July 14: Los Luceros
historical gem with a queer backstory
Welcome to Postcards from New Mexico! Three Sundays a month, I share beauty, stories, and culture from this region that has been my home since 2008. Please consider upgrading to a paid subscription and enjoy these benefits:
A genuine snail-mail postcard from New Mexico!
Access to the “If you go/Local’s Tip” section of certain posts, where you’ll find valuable insider information to enhance your next journey to Northern New Mexico.
In acknowledgement of living on un-ceded Tewa lands, 10% of your subscription will be donated to support Native-led nonprofits in this region.
About 45 minutes north of Santa Fe, you’ll find one of the most beautiful hidden treasures of Northern New Mexico: Los Luceros. This ranch and estate is now designated as an historic site by the state of New Mexico, and is open to the public to enjoy and learn about its fascinating history.
The site itself, alongside the Rio Grande, has been inhabited for at least 1000 years, first by the Tewa Indigenous people, then Spanish settlers, then a small and fascinating group of Americans. In the late 1600s, Los Luceros was part of the Sebastian Martin Serrano land grant, and later owned by the Ortiz family. The hacienda picture above was built in the 1700s and renovated by subsequent owners. The ranch was one of the earliest Spanish colonial sites to plant apple trees and you can still see over 1,000 trees scattered throughout the property.
By the time the 1900s arrived and New Mexico had become part of the United States, Los Luceros was part of the San Gabriel dude ranch and had fallen into a sad state of disrepair. This is the part of the story where Mary Cabot Wheelwright enters, and where things get queer.
Mary, from a wealthy Boston family, came to the dude ranch to ride horses. She fell in love with Los Luceros and eventually used money inherited from her parents to buy and restore it. Like a small group of other women at the time which included Georgia O’Keeffe and Mabel Dodge Lujan, Mary discovered a much more expansive and liberating way of life in Northern New Mexico and shed the skin of her puritanical upbringings. She would go on to become an anthropologist and collector of Native American art, and she made the company of a number of extraordinary people including Hastiin Klah, a two-spirit Diné (Navajo) weaver, and Marie Chabot, a young woman from Texas who became the caretaker of the property and Mary’s companion. When Wheelwright died she left the estate to Marie, who also had a close relationship with Georgia O’Keeffe.
While it’s not possible to know exactly what kinds of relationships everyone had with each other, this is most definitely “queer” in the sense of a group of individuals straying far from the social norms they were expected to have at this time in history and finding their own beautiful way of living life. You can learn more about this fascinating circle of people and their stories in this article.
All of this makes for a beautiful morning or afternoon of adventure and relaxation, especially since this is one of the few places along the northern Rio Grande that is accessible to the public. As you drive through the entrance, you’ll make your way on a country road surrounded by apple orchards and then come to the visitor center where you can check in and get helpful information from very friendly park rangers. From the visitor center, take a beautiful meandering walk down a path lined with towering cottonwoods and more fruit trees. The walk eventually takes you all the way to the banks of the great river. Along the way, there are numerous historic buildings including the Hacienda and a capilla (chapel) built in the 1800s and still owned and used by the Archdiocese of Santa Fe.
Wish you were here!
If you go / Local’s tips
Los Luceros is open Wednesday through Sunday, 10 am to 4 pm. There is an entrance fee of $7 per person, with children 16 years and younger admitted for free. If you’re a New Mexico resident, admission is free on the first Sunday of every month. NM residents 60 years and older with ID receive free admission each Wednesday.
If you plan to visit a number of New Mexico state museums and historic sites within a year, consider purchasing a Culture Pass -- it’s a great deal!
Los Luceros is just north of the Pueblo of Ohkey Owingeh (formerly known as San Juan Pueblo). Coming from Santa Fe you’ll find it by heading north on State Road 68. About 10 miles past the town of Espanola, look carefully on the right (east) side of the highway for the brown sign noting Los Luceros Historic Site. Turn left on County Road 48 which dead-ends at the entrance to Los Luceros.
If you’re a birdwatcher, don’t miss “Dawn till Dusk” day! On the first Sunday of each month, Los Luceros opens at sunrise — a beautiful time to enjoy the birds. A guided walk led by volunteers from the Pajarito Environmental Education Center is offered from 7 - 9:30 am. Keep an eye out for woodpeckers, flickers, and migratory waterfowl like herons. If you stay until sunset, you just might see bats feasting on insects near the river.
The rangers of Los Luceros line up all kinds of interesting events which you can find on the park website. In partnership with the Northern Rio Grande National Heritage Area, a number of traditional art workshops are offered, such as one on straw applique on July 27, 2024.
Very interesting story! Makes me want to visit, for all the reasons you mention. I’m adding this to my bucket list!
Really interesting profile, Maia - and appreciated the link to the other article.