Historic Preservation and Conservation Commons^™

Mora Valley Of The Mills 2026: A Documentary Report History Of The Milling Industry And Cultural Heritage Preservation, Jose A. Rivera

Faculty Publications

The flour mills along the upper Mora River constitute the largest number of still standing commercial mills in the State of New Mexico, namely the Cleveland Roller Mill, the St. Vrain Mill, the Gordon-Sánchez Mill, and the La Cueva Mill at the Houser Raspberry Ranch. Notably, all four mills are listed in the National Register of Historic Places. During their heyday, 1964-1920, Mora County was seen as the “breadbasket of New Mexico” due to its bountiful supply of cereal and cool climate vegetables. Local acequia farmers supplied the mills with the input of wheat, corn and other grains that led …

Mountain Development In Nepal: Settlements, Infrastructure, And Economic Transformation, Keshav Bhattarai, Ambika P. Adhikari

Himalayan Research Papers Archive

As Nepal urbanizes, expands infrastructure, strengthens local governments, and explores deeper connectivity with India and China, climate change is increasing floods, landslides, heat, and water insecurity. Rapid internal migration, rising disaster risks, youth outmigration, and dependence on remittances are also revealing the limits of conventional urban development, especially in the mountainous region. The central challenge for Nepal is no longer just to accommodate growing towns and cities, but to build settlements that are safe, productive, environmentally resilient, and capable of sustaining long-term prosperity.

This paper argues that Nepal's urban future must be guided by a new development paradigm centered on …

Upper Mora River Corridor Plan. Path To Social And Economic Recovery. A Working Paper, José A. Rivera Ph.D

Faculty Publications

The Working Paper outlines a plan for the Upper Mora River Corridor as a path to the social and economic recovery of the watershed and its communities in the Mora Valley of New Mexico in the aftermath of the year 2022 wildfires. The first section of the plan includes an historical overview of the traditional gristmills of northern New Mexico and places where a few of them are preserved and still standing. The next section goes into detail as to the early commercial mills situated along the upper Mora River Corridor with a focus on the four remaining mills: the …

“El Concilio De Buen Manejo” Spmdtu Council No. 2, Capulín, Colorado, José A. Rivera Ph.D

Faculty Publications

From among the sixty-four local councils affiliated with the Sociedad Protección Mutua de Trabajadores Unidos (SPMDTU), Council No. 2 at Capulín was among the earliest organized, quickly grew in membership, and was known for its attention to recordkeeping of minutes, financial ledgers, and attendance logs. The council was established around 1901, and by midcentury a history of the SPMDTU noted: “Este concilio siempre ha tenido buen manejo. Tiene buena propiedad con su propio salón y ha llegado a tener buen número de miembros.” (This council has always enjoyed good management. It has a nice property with its own …

Tangible And Design Assistance In Historic Preservation Courses To Assist Communities In The Recuperation Of Their Existing Built Cultural Resources In New Mexico, Francisco Uviña-Contreras

Faculty Publications

The presentation proposed for the NCBDS 41 Conference to be hosted at the School of Architecture and Planning (SA+P) Department at the University of New Mexico (UNM) concerns the arduous work in the Historic Preservation and Regionalism (HP+R) Program in this institution. This significant opportunity to present courses in the HP+R Program aims to "exchange and disseminate information and ideas concerning preservation education and its relationship to community engagement and its connections to its historical past." This issue is particularly relevant in the context of the NCBDS 41 Conference, which touches on aspects of the "Pedagogy in Cultural Heritage through …

Ghost Highway: De-Touring Albuquerque's Route 66, Madison A. Garay

Art & Art History ETDs

Route 66 was a U.S. Numbered Highway stretching from Chicago, IL to Santa Monica, CA, rising to fame through music and popular culture. In Albuquerque, New Mexico, Route 66 has a troublesome twin life as Central Avenue, a highly politicized space where bodies are contested. In this thesis, the function of public arts and architecture of Albuquerque’s main street thoroughfare, Central Avenue, will be analyzed as visual devices of U.S. Highway 66, or known in popular culture as “Route 66.” I employ a critical Derridean framework through Mark Fisher’s theorization of hauntology and Gerald Vizenor (White Earth Ojibwe)’s theory of …

El Presidio Hispano-Colonial: Estudio Del Discurso Moderno De Fortificación Del Imperio Español A Traves De Planos Y Mapas, Javier E. Astorga Villarroel Ph.D.

