NCJ Number
64950
Date Published
1979
Length
46 pages
Annotation
THE HISTORY AND ARCHITECTURAL STYLE OF COURTHOUSES IN NEW MEXICO'S 32 COUNTIES ARE DESCRIBED AND ARE ACCOMPANIED BY PHOTOGRAPHS.
Abstract
COUNTIES IN NEW MEXICO HAVE NOT HAD GREAT HISTORICAL SIGNIFICANCE AND VARY WIDELY IN SIZE AND POPULATION DENSITY. THE COURTHOUSE, HOWEVER, IS AN IMPORTANT SYMBOL OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT, AND COUNTY COURTHOUSES FREQUENTLY MIRROR THE HISTORY OF A LOCAL AREA. EASTERN COUNTY COURTHOUSES GENERALLY ARE SIMILAR TO THOSE BUILT IN WEST TEXAS AND OTHER PARTS OF THE UNITED STATES, REFLECTING THE CULTURAL ORIGINS OF LOCAL RESIDENTS WHO MIGRATED WEST TO NEW MEXICO. IN OTHER AREAS, COURT BUILDINGS ARE OFTEN OF THE SPANISH-PUEBLO OR TERRITORIAL STYLE, AND MANY FACILITIES BUILT DURING THE 1930'S FOLLOWED THIS PATTERN. MOST RECENT COURTHOUSES DO NOT REFLECT THE STATE'S CULTURAL HERITAGE. SANTA FE, AS THE CENTER OF SPANISH-PUEBLO ARCHITECTURE, HAS MANY UNIQUE HISTORICAL STRUCTURES, SUCH AS THE LEGISLATIVE-EXECUTIVE BUILDING WHICH WAS CONSTRUCTED IN THE 1960'S ON THE MODEL OF A PUEBLO KIVA. THE GEOGRAPHIC LOCATION, SIZE, POPULATION, HISTORY, AND ORIGIN OF THE NAME ARE DESCRIBED FOR EACH COUNTY ALONG WITH NOTABLE ARCHITECTURAL FEATURES OF ITS COURTHOUSE. A CHART SUMMARIZING THIS INFORMATION IS APPENDED. (MJM)