History in our county names

   It came to my attention the other day that three New Mexico politicians I'd dealt with in recent columns all had counties named after them. The trio were Solomon Luna, José Francisco Chaves and Thomas B. Catron.

   Taking a look at the list of 33 counties in our state, I found that a total of 16 of them bear the names of men who made some mark on our history. I decided there was a bit of a story here.

   Five counties have the names of U.S. presidents: Lincoln, McKinley, Grant, T.R. Roosevelt and Harding. The first two were probably so honored because they were martyred in office.

   Both Presidents Grant and Roosevelt were war heroes and much admired in New Mexico. On the other hand, I have been unable to discover why the undistinguished 29th president, Warren G. Harding, was singled out to have his name placed on a New Mexico county.

   Puzzling, too, is the reason for the naming of Colfax County, on its creation in 1869. At that date, the U.S. Vice President-elect was Schuyler Colfax, of New York, then making a tour of the West. Later, he would be accused of involvement in shady deals, accepting bribes and peddling influence.

   The memory of the late Civil War president was still fresh in 1869 when the Territorial Legislature passed a bill to establish Lincoln County, cut from the eastern half of old Socorro County. The man behind the measure was Capt. Saturnino Baca, a prominent and noble legislator from southern New Mexico.

   In fact, his fellow members had been preparing to name the new county, Baca, after him. But he modestly declined the honor and urged that it be called Lincoln. To this day, the Captain is remembered as "The Father of Lincoln County."

   Much later, in 1917, a De Baca County was established on the Pecos River, with its seat at Ft. Sumner. But it was named for Gov. Ezequiel C. de Baca, New Mexico's second governor after statehood. He had died at Santa Fe of tuberculosis only 49 days after assuming office.

   Some of the individuals who left their names on New Mexico counties would have to be judged fairly obscure by today's standards.

   Among them was Francis J. Torrance, a plumbing-fixtures executive who came out from the East to speculate in New Mexico land and railroads. He was a key figure in development of the Santa Fe Central Railroad, which ascended the Estancia Valley to the capital in 1903.

   Even more obscure was the name attached to Quay County, whose seat is Tucumcari. Matthew S. Quay was a powerful and unscrupulous U.S. senator from Pennsylvania.

   He exerted considerable pressure in Congress to push forward New Mexico's log bid for statehood, earning him the undying gratitude of New Mexicans. In reality, he had a financial interest in the Santa Fe Central and hoped with statehood that his railroad investment would soar.

   Curry County, on the Texas line, was named in 1909 for our next-to-last territorial governor, George Curry, who was still in office when the legislature acted. Upon the gaining of statehood in 1912, the then ex-governor was elected as our first lone U.S. Representative to Congress.

   In the early 20th century, George Curry's name was a household word throughout New Mexico. In his long career, he participated in man high-profile episodes of New Mexico history, all of them related in his autobiography published in 1958, a decade after his death.

   Had Curry not seen his name bestowed on a county, however, he would be almost forgotten today.

   Other men who achieved permanent fame by leaving their names on New Mexico counties were Joseph C. Lea and Charles B. Eddy, both ranchers and developers in southeastern New Mexico; and Miguel A. Otero Sr., banker, politician and railroad promoter.

   It is perhaps worth noting that New Mexico's two most recently formed counties, Los Alamos and Cíbola, were given non-personalized names. That seems to conform to new socio-political attitudes that emerged in the 20th century.