Latin American Studies ETDs

This dissertation project delves into the processes of ideation, design, projection, and knowledge-transfer around the Presidio, an iconoclastic fortification system deployed by the Spanish Empire while projecting its colonial power toward the Transatlantic region. Based on Bruno Latour’s classic theory on the agency of networks of meanings (also known as new materialism) applied to historical cartography, my investigation examines the production of techno-military knowledge around the presidios as they were depicted through plans, maps, and manuals while mapping out border areas over North America and the Caribbean, from the 17th to the 19th centuries. With archival research work performed at …

Los Molinitos De La Gente: Arquitectura Popular En El Río Grande Del Norte, 1600-1950, José A. Rivera, Levi Romero

Faculty Publications

For centuries, acequias and small grist mills in northern New Mexico villages played a major role in the agricultural economy of the region following the introduction of wheat from the Old World to the Americas. Wheat, in its ground form as flour, was a staple during the Spanish colonial period of the region. To process raw wheat, local mills (molinos) were essential infrastructure as were the acequias (ditches) that powered them. Most molinos were built from logs and were situated near the banks of watercourses. The wheel and axle were driven by the gravity force of water drawn …

Building Materials Cut From The Earth: A Look At Sod Construction Around The World And In New Mexico, Giulia Caporuscio

Architecture and Planning ETDs

Terrón, or sod, is an earthen building technology that is being lost. The blocks are cut directly from the ground, generally along banks of bodies of fresh water, marshlands, or grassland valleys. The resulting blocks are clay rich with plant root systems that provide strength to the construction material. This building material is found in archeological and modern structures around the world. Today the material and knowledge behind this earthen technology is being lost.

This paper starts by summarizing other studies of sod construction in Indigenous cultures of the Americas, homesteaders of the Plains of the United States and Canada …

The Juan De La Cruz Molino: Folk Architecture At El Güique-Estaca New Mexico, José A. Rivera Ph.D

Faculty Publications

El Güique and Estaca are twin communities just north of the confluence of the Río Grande and the Río Chama. Like other Spanish colonial settlements in the historic Río Arriba, acequia-based agriculture was essential for food production in this high desert region of the northern Río Grande. Along with the construction of acequias, molinos (grist mills) were built to grind wheat into flour as part of the subsistence farming economy of the times. While acequias were communal, molinos most often were constructed and operated as private enterprises by local millers like the case of Juan de la Cruz Borrego and …

A Nomination For The Oliver La Farge House To The Historic Santa Fe Foundation’S Register Of Properties Worthy Of Preservation, Hayden D-L Mcafee

Architecture and Planning ETDs

647 Old Santa Fe Trail is a traditional one-story adobe house in the territorial style. Constructed in 1867, it has a long history and has played a significant role in the development of Santa Fe. Sitting on the original path of the Santa Fe Trail and later Route 66, it has witnessed over 150 years of history both outside and within its doors. It was occupied by the Pulitzer Prize winning author and respected anthropologist Oliver La Farge from 1947-1963. La Farge was an important figure in the Santa Fe community, most recognized for his novels and activism, advocating for …

The Municipal Acequias Of San Fernando De Béxar: A Working Paper, José A. Rivera Ph.D

Faculty Publications

Of the seven acequia irrigation systems constructed during the height of San Antonio’s Spanish colonial period, five were built for the benefit of the Franciscan missions and their indigenous residents: San Antonio de Valero, Nuestra Señora de la Purísima Concepción de Acuña, San José y San Miguel de Aguayo, San Juan Capistrano, and San Francisco de la Espada. In addition to the five mission acequias, other diversions from the Río de San Antonio and San Pedro Creek were constructed for civilian use within the municipality of San Fernando de Béxar, founded in 1731, now San Antonio: the San Pedro Acequia …

