Earlier this week, the dogs and I took a drive to the other side of the mountains east of Albuquerque to hike on a trail in the Manzano Mountains that we hadn’t walked on for a while. Our route took us through several land grant communities that have their roots back to the days when this part of the country was held by Mexico.
The land was granted in the 1830s and 1840s as a buffer against potential encroachment from Texas and the United States. When the communities were settled, their economy was based upon raising sheep.
Being far away from the Rio Grande and isolated on the other side of the mountains, they would have been in constant danger from raids by hostile Plains Indians. It would have been a very tough life. Many descendants of the original settlers still live in the area today.
Even though the communities are less than fifty miles from Albuquerque, there is still a sense of isolation and of it being a different place. Once past the outskirts of Albuquerque the first community on our route was Escobosa. Other than a highway sign and a small church, there is not much to identify Escobosa as a settlement.
San Ysidro Church in Escobosa
As an aside, if you want to learn more about places like Escobosa or actually explore New Mexico, I highly recommend that you pick up a copy of The Place Names of New Mexico by my friend Bob Julyan. The book is indispensable as it has great background information and interesting factoids on every town, settlement, and obscure crossroad in the State. It is the definitive New Mexico book.
Returning to the drive, the next land grant community on our route, Chilili, may be the most hostile place that you will ever drive through. The operative word for the community seems to be NO! I’m not sure if a sentence in Chilili would be considered complete without the word NO! I wonder what would happen if the word Yes snuck its way into a sentence.
Rather than trying to explain, let me share some pictures.
Immediately upon entering the Chilili Land Grant, you start seeing NO!
Chilili even has its own flag. I wonder if they have a song similar to The Bonnie Blue Flag?
I guess someone has a sense of humor in Chilili.
OK, I won’t buy any land in your community.
And yet another NO sign.
This sign is in front of the church. The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo was signed at the end of the Mexican War. It included a provision to respect land grant rights in lands taken over by the United States. The bottom line is that Chilili probably considers itself a sovereign nation.
There is, however, a nice cross in front of the church.
Upon exiting the land of No and returning somewhat to the world of normalcy, our route passed through beautiful New Mexico countryside. Being on the east side of the mountains where there is more rain, it is much greener than many parts of New Mexico.
The countryside is gorgeous and the recent rains have really greened it up.
Roadside shrines are quite common in New Mexico and this road was no exception. Many of them are for people killed in automobile accidents and are called Descansos. I’m not sure of the purpose for this shrine.
Here’s a closer look at the shrine. I hope the pictures of animals do not mean that small children were involved in any possible accident.
Our route eventually took us to Tajique. Compared to Chilili, Tajique is a warm and welcoming community. There are even a couple of shops where you can pick up a snack.
Here’s Tajique’s historical marker. Needless to say Chilili does not have a historical marker.
This store in Tajique will welcome your business.
Tajique may also be the firewood capital of New Mexico if not the entire world. There are huge piles of firewood everywhere. I imagine if we take this drive in a month or two we would see pickup truck after pickup truck pouring out of the mountains full of wood.
Firewood is piled everywhere in Tajique.
There are even wood piles behind the church. In a couple of months there will be many more piles.
What a tough way to eke out a living. But for town like Tajique, gathering wood is the economic opportunity. Think of the effort it takes to find the wood, cut the wood, split the wood, haul it into town, and then stand by your truck on a cold day trying to sell it. Fortunately for the woodcutters, there is a market for the firewood as many homes in New Mexico rely upon wood for heat. I just hope that there is enough money in it for the woodcutters to make a profit.
One thing that is always fun when driving through the small towns of New Mexico is taking time to check out the cemeteries along the way, and every settlement including Chilili had one. They always give you a sense of the community, and in New Mexico the cemeteries happen to be quite colorful and are a form of folk art.
A view of the Tajique cemetery.
The Tajique cemetery from a different angle.
This punch tinwork is at the entrance of the Chilili cemetery.
This statue is also in the Chilili cemetery.
here’s another view of the Chilili cemetery.
New Mexico is not the only place to check cemeteries. They are worth checking out everywhere. here’s a picture of a cemetery I took in Massachusetts last winter.
After passing to Tajique, the dogs and I made it to our hiking destination and had a great walk. And as for a wandering lesson, there is always something to learn and see on the journey whether it is on foot or behind the steering wheel.
July 10, 2024 at 1:45 pm
Great photos and I like the story. Always loved Escobosa I always visit when I can. I am a descendant of Felimino Mora. The godfather of Escobosa as I am told.
April 27, 2022 at 2:47 pm
Hello I am Valerie Hidalgo(Sandoval) My grandfather is Freddie Sandoval and our family has been part of Escobosa NM for many many years. He’s told me many stories of the history of the family in Escobosa, and all of his cousins I love hearing his stories. Can anyone get me information on who my cousins are there?
September 12, 2021 at 4:06 pm
Enjoyed your description of the area. We discovered Chilli today and I am a NM native though I’ve been away for 40 years. Cool find! Great hiking trails too!
