Albuquerque weekly citizen. (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1891-19??, 1903-05-23
"REMINISCENCES AND
CHRONOLOGY.

The twenty-second anniversary OF
two important events In our local his.
tory might be celebrated tomorrow
The opening of our first hotel and the
opening Of our street railway. Sunday
May Is, 1881, was n great day. Every.
body could ride, and everybody did
ride, and having ridden could enjoy a
meal in the then elegant Armijo house.
Work on the street railway com
menced on Railroad avenue near the
Santa Fe track on March 30 and the
frst rail was laid on April 90. Origin
ally the grade was made, not in the
center, but on the south side OF the
avenue within a few feet OF the side
walk, the company paying no attention
TO the protests of property owners I'M
I'll its superintendent, Col NJ. Bell, was
In an effectual way. informed that he
must change the grade to the street
center or quit building and go back to
New York. The grade was changed.
Upon the opening day individual fares
were pain in sums ranging from the
regular 10 cents to So the people thus
signifying their appreciation OF street
cars over the natives ambulance.
That the Methodists are now about
To erect new church brings the rec.
objection that the present church was
built In the summer of 1881. The
church was organized In the old town
on Sunday April IS. 1880, and OF the
original trustees all are dead except
I. G. Anes. though to al n vacancy
in June. 1881. Thos. Hughes was made
trustee and he Is the only other old
time survivor.
Il was in this same church building
that In October. 1881. the opera Pima
fore was rendered by home talent, and
of that talent we have but two surviv.
ors. Minnie Horner tMrs. jesse Mil.
ier) who rendered the part of Hebe.
and Matte Howe. (Mrs. w, c. Brown
who made delightful Little Butter.
cup. II was grand success. Its
words, its music and It's lyrics were.
and are. so sprightly and catchy, that
II II were reproduced today IL would
be the event OF the season.
Eighty-one was a busy year. Many
organizations were perfected and q
few OF them survive and have surviv-
ing organizers.
The fire company was organized DC.
tober rs. Billy Sanguinet;e was chief
and OF the original members there are
but X. II. Greenleaf Perfecto Armijo.
II. +. Fhelan and the chief The fire
alarm was the voice and the six shoot.
er. and with a scarcity OF both water
and buckets the labor was arduous.
Fortunately there we're no serious
fires. The fact that we had day and
night town-open all the time--led TO
the discovery of an incipient blaze and
10 its extinction.
The Guards organized November 3,
and OF the original members none but
its officers remain. Capt. John Bora
dale and Lieutenants VIM. Sanguin.
cite and T. +. Phelan.
The fair association dates from the
evening of March Is, at Rancho Seco
hall In old town.
We had base ball enthusiasts then as
ril :, and the first game played April
16. on grounds near the A. a p, shops,
between the town boys and the A. & p.
boys. w. r. McCreight. captain and
third baseman and w. Y. Walton, cat.
cher. are the sole survivors OF the
town club J. II. Kuhns, second base.
man for the A. n p. team. Is It's only
present representative. II rained, but
the game went on until II rained too
hard, when shelter was taken at the
A. g. p boarding house and a supper
and smoker given the victors. the town
boys; score. 9 to 3.
II was but month after the open
ing OF the Armijo that the Madden
house, now the European, was opened,
June ~. for dinner.
October 4 records double mark.
The opening OF the first fair, and the
laying OF the corner stone of the Ma.
sonic temple. the first Masonic edifce
in the territory We had also the tele-
phone originally between the new and
old town express ofiices and then to
the fair grounds.
Our pos,ofice dates from March 90,
with Fred Kent as our first posimas.
ter. The Office was In that little. brok.
en- down shack just south OF walton's
drug store.
The first two story frame business
house was being erected on the north
west corner OF Railroad avenue and
Second street for George Lail II was
nearly completed on March 81 and was
= handsome structure. A few minutes
after 6 o'clock that evening a zephyr
Kansas would call II a cyclone-struck
II and In a moment II was razed. The
wind lasted but couple of minutes.
but destroyed a $4,000 Improvement
solely. At an earlier date we had a
less destructive but very strong mo-
mentary blow from the same direction
II came out OF the west. On the morn
ing OF December 4. 1880. the adobe