Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1909-02-25
In New Mexico.

Ed Register-On January Is, 1909,
we left Belleview Mo-, for St.
Louis, and at ten o'clock Tuesday
night we departed for New Mex
leo, arriving at Artesia on the 21st.
We found all hale and hearty at
r. j. Hills, and much delighted
with sunny New Mexico.
They live in one mile of this
thriving little town., only about
five years old, located in the CEN
ter Of the great Pecos Valley Ar
tesian belt on the Pecos Valley
and Northeastern r. R., a short
distance from Pecos River. 1t is
the principal town of northern
Eddy County, and is, surrounded
on every side with rich farming
land watered by the wonderful
artesian wells, which give it it's
name.
Artesia is less than five years
old and filled with live, energetic
people, full of enterprise, who are
rapidly pushing it to the front,
The population is now 1000, and
in spite of the short time the citi-
zens have devoted their energies
to municipal improvements, it
has vide, well graded streets,
cement sidewalks, substantial
blocks of brick and stone, and
many fine residences. All the
first settlers planted fruit and
shade trees, and as a result hum
dreds of thriving young trees line
the residence streets.
Artesia has two banks, two drug
stores, four dry goods stores, one
wholesale dry goods and grocery,
two livery barns, four hotels, two
hardware stores, two newspapers,
one harness factory, three black
smith shops, three lumber yards,
local and long distance telephone
connections with all parts of Pecos
Valley, and a S4700 municipal
water works system: The Roman
Catholics, the Baptist, Methodist,
Christian, Presbyterian and Epis-
cipal churches have organizations
while the Masonic, EASTERN Star,
K. of p, I. o. o. F., w. 0. W.,
M. w. A. and Rebecca fraternities
have chapters.
The town has a $4,000 brick
school building and the tax payers
recently voted to construct another
$40, 900 building to accommodate
the increased school population.
The Methodist conference will
erect a Methodist college building
beginning April 1st at a cost of
$3.50, 900. The people of the town
giving as a bonus $4,000 and
twenty acres as a site. Artesia
will then excel any county in New
Mexico in school advantages.
Eddy county was the first county
in New Mexico to abolish gamb-
ling by law and on March 8, 1908,
by a vote Of 2 to l saloons were
abolished. Artesia being first to
act in the movement.
Five years ago q test well re-
suited in the greatest supply Of
artesian water ever found in the
world. Since that time hundreds
of wells have been drilled and the
sandy deserts once thought to be
worthless have been converted
into highly cultivated farms.
Alfalfa is the principal crop and
the amount produced per acre is
wonderful. The total acreage in
and around Artesia is about $4,000
acres and more acres being seed
ed each year. To give you an
idea how the soil yields, will give
the figures of g. A. Sipple as he
told me: son my farm OF 80 acres
seeded to alfalfa, one and two
years old, I cut twice last year and
each time I got 1856 tons OF hay,
which l sold for $3.50 per ton.
The 270 tons of hay brought me
$780," Mr.. Sipple cut over this
same 80 acres twice more, but did
not keep any record OF yields.
The Pecos Valley produces the
/ finest fruit on the globe and you
can see orchards varying IN size
from 5 acres to 600 acres all over
over this valley, ard tits predicted
that in less than ten years there