Illustrated History of New Mexico

New Mexico's past is written in conquest compromise and stubborn survival from ancient pueblos to the clash of empires along the high desert. Every frontier leaves its mark. In Illustrated History of New Mexico Benjamin M. Read draws together politics faith warfare and everyday life into a vivid narrative of a land at the crossroads of the Spanish American borderlands.First published in the early twentieth century this classic regional history book follows the region from the earliest known native peoples of New Mexico through Spanish colonial New Mexico and Mexican rule into the turbulent era of territorial New Mexico history under the United States. Read's account of missions settlements trade routes and conflicts places New Mexico within the wider sweep of American Southwest regional history and Old West history book traditions while remaining attentive to local voices and landscapes. It stands as a foundational illustrated New Mexico history valued both as a trusted New Mexico history for students of the Southwest frontier history and as an Old West history book and rich resource for local historians genealogists and collectors of regional lore.Out of print for decades and now republished by Alpha Editions. Restored for today's and future generations. More than a reprint - a collector's item and a cultural treasure. This careful modern edition invites new readers to encounter a defining work of Spanish American borderlands history preserving a singular early chronicle of New Mexico's journey from remote province to modern state.