Image © 1999 Patrick Allen Mohn
The area turquoise and lead deposits were critical to the jewelry and pottery making of the prehistoric Indians and these mines influenced Spanish settlement. The Cerrillos mining district is one of the oldest and most marked of the Old Spanish Mineral Developments in the Southwest. In fact, turquoise mined here found its way to the crown jewels of Spain. Cerrillos was full of hearty miners who extracted gold, silver, lead, zinc and turquoise from area mines at its peak in the 1880’s. The miners supported the town’s 21 saloons and four hotels.
While it was once seriously considered as the capitol of New Mexico, today Cerrillos, with its dirt streets, is a picturesque reminder of the Old West. There are shops, a Turquoise mining museum, a petting zoo, hiking and biking trails. The town has been the setting for several motion pictures.
Saint Joseph’s church and shrine is the only location for weekly mass between San Antonito and Santa Fe. The lovely church was built in 1922.
Visit the Santa Fe Cerrillos Hills County Park : For thousands of years people have been drawn to the hills we call Cerrillos. They have come for spirituallity and splendor, the plants and animals, and the remarkable minerals. There is a tale told from each and every chapter of the story that is New Mexico. Come visit the hills and share the land, nature and the history of us all. Walk softly and you may see the shadows of those ancient footprints or relive a bygone moment. Experiance for yourself a very special place. The striking land forms and the quiet beauty of the natural landscape are what most of first notice in the Cerrillos Hills Historic Park. However if you take the time to study the area closely, you'll discover facination evidence of past human acticity as well. - The 1.100 acre Cerrillos Hills Historic Park was created in January 2000 and opened offically on May 24th, 2003 as part of the Santa Fe County Open Space Program. (thank you too Bill Baxtor for the intro)
"While in Cerrillos, an absolute “must stop” is the Cerrillos Hills Historic Park, just north of town. Here, along the hiking and biking trails, can be found evidence of the old mines that dot the area." - Kathy Weiser
The Cerrillos Historical Society
In Cerrillos we realized that we were in danger of losing our history. Inspired with a few facts and many stories we went to the New Mexico
State Archives and various libraries to find more information on the history of each building in our town. With this research we then had the wording for metal plaques to be approved by the current property owners. Fifteen of these Cerrillos Historical Society info plaques were installed throughout our village for visitors & residents to read and learn a little more about each of the buildings. The traditional village of Cerrillos, New Mexico started in 1882 as a mining town when the railroad came through the pristine river valley from Las Vegas to Albuquerque. Our town originally supported the mining district to the North where there are over 2,000 Territorial mines in the hills. The area mines produced large amounts of Copper, Silver, Galena, Turquoise and Manganese Iron. The prehistory mining of Cerrillos Turquoise began around 900 A.D.
Come enjoy a self guided walking tour of the village of Cerrillos NM!