May 11, 2021 at 5:13 am
Anyone remember Augustine , a one armed cowboy/ horse wrangle in Escibosa? He had 12 kids & delivered them all himself! Great family. I loved riding his horses!
February 9, 2020 at 7:37 am
I lived in Escobosa for about a year in the early 70’s while attending theUniveristy of New Mexico. We rented a home from the Montoya family who had a ranch in Escobosa. The Montoya family were really very sprecial to us. Always helpful and very kind to me and my roommate. We always enjoyed our visits with the Montoya family.
The area is beautiful ! I had a motorcycle and always enjoyed riding the road heading south from Tijeras to Mountainair. The wide open blue skies and bright sun on an early Spring ride on my motorcycle was amazing. We also really enjoyed hiking in the Monzano Mountains which are beautiful. The people that we met in the area were always friendly, kind and enjoyable to talk to. Some of the most enjoyable days of my time in New Mexico was living in Escobosa !
April 9, 2021 at 5:39 pm
Hi Rick Gallegos. Yes. Demetrio tapia was my maternal uncle. Moms name was Reynalda tapia marez sesaria. was his wife they had two sons justo and tomas. the female’s named Sally Mariana tita. Lugrarda. Grandma’s name was eulalia mares tapia great grandpa valente marez
April 9, 2021 at 9:54 pm
Yes that is my family. Lugie is my mother.
April 22, 2021 at 1:39 am
Hi Claudina,
My husband is descended from the Tapia family of Chilili. Justo is a great uncle I believe. I was reading some family tree notes that my father in law wrote and he mentions that you kept in touch with him. My father in law is Valentino Guerrero. Albinita Tapia was his grandmother. My husband is Michael, Valentino’s youngest.
April 27, 2021 at 10:15 pm
Hi Ron! Are you talking about Macario and Sinforosa Montoya? My great Uncle Eloy Mora lived next door to them in the “big” house and my great Auntie Mary lived across the way in the old school house. My great great grandfather Filomeno Mora homesteaded Escabosa 😁
December 17, 2021 at 9:41 pm
Hi, Tina. We may be distantly related. I’m just starting my family tree and I have traced it to the Mora and Lopez families from Chilili so far. I may have it wrong, but also the Tapia family, perhaps.
December 18, 2021 at 8:04 am
HI Tina! I don’t recall their first names but they were wonderful people with a warm and loving family. Very cool that you great great grandfather homesteaded Escabosa !
February 5, 2020 at 2:27 pm
I have lived the last 15 years just a mile north of Escabosa, and on this side of the mountains for 35 years. In spite of the signs, the folks in all the land grants are warm wonderful people. This is a spectacular area to be living in, and especially so if you ride a motorcycle.
October 6, 2019 at 6:58 pm
My grandfather was m moya he was one of the people responsible for the land grant prosperity in the 1960s when the land Grant’s were under government attack (chilili and terria amarilla among a few more) he and his older brother were arrested for their defiance and appealed to the new Mexico supreme court and won it was so cool to see his name in case law in the history books I had loads of fun going to chili ( we lived in abq)
And cutting wood spending Easter and Thanksgiving 8n the mountains over all lots of wonderful memories an good times
February 26, 2019 at 3:26 pm
Thank you David Ryan for the wonderful pictures and background on land grant towns along the way. I happened to discover Route 337 as a way to avoid a trip south on I-25 as was driving slowly in a 30 yr old Jeep Comanche pickup purchased in eastern OK. It was a beautiful sunny but cool windy day and a wonderful drive through the eastern mountains. Entering the area through Escobosa and the Chilil was almost surreal as if I had entered another world with a history almost 400 years old. I did take a few photos shame on me. Took a pleasant snack break in Tajique at Ray’s One Stop and chatted with the proprietor. Continued south to 55 and Salinas Pueblo Missions of Quarai and Abo. So glad I stumbled on to this wonderful bit of country and it’s remarkable history.
October 19, 2018 at 1:46 am
my great grandfather and my grandmother and many many generations of the family lived and buried in chiili nm. Delores Lucero my grandfather name manual Gonzalez. we raise uncle Charlie. my grandmother is buried in the Lucero private cemetery. but most of my aunt’s uncles cousin buried in the cemetery next to the church. spend many years going to that little church over the years. all my grandparent children born in chilli except aunt Jane and uncle Danny. my grandmother married manual Gonzalez, grandpa Lucero gave grandma some land and then grandma grandpa raised a family of sixteen. four died in as babies buried at the church cemetery in chili. they raise bean pumpkins squash. my mom Caroline and aunt Nora and uncle Gilbert helped in the fields. then in the middle of the thirties they moved into Albuquerque, mom said it was getting too hard to live off the land. but even harder in Albuquerque. move to a small one-bedroom place off Broadway then Martinez town. then grandma met the good people who owned a famous restaurant back at that time and sold grandma some land way out in the mesa. no roads nothing. it was located now on the corner of southern and Dallas.. grandma paid 50.00 a month. grandpa pulled the back of his boot in the ground and the story goes on from there. life was built and full of memories . a book is in the making.
