Text and photographs by Dr. Rhonda Dass

Time changes everything. A lot has changed at Fort Selden in the fifty years since it was declared a State Monument and became one of the handful of New Mexico Historic Sites. On July 2, 1973, Gov. Bruce King proclaimed Fort Selden a state monument. The proclamation states that Fort Selden “is now a hauntingly beautiful ruin administered by the Museum of New Mexico for the public benefit.” This summer it will be a challenge to look back at the fifty years of the state’s influence and not see the changes that have happened to the site just north of Las Cruces near the Rio Grande in Radium Springs, New Mexico.

In recent years we have seen drastic changes to the seven-acre site. A new front entrance was constructed framing the southern gates off Fort Selden Road. The gravel pathways and parade grounds received improvements to make them more environmentally friendly and sustainable as well as more easily accessible to visitors. New activity stations dot the grounds and signs await new interpretive text panels.

The real challenge comes in seeing what has not changed.

The moment that Fort Selden became a state monument, a pledge was created by the state and the people who would take on the responsibility of caretaking the site over the years. The ruins are the most obvious feature that exhibits both consistency and change over time. It was predicted shortly after the declaration of the site as a state monument that the ruins would be gone within fifty years. The special status of the site as a historic site has allowed Fort Selden to receive attention that has extended its life. While the walls are showing signs of wear, the continuous attention has kept them from disappearing.

Over the course of its existence as a state monument and historic site, Fort Selden received not only attention to stabilize and preserve its adobe walls, but it also garnered attention for adobe experimentation. Efforts began as early as 1975 to stabilize the ruins. Efforts are undertaken at least once a decade to shore up the basal degeneration. In the 1980s, experimental walls were also constructed onsite to allow for experimentation with different materials to examine the effects different foundations have on the wicking of moisture from the ground to adobe walls. Experiments also included work with varying amendments to plastering mud and cap constructions for the top of the walls. Plans and specifications for the project were developed by New Mexico State Monuments in conjunction with preservationists from the National Parks Service and the private sector. A short time after this ten-year project launched, the J. Paul Getty Conservation Institute began a collaboration with NMSM for the testing and evaluation of high-performance preservatives and chemical systems on additional test walls for which it provided the funds to construct on the eastern edge of the property. These projects not only extended the life of Fort Selden’s ruins, but also provided valuable information for the extended earthen architecture community. The ruins still bear the markers of these projects and provide valuable information for future generations on what could facilitate its care.

The interpretation of the site has long focused on the short history of the existence of the Fort Selden Military Reservation. From its commissioning in 1865 until its final abandonment in 1891, the fort kept more than 1,800 soldiers, including over 400 African American troops known as the Buffalo Soldiers, within its fences. The history and archaeological evidence of a larger narrative has been saved as well.

The mountains that stand guard on either side of the bluff are more green than usual this year with the abundance of moisture over the winter, but still posture as steadfast sentinels to the Mesilla Valley. They watch over what was the Paraje Robledo, and the sign marking the passage of the Camino Real de Tierra Adentro between what is left of the corrals and the administrative building walls. As the final stop on the northward road before the Jornada del Muerto, the former campsite holds evidence of the passage of a major trade route and the overlapping cultures who found rest here during their travels. Visitors regularly come to see the trail and get the stamp added to their collection, marking their own experiences with the remains of the royal road.

The Rio Grande has changed due to human intervention and shifts in the amount of water available in this arid landscape, but it still brackets the property and provides for the many pecan farms that now encircle the fort. Choosing the site of a former Mogollon encampment near the river meant the fort would always be at the center for growth and human habitation. The town of Radium Springs has added depth to the narrative of how water affects the people of the Mesilla Valley and an added layer of support for Fort Selden, its staff, and the role it plays in the community.

As we begin the second half of a century of state oversight, we dedicate ourselves to continue as the fort has—changing with the times but retaining the foundations and structures that have come before us. We expand our narratives through interpretation and programming based on the historic evidence that the past fifty years has done so much to provide for us. We look forward to new adventures and explorations and even our hundredth anniversary, but always with an eye to preserving and sharing our history.

Come celebrate with us on July 1 as we honor those who have made the past fifty years possible and the next fifty years more probable.
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Fort Selden Historic Site is located in Radium Springs, New Mexico, 13 miles north of Las Cruces. For more information about the site and its anniversary celebration on July 1, 2023, please visit nmhistoricsites.org/fort-selden.

A passion for museums and history brought anthropologist and folklorist Dr. Rhonda Dass to New Mexico. She is the southern regional manager for the New Mexico Historic Sites, a trained textile conservator, and baker of incredible scones.