The Water Mills Of The Historic Río Arriba In Northcentral New Mexico, 1598-1975, José A. Rivera Ph.D, Thomas F. Glick Ph.D

Faculty Publications

The water mills of New Mexico played a major role in the agricultural economy of the Río Arriba for centuries following the introduction of wheat from the Old World to the Americas. Wheat, in its ground form as flour, was a staple during the Spanish colonial period. To process raw wheat, local grist mills (molinos) were essential infrastructure as were the aceq uias (ditches) that powered them. Situated near the banks of rivers, the internal components of each mill were driven by the gravity force of water from an acequia, itself diverted from the river. Researchers have documented …

Postwar Cooperative Housing: On The Historical And Community Significance Of South Dahlia Lane, John Boydstun

Architecture and Planning ETDs

American cities after WWII including Denver experienced a boom in population resulting in a shortage of affordable housing. One innovative response to the demand for affordable housing was the formation of the Mile High Housing Association (MHHA), a Colorado non-profit organization founded in 1948 by four University of Denver professors. The MHHA was Colorado’s first housing cooperative and founded on the ideals of a supportive and collaborative community. MHHA’s goals included providing affordable single-family homes with a new modernist design and a neighborhood site plan that supported a cooperative lifestyle. Backed by new legislation in 1948 for FHA financing, the …

3d Printing Of Earthen Materials: Toward The Carbon-Zero Construction, Shiva Bhusal

Civil Engineering ETDs

In recent years, digital manufacturing techniques in the architecture and construction industry have rapidly gained attention, especially with 3D printing, also called additive manufacturing. The use of cement has been common in modern construction and is now being explored for 3D printing. However, due to cement's contribution to approximately 7 percent of global carbon emissions and its high cost, research on sustainable and greener materials has gained attention. Previous studies on alternative construction have examined the mechanical and rheological properties of soil mixes, but not much attention has been given to printability evaluation, shrinkage, and cracking, which can affect the …

“Don’T Make Fun Of The Residents!” Revisiting The Sunbelt’S Vanishing Communities: Mobility And Suburban Development, 1900-1990, Jerry D. Wallace

History ETDs

“Don’t Make Fun of the Residents” examines home ownership and suburban development over the last one hundred years in the borderlands, American West, and Sunbelt regions. In this dissertation I argue that mobility shaped urban planning, neighborhood design, and architectural identity in the Sunbelt over the course of the twentieth century. “Don’t Make Fun of the Residents” places architectural identity at the center of this dissertation discussion to understand the origins of the Sunbelt as a geographic and intellectual space. I focus in particular on smaller cities in the intermountain West---New Mexico, Texas, Colorado, Arizona, and California---an area that has …

The Bluff River Trail: A Community Land Ethic, Kelly F. Davis

Language, Literacy, and Sociocultural Studies ETDs

The Bluff River Trail (BRT) is a future 10+ mile trail along the San Juan River corridor in the 4-Corners region of the Southwestern United States. By asking, what is the land ethic of the Bluff Community? this qualitative study identifies behaviors and beliefs, or land ethics, between seven Bluff residents and the San Juan River corridor. A land ethic contributes to the social re/production of space; therefore, third space theory contextualizes intersecting and contradicting spatialities evidenced in data. Data collection consisted of semi-structured interviews, questionnaires and focus groups. I used a qualitative content analysis pulling from grounded theory to …

The Zimmerman Library Mural In The National Register Of Historic Places: A Working Paper And Timeline, Samuel E. Sisneros

University Libraries & Learning Sciences Faculty and Staff Publications

Working paper and timeline about the nomination and listing process of the UNM Zimmerman Library “Three Peoples” paintings to the National Register of Historic Places.

