the Rough Rider Museum!

This is being posted a bit late, because we've been really busy playing!

We're settled in here at Storrie Lake in Las Vegas, New Mexico. We have a great spot, with a great open view of the lake and the rolling hills off in the distance. The best news is that it's about ten to fifteen degrees cooler than it was in Tucumcari, so we are truly Happy Campers.

One of the reasons we wanted to come here was to visit the Rough Rider Museum, officially named "the City of Las Vegas Museum and Rough Rider Memorial Collection" Whew! That's a mouth full.

So we got up early and off we went.

We've been to Las Vegas before and really love the architecture, there are lots of old adobes but also many lovely Victorians and even a nice representation of Craftsman homes. We were pleased to find the Museum in one of the older buildings.
There are so many small Museums here in New Mexico, we try to visit as many as possible. Most are intimate affairs that really display a sense of personality of the locale and this one was no exception. There is a large collection of Theodore Roosevelt and Rough Rider memorabilia, a real treat for a Roosevelt fan like me. For as long as any of the Rough Riders were still alive, they met annually in Las Vegas. If I remember correctly, the last of these fine gentlemen passed away in 1977.

Here's a photo of the Rough Riders, all decked out in their uniforms. Great looking group, huh?

There's an interesting display of campaign material. I loved these campaign bandannas that were created for the 1904 Presidential election. Are these wonderful or what? And what a treat that they've been preserved in this lovely little place.


Here's one more campaign piece that really caught my eye. They really don't make them like this any more, do they? I LOVE the detail. Do you think there's any of this flag ribbon left in the world?


Now we move out of the Rough Rider area into the Santa Fe Trail. This photo of these cowboys was taken in the 1920s. Remember you can always click on any photo for a larger version. Most look a lot better when enlarged.

The Museum has a nice display of vintage New Mexico merchandise from the 1920s through the forties. I have to tell you, if you could still buy this stuff, I would have Cholula Red all decked out in vintage New Mexico!

And this tablecloth would be on our table, and Terry would be wearing this tie!

And look at this old movie poster! I have to say, I wish they were filming something like this right now, we'd be there in a flash! And if anybody has any music by the Hoosier Hotshots, send it to me, I want to hear it.

The Zia symbol shows up all over new Mexico, symbolizing the sun. I particularly liked how they worked it into this metal banister.

This picture doesn't show up too well, but I just had to include it. It's a really old photo of a cattle drive here in Las Vegas. Prior to the railroad, this was a major stop on the cattle route. The best part of this photo is that the land and skies are just as open now as they were then!

One more piece of Teddy memorabilia, I couldn't resist.

Here's some of the old rodeo pieces that they display in the museum. We were hoping to catch a rodeo while we're here in town, but I think our timing is wrong.

And here's a photo of the Montezuma Castle. This old beauty was built in 1886 and has gone through many reincarnations. Currently it is one of twelve campuses of the United World College. I won't go into it in much depth here, because we were lucky enough to get a tour, so I'll be talking about it in a future blog!

The Museum also has a collection of old pieces from the pioneer days. I fell in love with this hand painted trunk. It's dated 1883.

They also have a full mock up of an early 1900s home. This photo shows the kitchen.

This little home was quite interesting, because it actually was about the size of Cholula Red! I could have moved right in, but there weren't near enough windows!

I can't conclude this piece without talking about the lovely lady we met at the Museum. Her name is Edwina Romero and she was really the reason we enjoyed the Museum so much. Her knowledge of the displays and the surrounding area are astonishing. And she was so friendly! It was our first visit and I have to say, we felt like old friends within just a few moments.


If you come and visit the Museum, make sure to say Hello to Edwina!

So that's it, the first of (hopefully) several blogs I'll be posting from Las Vegas, New Mexico. We've been seeing so much, I haven't had time to write!

But Life is Good!