mexico in the 17th century. He served 

as a Justice of the Peace and held a prominent role in New 

Mexican society. His mother, Juana Catalina Lovato, served as 

the matron of the large Valdez family, and continued 

operating the family’s farm and business concerns following 

Buenaventura’s death around 1847. For his early education, 

Pedro studied under Padre Antonio José Martínez, an 

influential priest, educator, and politician. Noted as one of 

Padre Martínez’s most gifted students, Pedro studied 

mathematics, Latin, theology, rhetoric, and law. When the 

U.S. military occupied New Mexico in 1847, during the 

Mexican-American War, Pedro began studying English, and 

performed the duties of sheriff and justice of the peace in 

his hometown of Taos. During the early 1850s, Pedro would 

also study English in St. Louis, where he often traveled in 

order to expand his mercantile business.

In addition to his mercantile business, which stretched 

across the American west and helped establish new routes 

and settlements in Colorado, Pedro also began expanding 

his standing as a politician. He served as a probate clerk 

starting in 1855. In 1858, he first represented Taos in the 

Territorial Legislature, and in 1860, he won election as 

probate judge of Taos County. Pedro’s next political 

accolade would also come in 1860, when he received an 

appointment as assistant marshal from U.S. marshal 

Charles P. Clever to take the census in Taos and Mora 

counties. 

 

Assistant Marshal, Merchant, Politician

Portrait of Pedro Valdez in 1882.

Detail, Portrait of Pedro Valdez, photCL 314 v. 3 

(9), William G. Ritch collection of studio portraits 

of New Mexico officials and residents, The 

Huntington Library, San Marino, California. 

In late 1860, the Territorial Legislature assigned a 

commission to report on census results.

Santa Fe Weekly Post (Santa Fe, NM) December 22, 1860

Pedro’s 1860 Census.
Pedro started enumerating in Taos on June 14, 

and ended in Rayado on August 17. Between 

the two counties, Pedro counted a total 

population of 19,669. Pedro represented 

exactly what the Census Office wanted from its 

census takers. Not only did the people in his 

territory trust him, as evidenced by his election 

to several political positions, but he also had a 

deep knowledge of the area through his travels 

as a merchant. This familiarity was particularly 

important in territorial areas, where it would be 

easy to miss new households in the far-flung 

settlements.

After the outbreak of the Civil War in 1861, Pedro received a

commission in the U.S. Army as a major general, where he 

supervised recruiting and assignments in Taos and the 

surrounding counties. In 1863, he returned to the territorial 

legislature where he served as clerk and speaker of the 

house. Following this, in 1866, Pedro moved to Sapello, 

NM—a stop along the Santa Fe Trail—where he continued to 

grow his mercantile business and to farm. Another town 

along the Santa Fe Trail, Trinidad, CO, owes its founding in 

part to Pedro and his partner Felipe Baca, who first stopped 

at the site on their way to Denver, and where Baca later 

returned to settle.

In 1875, Pedro ran for the position of territorial delegate to 

the U.S. House of Representatives and was narrowly 

defeated by the incumbent, Stephen B. Elkins. Although 

several of his allies raised questions about the vote count 

and claimed victory for Pedro, the final vote tally in favor of Elkins stood. In 1877, Pedro again

ran—unsuccessfully—against Trinidad Romero. In 1880, Pedro returned to the New Mexico 

Legislature, this time in the upper house, known as the Council. His bilingualism and practical 

business skills made him an attractive leader to the New Mexican people as the state became 

increasingly diverse with westward migration. 

In 1880, the Census Bureau replaced the U.S. marshals with specially trained temporary 

enumerators. Once again Pedro worked as a census taker, this time in Sapello and the surrounding 

area. However, due to the increase in the number of enumerators and possibly in deference to his 

advanced age and responsibilities, his area 

was much smaller and he only enumerated 

822 people. In 1884, Pedro ran for public 

office for the last time, for probate judge 

of San Miguel County, but lost to his 

competitor. Pedro passed away on

December 1, 1884, survived by his wife

Maria Paula Leroux, the daughter of 

prominent New Mexican Joaquin Antoine 

Leroux. Although the couple had married 

in 1851, they had no biological children, 

but fostered and adopted many children in 

need. The Census Bureau is thankful for 

Pedro’s contributions, and of the 

contributions of all the members of our 

diverse workforce throughout the years.

On May 23, 1860, Pedro wrote to US Marshal Charles P. Clever 

requesting clarification on how to count farms and other land.

Detail, Letter from Pedro Valdez to Charles P. Clever, May 23, 1860, RI 1011, 

William Gillett Rich Papers, The Huntington Library, San Marino, California. 

Las Vegas Gazette (Las Vegas, NM) August 28, 1875

Pedro, front row third from right, with several of New Mexico’s most 

notable politicians in 1881.

Photographed by William Henry Brown, Courtesy Palace of the Governors Photo 

Archives (NMHM/DCA), 013144.

HB-19-0013