Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
312
seat of the largest county in the United States, and the focal point of the notorious Lin-
coln County War of 1878-79. Though the town contains a number of museums today,
a single ticket will get you entry into all of them.
The bloody Lincoln County War was fought between various ranching and merchant
factions over the issue of beef contracts for nearby Fort Stanton. A sharpshooting teen-
ager named William Bonney—soon to be known as “Billy the Kid”—took sides in this
issue with “the good guys,” escaping from the burning McSween House after his
employer and colleague were shot and killed. Three years later, after shooting down a
sheriff, he was captured in Lincoln and sentenced to death by hanging. But he shot his
way out of his cell in what is now the
Lincoln County Courthouse Museum,
which still
has a hole made by a bullet from the Kid's gun. Of special note here is a letter handwrit-
ten by Billy defending himself to Governor Lew Wallace.
Many of the original structures from that era have been preserved and restored by the
Museum of New Mexico, the Lincoln County Historical Society, and an organization
called
Historic Lincoln
(
&
575/653-4025;
www.nmmonuments.org), a subsidiary of
the Lincoln State Monument.
JUST THE FACTS
At the
Visitor Center,
on NM 380 on the east side of town
(
&
575/653-4025
), exhibits explain the role in Lincoln's history of Apaches, Hispanics,
Anglo cowboys, and the black Buffalo Soldiers, and detail the Lincoln County War. A
12-minute film on Lincoln history is presented in an old-fashioned theater. Start your
visit here and join a tour given every hour by docents in period costumes, included in
the admission cost. Across the courtyard is the
Luna Museum Store.
Also of note in the
town is the short, round
Torreon
fortress, which served as protection from Apache raids;
the
Montaño Store,
once a saloon and boarding house;
Dr. Wood's House,
filled with
pre-1920s furnishings, books, and instruments; and the
Tunstall Store Museum,
with
late 19th- and early-20th-century clothes, hardware, and butter churns.
An annual
folk pageant,
The Last Escape of Billy the Kid,
has been presented outdoors
since 1949 as a highly romanticized version of the Lincoln County War. It's staged Friday
and Saturday night and Sunday afternoon during the first full weekend in August as part
of the
Old Lincoln Days
celebration. The festival also includes living-history demonstra-
tions of traditional crafts, musical programs, and food booths throughout the village.
The historic district is open year-round daily 8:30am-4:30pm. Admission is $5 for adults (includes entry
to 6 buildings during summer and 4 in winter). It's free for children 16 and under. For more information,
write to P.O. Box 36, Lincoln, NM 88338, or call
&
575/653-4025.
11
5
ROSWELL
62 miles E of Ruidoso; 83 miles NE of Alamagordo; 158 miles SE of Albuquerque
Best known as a destination for UFO enthusiasts and conspiracy theorists, Roswell has
become a household name thanks to old Mulder and Scully. And even if you're not glued
to your set for reruns of
The X-Files,
you may remember Roswell as the setting for major
scenes from the 1996 blockbuster
Independence Day.
Government cover-ups, alien autop-
sies, and cigarette-smoking feds . . . come along as we venture into the UFO capital of
the world.
