America at 250: New Mexico, The Land of Enchantment
From Clovis hunters and Pueblo communities to Route 66, Roswell, and the atomic age, New Mexico’s story reaches far beyond its 1912 statehood.
New Mexico’s history spans thousands of years, shaped by people who adapted to one of North America’s most dramatic landscapes and left an extraordinary cultural legacy behind. Indigenous communities flourished here long before Spanish colonization, and their descendants remain an essential part of the state today. From ancient pueblos and centuries-old communities to Route 66, scientific laboratories, and an enduring tradition of art and craftsmanship, the Land of Enchantment has repeatedly played an outsized role in the American story.
A Brief History of the Land of Enchantment
Few states can claim an archaeological record as important to the story of the earliest Americans as New Mexico. Two of the best-known Paleoindian archaeological cultures in North America take their names from sites in the state.
Near Clovis, Blackwater Draw became the type site for Clovis culture after distinctive fluted projectile points were found in association with mammoth remains. Clovis people lived during the closing millennia of the Pleistocene, when mammoths and other now-extinct animals still inhabited North America. Their carefully flint-knapped, lanceolate stone points were fluted near the base, probably to aid in hafting them to shafts. Although Clovis people have often been portrayed primarily as big-game hunters, archaeological evidence indicates that their subsistence was more varied.
Folsom culture followed Clovis chronologically and appears to have developed from the earlier tradition as people adapted to changing environments and prey at the end of the Ice Age. Folsom points are generally smaller and thinner than Clovis points, with exceptionally long flutes extending much of the length of the tool. They are strongly associated with hunting Bison antiquus, an extinct relative of modern bison.
The Folsom story also belongs to George McJunkin, a Black cowboy and ranch foreman who discovered unusually large fossil bones exposed after a 1908 flood near Folsom, New Mexico. Later excavations at the site revealed Folsom points in direct association with extinct bison remains, providing crucial evidence that people had lived in North America alongside animals from the Ice Age.
New Mexico’s archaeological record did not stop with Clovis and Folsom. Sites such as Water Canyon near Socorro preserve evidence of repeated Paleoindian occupation, including Clovis, Folsom, and later traditions such as the Cody Complex. Over thousands of years, people adapted to increasingly modern environments, developing new subsistence strategies and technologies.
Later Indigenous cultures built farming communities, villages, and extensive regional networks across New Mexico. Between about A.D. 850 and 1150, Chaco Canyon became the center of a remarkable Ancestral Pueblo cultural system. Its massive great houses, including Pueblo Bonito, contained hundreds of rooms and were connected to outlying communities by an extensive network of roads. Chaco was a center of ceremony, exchange, and community life whose influence extended across much of the Four Corners region. Elsewhere, Mogollon communities flourished across southern New Mexico and adjoining areas. The Pueblo peoples whose ancestors shaped these landscapes remain an essential part of New Mexico today.
Spanish colonization began in earnest at the end of the 16th century, bringing profound changes to Indigenous communities. Missions, new settlements, livestock, crops, and forced religious and labor systems altered life throughout the region. Resistance culminated in the Pueblo Revolt of 1680, when Pueblo peoples drove Spanish colonists from New Mexico. Spanish rule was reestablished beginning in 1692, but Pueblo communities endured.
Mexico gained independence from Spain in 1821, making New Mexico part of the new nation. The region came under U.S. control during the Mexican-American War, and the 1848 Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo formally transferred New Mexico to the United States. After decades as a territory, New Mexico became the 47th state on January 6, 1912.
The 20th century again placed New Mexico at the center of events with national and global consequences. During World War II, members of the New Mexico National Guard fought in the Philippines and endured the Bataan Death March, while Navajo Code Talkers from New Mexico and elsewhere used their language to create an extraordinarily effective military communications system in the Pacific. At the same time, scientists gathered in secrecy at Los Alamos as part of the Manhattan Project. On July 16, 1945, the first atomic bomb was detonated at the Trinity Site in southern New Mexico, ushering in the atomic age.
Yet New Mexico’s history cannot be divided neatly into a succession of Paleoindian, Pueblo, Spanish, Mexican, and American chapters. Indigenous communities that shaped its earliest history remain vital parts of the state today, while centuries of cultural exchange have left their mark on its languages, architecture, arts, and traditions.
