What Is Pecos National Historical Park?
Pecos National Historical Park preserves remnants of the Native-American, Spanish, and U.S. cultures that have made use of the land in the Pecos Valley for centuries!
What Makes It Historical?
Folks have hunted and gathered in the Pecos Valley home for over 13,000 years! Between 600 and 1600 AD, with the development of agriculture, villages sprung up across the area, gradually consolidating into one gigantic pueblo called Cicuye! This pueblo of about 2,000 residents was conveniently located between two mountain ranges with a trade network stretching as far west as the Pacific coast, south to Mexico, and north to the Great Lakes!
In 1598, just over 50 years after Coronado’s early explorations of the area, Spanish colonists started moving into New Mexico, and one of their first targets was Cicuye, which they renamed Pecos and built a huge church here as part of their military-religious strategy! This huge church, completed in 1625, got destroyed during the Pueblo Revolt of 1680! Once the Spanish retook New Mexico in 1692, a combination of land theft and disease decimated the pueblo’s population, and by 1830, the last Pecos people left Cicuye.
How Can I #HelpTheHelpers?
- Volunteer at Pecos National Historical Park!
- Become a member of the Friends of the Pecos National Historical Park!
- Be a responsible visitor! Remember the old adages: Pack out what you pack in! Take nothing but pictures and leave nothing but footprints!
How Do I Get There?
1 Peach Drive
Pecos, NM 87552
(Take Me There!)
When Should I Visit the Park?
The park is open daily between Memorial Day and Labor Day from 8:00 AM until 6:00 PM, and during the winter months, it’s open from 8:00 AM until 4:30 PM!
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