September 15, 2017 at 12:29 pm
I lived just so of chilli in the 80s the hostility was explained this way to me. when the gringos started settling the many areas of n.m. they sent out paperwork in English to be filled out by the locals claiming which was whose. many of the locals did not read or speak English so they discarded the paperwork. with no formal claim to properties the powers that be assumed ownership-big problem!
August 11, 2017 at 8:32 am
I drove through this area just a few days ago. The signs in Chilili led me to search for an explanation of the hostile feeling. Thank you for your article.
July 18, 2017 at 6:03 pm
I grew up one mile from Escobosa. Our property bordered the National Forest. Went to elementary through high school with others from Chilili, Escobosa, and other small villages up in the East Mountains. Beautiful place to grow up. Never experienced problems except for dangerous roads in winter and forest fires once in a great while
June 24, 2017 at 6:39 pm
My grandparents, Will and Lena Shelton, lived in Chilili in 1915. My grandmother always described it as “lovely.” Sounds like it has changed.
June 24, 2017 at 5:36 am
Chilili sounds like a great place to receive a great education and life experience!
March 5, 2017 at 7:09 pm
Totally agree about Chililli. I feel like I am supposed to drive through it with my eyes closed.
December 26, 2015 at 9:43 pm
Loved your coverage of Chilili. keep up the good work Lyle fisk
December 26, 2015 at 9:39 pm
As a young boy 7-10 l had the best memories of my life without a doubt, l long for the days to come back. My uncle Chester Dow had the La Jara ranch for several years, l could write a book on my great experences through those years. l went to school in Chilili rode my horse to school and loved every minute of it. l so remember the general store in town and the old timer indian guys that hung around the store. l am now 76 but l remember that time as being the best time of my life and would love to be able to see it again. l now live in AZ. THANK YOU LYLE FISK
March 21, 2016 at 1:50 pm
Hello!
My grandmother was born and lived her early years in Chilili, NM. She is now 80. I want to understand her early life and retrace my families life, but she never wants to talk about it and when she does it is often negative memories of her father. It would appear she is 4 years older than you. I wonder if you knew her or her family during your years there as a young boy. I would love to connect with you if possible. Thank you.
May 4, 2019 at 10:07 am
Melissa do you know what your great grandfather’s last name would have been?
March 18, 2023 at 2:12 pm
My grandparents lived in Chilili in the early 1900 -1918 close to this time.
Family names Rodulfo and Carter
January 21, 2018 at 11:56 am
My material grandparents were from Chillii, Justo and Eulalia Tapia. Being my godparents, they named me Claudina. So I’ve always wondered, they must of been close to Claudina Dow. Would any of the Dow’s remember the Tapia family? Thanx
May 4, 2019 at 10:05 am
Hi Claudia – my grandfather was born in Chilili NM almost 100 yrs ago. His sister married into the Tapia family. My dad has a cousin Rosa (Tapia) that lives in Arizona where we live. My grandfather’s name was Luis Rudolfo. My great grandmother was Angelita Moya from that area. Distantly we are related to the Tapias. But more so related to the Moya’s of that area.
July 6, 2019 at 4:55 pm
Hi Jane-
Don’t recognize the Tapia names . However the Moya’s yes. My uncle’s married 2 Moya sister’s . Uncle Epifanio Tapia married Margarita Moya, Uncle Tomas Tapia married the other sister, don’t recall her name. They have been in Merced, Ca and surrounding areas since the 1950s.
I used to go visited my grandparents in Chilli as a child. So many sweet memories.
September 27, 2020 at 6:43 pm
Hello I was just going threw the article Wandering East of Albuquerque). AND I was going through the comments And I came across your comment about relatives in chilli nm it would seem that your great grandmother Angelita is also my great grandmother my mother was named after her.my grandmother Maria is the sister that married into the Tapias
April 11, 2021 at 10:59 pm
Hi Jo Otero, sorry I just now saw your reply about your great grandmother Angelita. To confirm, her last name was Moya? What are your parents names or which parent was Angelita’s grandchild? And which grandparent of yours was Angelita’s child? I don’t know very many of my New Mexico family members. My grandfather, Luis Rudolfo (Angelita’s son) passed away in February 2002. Thank you for responding to my post.
March 18, 2023 at 2:19 pm
Hi Jane,
It’s such a coincidence that we both have Rodolfo in our families. There has to be a connection.
March 5, 2021 at 7:53 am
Hi, Claudia I share the same family tree as you, Although Justo and Eulalia were my great grandparents. Dimetro and Sesaria Tapia were my grandparents.
May 11, 2021 at 5:06 am
Grew up in this area…Estancia, Tajique & Tijeras. Good memories.
July 20, 2014 at 8:13 am
Great photos and story. I haven’t been down that road in a while. Thanks.
July 18, 2014 at 3:24 pm
Can you post this on Facebook?
Will Hoffman