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Correspondence with CM, Ray M. Beckner and, Sandra L. Myres, regarding Fort Stevens, Colorado, and other areas, Ceran St. Vrain, San Luis Valley

 File — Box: 6, Folder: 8

Scope and Content

From the Collection: The Charles and Jacqueline Meketa papers contain the working papers and research files collected and produced during the research for their books and articles related mainly to the Civil War period and to 20th century New Mexico and Arizona history. Materials include notes, unpublished manuscripts and correspondence concerning publication and funding of their work. The collection is divided into four series.

Biographical and Personal papers include correspondence related to early college life and class work, a Meketa family genealogy chart and correspondence from friends, family and publicists.

The bulk of the materials in the collection are contained in the Southwest and New Mexico Military History series. Included are research notes, draft manuscripts, grant proposals, correspondence, bibliographies of historical figures such as Rafael Chacón, Louis Felsenthal and Albert Pfeiffer, as well as notes and extractions from various records of New Mexico forts and military units. 17 reels of microfilm from the National Archives and Records Administration, James W. Arrott collection (from New Mexico Highlands University), and Division of State Archives and Public Records, Denver, Colorado are also included in this series.

General History Research files are comprised of material collected during research on the respective topics and personages, including facsimiles of original documents, archival resource guides and indexes, correspondence, facsimiles from journal articles, and draft manuscripts. Examples of persons researched include Native American Medal of Honor recipients, women pioneers such as Sadie Orchard, stage driver; Jane Wilson, Comanche captive and the women of the Manhattan Project in Los Alamos. Also included is material on World War II, Korea, Vietnam, buffalo soldiers, New Mexico towns, and religious and territorial New Mexico history.

The Photo series contains mostly copy prints of various people and subjects related to the books that the Meketas wrote, along with a few original photos and transparencies.

The photocopied documents, transcriptions/translations, and collected material, along with the published and unpublished manuscripts offer historical information for researchers of the Civil War, Hispanic and Native American involvement in the Civil War, and general military and social New Mexico history during the Territorial period.

More material was added to the Meketa Collection in the Fall of 2022. Among the papers are writings by Charles and Jacqueline Meketa. There are folders with research and studies on Valverde, Glorieta, Fort Union, Fort Craig, the Confederate invasion and the Indian Wars. There is also information on United States army weapons and equipment used in the Southwest. There are copies from NARA of some individual pension records for New Mexico volunteer soldiers, who served in the Civil War and Indian wars, that the Meketas were studying. Several folders contain photographs.

The collection also contains a good number of original one-of-a-kind papers from Colonel Ethan W. Eaton. Dating from 1862-1906, they pertain to Eaton’s military career, mining business in Galisteo and activities in Socorro. There are original business invoices and receipts for Eaton and others from the 1870s and 1880s on company letterhead papers for grocery, pharmacy and mining supply stores in Socorro, Albuquerque, Los Lunas, Willard, White Oaks, San Antonio and Kelly, New Mexico. Further, the collection contains a few original business papers of Juan Jose Baca, a Hispanic merchant in Socorro. Some of the business papers are written in English and others in Spanish. There are also personal letters written in Spanish. Included, too, are papers dating from 1880s-1913 from John Ellsworth Griffin, a Socorro attorney and local Republican leader.

In addition, there are original Warranty Deed land transfers papers and tax receipts from the 1880s-1910s for folks from Mora County, San Miguel County, Rio Arriba County and Taos County. Some of the papers pertained to Vicente Mares, of Wagon Mound, who bought properties in those counties.

There are also three oversize folders with a variety of added material. Among them are several New Mexico maps from the 1950s-1970s showing the national forests with Spanish and Pueblo land grants. There are also several maps of Vietnam in the 1960s. The addition offers many new items for understanding the history of New Mexico in the nineteenth century, as well as broader topics.

The addition is in Boxes 5 to 8 which are located in the B3 Overflow Area.

Dates

  • 1792-1994
  • Majority of material found within 1860-1990

Language of Materials

From the Collection: English, Spanish, German

Access Restrictions

The collection is open for research.

Extent

From the Collection: 8 Cubic Feet (8 boxes, 4 oversize folders, 17 reels)

Repository Details

Part of the UNM Center for Southwest Research & Special Collections Repository

Contact:
University of New Mexico Center for Southwest Research & Special Collections
University Libraries, MSC05 3020
1 University of New Mexico
Albuquerque NM 87131
505-277-6451