Honoring the 250th
New Mexico is marking America’s 250th anniversary with exhibitions and programs that reflect a history extending far beyond its admission to the Union in 1912. The New Mexico Department of Cultural Affairs’ America 250 exhibitions use art, historic objects, and stories from across the state to examine both national identity and the experiences of New Mexicans.
At the New Mexico History Museum in Santa Fe, Americana at 250: Eagles, Flags, and Uncle Sam brings together historical objects and works by New Mexican artists incorporating familiar American imagery. The exhibition remains on view through January 20, 2027.
Nearby, the Museum of Indian Arts and Culture presents Stars, Stripes, and First Americans through March 7, 2027. Ten objects consider the American flag through an Indigenous perspective, including traditional beadwork and jewelry alongside contemporary works. Among them is Diné artist Kee Yazzie’s portrait of a Navajo Code Talker.
The Museum of International Folk Art’s I Am Clay: Acoma Life in Figures focuses on representational pottery from Acoma Pueblo and the women artists who sustained and developed the tradition. The community-curated exhibition remains open through November 30, 2026.
The anniversary is also traveling beyond Santa Fe. The Arts of Democracy in New Mexico, presented through the mobile Wonders on Wheels museum, continues through December 31, 2026. New Mexico’s eight historic sites are displaying 250th anniversary banners through July 4, 2027, using archival photographs and text to tell lesser-known stories from the state’s pre-statehood history.
Collecting New Mexico
New Mexico offers collectors an extraordinary range of material, but some of its most meaningful collectibles are being made right now. Pueblo pottery, Zuni carvings, Diné silverwork, and basketry are not remnants of vanished cultures. They are living artistic traditions practiced by named artists whose work continues to evolve.
A four-color parrot jar by Acoma Pueblo potter Grace Chino offers a bridge between generations. Chino (1929–1994) was the daughter of noted potter Marie Z. Chino and sister of potters Carrie Chino, Charlie, and Rose Chino. The Chino family became known for adapting designs found on ancestral pottery sherds to contemporary pottery forms. Grace’s traditionally made jar uses native Acoma clay and features the thin walls and polychrome decoration associated with Acoma pottery. The jar is currently offered for $2,250 by Steve Elmore Indian Art.
Living artists show how varied contemporary Native collecting can be. Zuni Pueblo artist Gloria Chattin’s Pink Mussel Shell Double Corn Maiden sold for $70 through the Zuni Artist Resource Team. Jemez Pueblo artist Bonnie Fragua-Johnson’s $565 male Storyteller with four children continues a modern Pueblo art form developed by Cochiti Pueblo potter Helen Cordero in the 1960s. Storyteller figures grew from Pueblo oral traditions and have themselves become widely collected Native art.
Jewelry making is another thriving tradition among Native artists in New Mexico, particularly among Diné, Zuni, and Pueblo silversmiths. Artists work in distinctive traditions ranging from Diné silver and turquoise jewelry to Zuni stone inlay and petit point work, while individual makers continue to develop their own designs and techniques. Fourth-generation Diné/Navajo silversmith Nicholas Jackson combines turquoise and sterling silver in contemporary jewelry made in Albuquerque. One of his turquoise-and-sterling-silver statement rings, set with a large turquoise stone marked by a dramatic golden matrix, sold for $495.
Basketry remains a living art among several of New Mexico’s Native communities, including Diné, Pueblo, and Apache artists. Materials, forms, weaving techniques, and uses vary among communities, reflecting distinct cultural traditions rather than a single Southwestern basketry style. Navajo artist Joan Yazzie carries another tradition forward through basketry. Her $370 wedding basket is handwoven from natural plant fibers in the traditional red, black, and natural palette.
Collectors looking for authentic contemporary Native art can buy directly from artists or seek established sources that clearly identify the maker and tribal or Pueblo affiliation. The Indian Pueblo Store, Zuni Artist Resource Team, Nicholas Jackson’s The Silver Artichoke, and established secondary-market dealers such as Steve Elmore Indian Art provide places to begin. Collectors interested in learning more about the distinctive pottery traditions of the Pueblos can also consult the Indian Pueblo Store’s Pottery Collector’s Guide.
