Piñon, New Mexico

Piñon
Unincorporated community
Piñon

Location within the state of New Mexico

Coordinates: 32°37′05″N 105°23′40″W / 32.61806°N 105.39444°WCoordinates: 32°37′05″N 105°23′40″W / 32.61806°N 105.39444°W
Country United States
State New Mexico
County Otero
Elevation[1] 6,060 ft (1,850 m)
Population (2010)
  Total 71
Time zone Mountain (MST) (UTC-7)
  Summer (DST) MDT (UTC-6)
ZIP codes 88344
Area code(s) 575
GNIS feature ID 909714

Piñon[1] is an unincorporated community ranching community in Otero County in southern New Mexico, in the southwestern United States. The town is in the pinon-juniper shrublands habitat with an altitude of 6,060 feet. It is located at the intersection of NM Route 24 and NM Route 506.[2] The postoffice in Piñon opened in 1907. In 2014, Piñon was ranked as the most politically conservative town in New Mexico.[3]

The area is arid and subject to forest fires. In June 2011, the lightning-caused Gage Fire burned 1385 acres[4] just to the west of town.[5]

History

The area was originally settled by the agricultural and hunter gatherer Jornada Mogollon people about 200 CE whose suzerainty ended with the influx of the Apache and other plains raiders around 1450.[6] The town was named in 1907 by the local school teacher John W. Nations after the piñon pine trees in the area.[7]

Notes

  1. 1.0 1.1 U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Piñon, New Mexico
  2. Burdett, William H. (1998) The Roads of New Mexico Shearer Publishing, Fredericksburg, Texas, page 107, ISBN 0-940672-52-9
  3. Walker, Hunter and Kiersz, Andy (18 June 2014). "Here Are The Most Liberal And Most Conservative Towns In Each State". Business Insider. Archived from the original on 18 June 2014.
  4. Gage Fire 1385 acres (Map). New Mexico Fire Information (NMFireInfo). 5 June 2011. Archived from the original on 9 June 2011.
  5. Myslivy, Jennifer (5 June 2011). "Gage Fire Update June 5". New Mexico Fire Information (NMFireInfo). Archived from the original on 9 June 2011.
  6. Whalen, Michael E. (1994) Turquoise Ridge and late prehistoric residential mobility in the desert Mogollon region (Anthropological papers (Salt Lake City, Utah), no. 118) University of Utah Press, Salt Lake City, Utah, page 26, ISBN 0-87480-436-1
  7. Julyan, Robert (1998) "Piñon" The Place Names of New Mexico (revised edition) University of New Mexico Press, Albuquerque, New Mexico, page 268, ISBN 0-8263-1689-1

External links