Guadalupe County, New Mexico

Guadalupe County Education, Geography, and History

Guadalupe County is a county located in the state of New Mexico. Based on the 2010 census, the population was 4,687, making it the fifth-least populous county in New Mexico. Its county seat is Santa Rosa.

Etymology - Origin of Guadalupe County Name

Guadalupe County was named after Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe (Our Lady of Guadalupe) or after the Mesita de Guadalupe (Guadalupe Plain).

Demographics:

County QuickFacts: CensusBureau Quick Facts

Guadalupe County History

In 1540, Coronado searched for the Seven Cities of Cibola. He camped near Puerto de Luna, which is six miles south of Santa Rosa. He built the first bridge in New Mexico. It went over the Pecos River.

 The county was created from the southern portion of San Miguel County February 26, 1891 by an act of the New Mexico Territorial Legislature. It was named for the Virgin of Guadalupe, patron saint of Mexico. Its county seat is Santa Rosa, which is on the Pecos River and known as the City of Natural lakes with many spring fed lakes. The original county seat was Puerto De Luna, but was moved north to Santa Rosa in 1903. That same year, after the popular Spanish - American War of 1898, the name of the county was changed to Leonard Wood County after the Presidential physician, Major-General in the Rough Riders, and winner of the Medal of Honor. The name was later changed back to Guadalupe County. The County contains whole, or parts of, several previous Spanish land grants to include the Aqua Negra, the Jose Perea, the Anton Chico, and the Preston Beck land grants.

Geography: Land and Water

As reported by the Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 3,032 square miles (7,850 km²), of which 3,030 square miles (7,800 km²) is land and 1.1 square miles (2.8 km²) (0.04%) is water

Neighboring Counties

Bordering counties are as follows:

• San Miguel County - north
• Quay County - east
• De Baca County - south
• Lincoln County - southwest
• Torrance County - west

Education

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