The Estancia news. [volume] (Estancia, Torrance County, N.M.) 1904-1912, 1908-02-07

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of Torrance was segregated from the
counties of Valencia, Socorro, Lincoln,
San Miguel, Santa Fe and Bernalillo,
by the Territorial Legislative Assembly
during the closing days of the session
Of 1908, receiving its name from a
Pennsylvania capitalist Francis J. Tor
rance, who was one of the promoters
of the Santa Fe Central Railroad. The
county seat was named as Progreso, a
station on this railroad, about mile
distant from Progreso, the sheepranch
of Col. j. Francisco Chavez, one of the
leading politicians of the territory. The
county was organized January 2, 1905,
at Progreso. There being no building
near the county seat, in which the of
fcers elect could meet with any degree
of comfort, the management of t1o
Santa Fe Central kindly ran spec al
train from Santa Fe to the county seat,
and in this upholstered court house, the
infant was welcomed into existence
The legislature of 1905 changed the
county seat to the promising town Of
Estancia.
The county Of Torrance is one Of t!
smaller Of the group comprising the
territory of New Mexico, but is several
times larger than the state of Rhode
Island, and adout one tenth the size of
Indiana. Within its boundaries and cX
tending northward into the county of
Santa Fe, lies the great Estancia Val
ley, with the Pedernal range of noun
tains to the east, the Manzanos and
Sandals to the west, the Gallinas to the
south, and just beyond the northern
boundary the Ortiz and San Pedro.
The altitude is from six thousand feet
. upward several peaks in the Manzanos
tow ering 10, 500 feet above sea level
This altitude, together with the
southern latitude, which is about that
of northern Georgia and Alabama, gives
to the country a most ideal climate,
cool in summerand temperate in winter,
The United States Weather Bureau re-
port during the past few years gives it
a maximum temperature Of 95 dcgrc e.,
with minimum of II degrees Fahren-
heit. The country is free from the
sultry sleepless nights of the central
states, and the cold damp winter days. |
HISTORY OF THE VALLEY COUNTRY.
Until very few years since, the |
whole valley was embraced in land
grant from the King of Spain to one,
Bartolomeo Baca. This grant was. af-
ter being contested in the various lower |
courts, annuled by the Supreme Court |
of the United Ltates, and the land
thrown open for settlement under the |
government land laws. Pennsylvania
capitalists conceived the Santa Fe |
Central railroad to connect the Denver
and Rio Grande, and Atchison. Topeka |
& Santa Fe roads on the north, with |
the Ell Paso and Southwestern and |
Rock Island connections on the south.
and on August "a 1903, the first regu
lar train was run the entire distance Of |
1l6 miles. Up to this time the priiries
were held by the sheep and cattle |
men, and not an uncommon sight, even |
as late as the fall of 1903, was to see
herds Of antelope chasing across the
trackless expanse. But with the com
ing of the railroad, came also the in
satiable homeseeker, forced from the
overcrowded east, to seek home and
fortune in the unexplored regions.
EsTANCIA, THE COUNTY SEAT
Estancia, the county seat of Torrance
county is located little to the north
west of the center of the county. Here
are the famous Estancia springs,
where for ages past, the natives rested
their teams, when freighting their
wool to the Rio Grande, and returning
with supplies, thus making it their
"Estancia" or resting place. About
four years ago a postoffice was estab-
lishea here, supplied by star route