Newspapers of New Mexico

The first printing press ever used in New Mexico was brought from Chihuahua, Mexico, in 1835, by Don Santiago Abren. The press was set up at Taos, and there the first newspaper in the Territory was printed. Father Martinez controlled this paper, called El Crepusculo, (The Dawn), for his own political advancement, and it was continued only a few weeks, until its political end was achieved. According to records in the possession of Mrs. Petra B. Abren, of Rayado; after the death of Abren, his widow sold the press to Father Martinez. It will be remembered that the Kearny Code was printed on an old press brought to the capital by General Kearny in 1846. The second paper in Taos was El Heraldo, established by Sancho Valdez; the Taos Cresset was established by Frank Staplin, and succeeding it is La Revista de Taos, the present weekly paper, which was founded by Jose Montaner March 15, 1902.

The first English paper in New Mexico was the Santa Fe Republican, published in 1847, shortly after the American occupation. In the same year was begun the publication of the Santa Fe New Mexican, which was discontinued, and the present paper of that name dates from 1862. The Santa Fe Gazette was published between 1851 and 1860, on the press used to print the Kearny Code.

Of the sixty odd periodical publications in New Mexico at this time, with only two or three exceptions, none of them date their beginning before the eighties. In 1850 there were only two newspapers in the Territory, and there was no increase in the next decade. In 1870 there were five publications, the number being increased during the following ten years to eighteen papers.

Note: If your family tells you your Ancestor was in the Newspaper business, there is biographical information about editors and printers in the Newspaper History

The New Mexico newspapers in 1882 were the following:

Albuquerque Journal, daily and weekly; Albuquerque Review, Revista, Miner and Manufacturer.

Bernalillo News.

Deming Headlight, 1880.

Colfax County Newspaper

Colfax County Stockman, founded 1881.

Georgetown Silver Brick.

Golden Retort.

Guadalupe County Democrat, established October, 1902.

Las Vegas Gazette, daily and weekly; Optic, daily and weekly; Revista Catholica. Mining World.

Las Cruces Rio Grande Republican. Borderer, 1871

Lordsburg Advance.

Mineral Hill Mining City News.

Mesilla News.

Puerto de Luna, La Voz Publica, established 1901, weekly in English and Spanish.

Raton News and Press.

Silver City News Southwest, Mining Chronicle, Telegram.

Santa Fe News Mexican, daily and weekly; Mining News, Nuevo Mexico. Christian Advocate. Democrat, Military Review. Sunnyside Sun, 1905.

Santa Rosa Star, established 1901. In 1903 moved the plant to Tucumcari.

San Lorenzo Red River Chronicle, Cronica.

Socorro Daily Sun, established 1880;  Evening Adviser, daily, three months in 1885; The Miner, discontinued in the 1883; The Bullion, pamphlet, became weekly paper 1884; The Advertiser, 1887.

Tiptonville Mora County Pioneer.

White Oaks Golden Era, first published 1880. White Oaks Leader, established 1882. White Oaks Eagle, founded 1900.

The periodical publications of New Mexico, according to the American Newspaper Directory for 1904, were sixty-three in number, consisting of five daily and fifty-seven weekly papers, and one monthly publication. Classified according to alphabetic order of towns, they are, with dates of founding, as follows:

Alamogordo News was established 1896. Otero County Advertiser established 1900.

Albuquerque Citizen, daily, established 1886, the weekly in 1891; Morning Journal, Daily, establish 1881; Weekly News, established January, 1897; Bandera Americana, Hormiga Deoro, both weeklies, and Abogado Cristiana, Monthly; Industrial Advertiser, established 1889; Albuquerque Evening Citizen, established 1905; At Old Albuquerque is El Indito, established 1900. Other papers.

Aztec San Juan County Index established 1888.

Capitan News, established 1900. El Capitan, established 1900; Eagle Printing Company. 1903.

Carlsbad (Pecos Valley) Argus, established 1889; Current, established 1892; Miner Stockman.

Cerrillos Comet (weekly), established February, 1882.

Clayton El Fenix, established 1899; Enterprise, established 1889.

Deming Graphic,  established 1900, Deming Advance founded in 1892.

Farmington Hustler, established January, 1901; San Juan Times, established 1891.

Gallup McKinley County Republican established 1888.

Hillsboro Sierra County Advocate was established 1883.

Las Cruces Citizen; El Labrador, established 1897; El Tiempo, established 1882; Progress, established 1886; Rio Grande Republican, established 1881.

Las Vegas Optic, daily and weekly, established 1879; Advertiser, El Independiente, established 1894; La Voz del Pueblo, established 1888; Revista Catholica, established 1875.

Lordsburg Western Liberal established 1887.

Portales Herald was established 1902; Portales Times, established 1903.

Raton Gazette was established 1898; Range, established 1881. Reporter, established 1890. Raton Comet.

Red River Prospector was established 1900.

Roswell Record was established daily in 1902, weekly in 1891; Pecos Valley Stockman, established 1900; Register, established 1888.

San Marcial Bee was established 1892.

Santa Fe New Mexican, daily, and New Mexican Review, weekly, established 1862: Bulletin, established December, 1902; El Boletin Popular, established 1885; El Nuevo Mexicano, established 1865.

Sierra County (Socorro County) Black Range, established 1882; Sierra County Advocate, 1900.

Silver City Enterprise, established 1881; Independent, established 1896.

Socorro Chieftain, established 1882; Republicano.

Springer Colfax County Stockman, established 1882.

Taos La Revista de Taos, and Cresset, established 1894.

Tres Priedras Mining Reporter, established September, 1903.

Tucumcari Quay County Democrat, established January, 1902; Times; Tucumcari News, 1905.

Wagon Mound El Combate, established October, 1902.  

New Mexico AHGP

Source: History of New Mexico, Its Resources and People, Volume I, Pacific States Publishing Co., 1907.

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Created 1996 by Charles Barnum & 2016 by Judy White

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