Federal law provides another reason to pay attention to attribution. The Indian Arts and Crafts Act of 1990 is a truth-in-advertising law that prohibits falsely marketing arts and crafts as Native American-made or as the work of a particular tribe when they do not meet the law’s requirements. The U.S. Department of the Interior recommends buying from reputable dealers and obtaining documentation identifying the maker and tribal affiliation.
Historical Native American art and artifacts require additional care. New Mexico’s extraordinary archaeological record can make ancient objects tempting to collectors, but provenance matters. Removing objects from archaeological sites can destroy information that can never be recovered, and material taken from protected lands may have been obtained illegally. Collectors should not purchase archaeological art or artifacts of uncertain origin. Historical Native pieces should come from reputable dealers, auction houses, or other sources that can document an object’s ownership history and lawful provenance.
New Mexico collecting extends well beyond Native art. Roswell’s association with the mysterious events of 1947 has spawned an entire universe of alien souvenirs and memorabilia. A wonderfully kitschy Roswell alien snow globe populated by green aliens and a flying saucer sold on eBay for $29.69 in May 2026.
Route 66 offers another collecting road to follow. The historic highway crossed hundreds of miles of New Mexico, although its route changed substantially in 1937. Postcards, motel memorabilia, maps, menus, matchbooks, signs, and other roadside ephemera preserve the automobile culture that grew along the Mother Road. A colorful vintage Route 66 postcard mapping the highway across the country, including New Mexico, is currently offered on eBay for $4.
Fred Harvey and the Santa Fe Railway left behind another field of affordable collectibles, including china, menus, postcards, advertising, and other railroadiana. A vintage 1960s Jackson China coffee cup decorated with a Harvey Girl sold on eBay for $36 in June 2025.
Even New Mexico’s atomic history has found its way into collections. Los Alamos, the Manhattan Project, and the state’s later involvement in nuclear research and military training produced decades of ephemera and memorabilia. A vintage Defense Nuclear Weapons School mug bearing the school’s Albuquerque, New Mexico, emblem is currently offered on eBay for $55.
From a $4 Route 66 postcard to a four-figure Acoma pot, collecting New Mexico can take almost as many forms as the state itself.
Looking Ahead: New Mexico's America 250 Calendar Highlights
Communities across New Mexico are commemorating the nation’s 250th anniversary with exhibitions, educational programs, cultural events, and opportunities to explore the people and places that have shaped the Land of Enchantment. New programs and events continue to be added throughout the anniversary year.
Through Nov. 30, 2026 — I Am Clay: Acoma Life in Figures, Museum of International Folk Art, Santa Fe
The community-curated I Am Clay: Acoma Life in Figures explores representational pottery from Acoma Pueblo and the women artists who have sustained and developed the tradition. The exhibition runs through Nov. 30.
Through Dec. 31, 2026 — The Arts of Democracy in New Mexico, Wonders on Wheels, Statewide
The traveling Wonders on Wheels museum brings The Arts of Democracy in New Mexico to communities around the state. The mobile exhibition explores democracy and community through New Mexico’s history and cultural traditions.
Through Jan. 20, 2027 — Americana at 250: Eagles, Flags, and Uncle Sam, New Mexico History Museum, Santa Fe
Americana at 250: Eagles, Flags, and Uncle Sam brings together historic objects and works by New Mexican artists to explore familiar symbols of American identity. The exhibition remains on view through Jan. 20.
Through March 7, 2027 — Stars, Stripes, and First Americans, Museum of Indian Arts and Culture, Santa Fe
Stars, Stripes, and First Americans examines the American flag through an Indigenous perspective. Ten objects include traditional beadwork and jewelry alongside contemporary works, including Diné artist Kee Yazzie’s portrait of a Navajo Code Talker.
Through July 4, 2027 — 250th Anniversary Banners at New Mexico Historic Sites, Statewide
New Mexico’s eight historic sites are displaying 250th anniversary banners using archival photographs and text to share lesser-known stories from the state’s history before statehood. The displays continue through July 4, 2027.
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