Placekeeping And Equitable Development In The Embudo Valley, Felicity Fonseca

Public Administration ETDs

Embudo Valley Library is planning to build a permanent stage and improve their grounds to become a public park. In what ways can this project stimulate a creative placemaking community development strategy for Dixon, NM? The research goals are to learn how this project can contribute to revitalization, equity, and creating a cohesive community that retains its historic and cultural essence. The research includes an overview of the community context, a literature review about creative placemaking and community development strategies, and three surveys, the results of which will inform the project. Conclusions are that human centered design and equitable development …

Seventeenth-Century Spanish Colonial Identity In New Mexico: A Study Of Identity Practices Through Material Culture, Caroline Marie Gabe

Anthropology ETDs

This dissertation explores how seventeenth-century Spanish colonial households expressed their group identity at a regional level in New Mexico. Through the material remains of daily practice and repetitive actions, identity markers tied to adornment, technological traditions, and culinary practices are compared between 14 assemblages to test four identity models. Seventeenth-century colonists were eating a combination of Old World domesticates and wild game on colonoware and majolica serving vessels, cooking using Indigenous pottery, grinding with Puebloan style tools, and conducting household scale production and prospecting. While assemblages are consistent in basic composition, variations are present tied to socioeconomic status. This blending …

Paper Presented At The National Council Of Preservation Education Conference, Samuel E. Sisneros

University Libraries & Learning Sciences Faculty and Staff Publications

Historic preservation’s principles and practices directly correlate and support the charge of librarians and archivists to provide resources for the public and contribute to scholarship and community building. This paper, presented at the National Council of Preservation Education conference in Denver, Colorado (Oct. 10-12, 2019), will discuss the research methodologies, historical context and preservation issues of a recovery project of an historic site in New Mexico.

Belén Plaza Vieja And Colonial Church Preservation And Interpretive Plan, Samuel Sisneros

University Libraries & Learning Sciences Faculty and Staff Publications

The vision and mission of the Belén Plaza Vieja Preservation Committee is to recover the buried and forgotten history of the town of Belén’s first church and plaza and recreate to some extent the “Plaza Vieja” site to be a vibrant social and educational destination so that local community members and visitors can discover and reclaim this important historical treasure as a vibrant social and spiritual space. It is hoped that this preservation and interpretive plan serves to inform the Belén Plaza Vieja Colonial Church site property owners and stakeholders of possible options and strategies towards a coordinated effort to …

New Vision And Reuse: Yale Pump Station, Jose Rene Frayre Jr, Leroy Daniel Duarte, Ronak Francesico Shah, Celina Elisa Crimella

Shared Knowledge Conference

The strategic location of the Pump Station and its history, scream for a need of a public space that creates a dialogue between the University and the City of Albuquerque. The Pump Station was built in the early 1930's by the City of Albuquerque as a building to house the pump equipment for the large water reservoir. Both were purchased by UNM in 1990, with the reservoir being recently demolished by the Physics and Astronomy Interdisciplinary Studies (PAIS) breaking ground this year, the preservation of the Pump Station has become increasingly important while it has remained underused and forgetting the …

Belén’S Plaza Vieja And Colonial Church Site: Memory, Continuity And Recovery, Samuel E. Sisneros

University Libraries & Learning Sciences Faculty and Staff Publications

This is my capstone project for completion of a Post MA certificate in Historic Preservation and Regionalism. I received the degree in Spring, 2019. The project involves recovering the legacy of a historic colonial church site in Belén, New Mexico. The work involves the descendant community’s sense of place and the continuity of memory and sacredness of Belen’s first church and original plaza.

History Of Albuquerque, Gladys Neel

Political Science ETDs

In the heart of New Mexico lies Bernalillo County, the smallest of all counties of the state. Its eastern half is covered by the Sandia and Manzano Ranges while the west is a high table land. The Rio Grande's course cuts almost through it center and it is this fertile river valley that furnishes ample resources for the metropolis of the state, Albuquerque.