Estaban H. Biernbaum Mora County, New Mexico

Estaban H. Biernbaum, county clerk of Mora County, Mora, New Mexico, was born here September 1, 1864, son of Henry and Junita (Leyva) Biernbaum, the former a native of Germany and the latter of New Mexico, and is the eldest of their four children. Henry Biernbaum was one of the prominent early pioneers of New Mexico. For a number of years he was engaged in business in New Mexico and Colorado, and is now living retired in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Estaban B. Biernbaum was reared in Mora, where he received his education in the Christian Brothers College. At the early age of sixteen he engaged in merchandising on his own account at Weber, Mora County, where he continued to reside until the great flood of 1904, in which he sustained heavy loss. In the meantime he had acquired large stock interests, cattle and sheep, and many hundreds of broad acres. He now has three hundred acres under cultivation and eight hundred acres which will be cultivated as soon, as irrigation is obtained here.

For years Mr. Biernbaum has been a prominent figure in the Republican ranks of Mora County, and has a number of times been honored with official preferment. He was elected probate judge in 1896, and served a term of two years; was appointed by Governor Otero as a member of the board of county commissioners, of which he was made chairman in 1899; in 1902 was elected county clerk, received the nomination again and was re-elected to succeed himself. Previous to this he was chairman of the county central committee for eight years.

Fraternally Mr. Biernbaum is identified with the Woodmen of the World, having membership in Montezuma Camp No. 2, of Las Vegas. While a resident of Weber, he was married there, in 1889, to Miss Emma Weber, daughter of Frank Weber, and they have one child, Frank. Henry Biernbaum, father of Estaban H. Biernbaum, the present county clerk of Mora County, was himself for a number of years prominently identified with the New Mexican interests. He was born in Hesse-Cassel, Germany, and when a young man emigrated to this country, landing in the United States in 1850 and the following year coming to New Mexico. His first employment here was as clerk in the mercantile establishment of Spiegelberg Brothers at Santa Fe. Subsequently he was in business for himself in San Juan and Pueblo, for three or four years. Then he spent three or four years in San Miguel, and thence to Mora, where he made his home for ten years. While in Mora he served as treasurer of Mora County one term, and was well known and highly respected throughout the county. His next move was to Trinidad, Colorado, where he opened a large mercantile establishment, which he conducted until 1888. Since then he has lived retired in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. While in the west he was interested in ranching and the cattle business also, and had at different times big government contracts.

Mr. Biernbaum married, in Mora, in 1863, Miss Junita Leyva, and the fruits of this union are: Estaban H, Mary, Isabelle, wife of F. M. Sanchez, and Henry, deceased.

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

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