The Albuquerque Conservation Association

April meeting at the TACA Station: Anne Carson, Joe Sabatini, Jerry Widdison, and Cindy Carson.

The University of New Mexico’s construction in recent years and VB Price’s commentary, found here were subjects of discussion at the March TACA board meeting. Members generally agree with his points, including how the four projects mentioned fail to honor the campus’s unique sense of place.

Photos from mercmessenger.com

Price notes how three separate documents addressing campus design were apparently ignored, resulting in modernized “anyplace” buildings out of character with the campus’s regional style.

He states that hotelier Jim Long and cultural historian Chris Wilson have called for revitalizing this regional identity through procedures and educational orientation for UNM leadership.

The TACA board supports this effort and looks forward to fruitful discussions in the future.

Photo by Cindy Carson

The recent rains and snows seem to be gentle enough to get water to the ground cover, replenish the water table to support springs and get a bit of streamflow to the Rio Grande.  Just like it used to work.  Joe Sabatini

“The concepts of naming and place identity are inextricably linked.”

Robert Julyan’s1996 edition by UNM Press is the copy I have. It was my sister’s and it’s pretty tattered and dog-eared. Julyan dedicated the first edition to his daughter and signed this copy for my sister at a bookstore somewhere in Albuquerque on February 25th, 1996.

“For Lisa, Best wishes exploring the names and places of New Mexico. Bob Julyan.”

She certainly fulfilled this wish as an avid traveler around the state. Along with good maps, this book accompanied us on all of our day and car camping trips. Those who know, just know. This book is an invaluable tool for exploring and studying New Mexico.

Julyan says that in his collection one can hear “voices of thousands of individuals – most anonymous  and otherwise forgotten – speaking many languages, telling about their lives, their families, their relation to the land, their faith, their tragedy and humor, the incidents great and small they experienced and through naming remembered.” 

Naming places reflects who we are. As the author notes, the book is an autobiography of New Mexico.

The autobiography is still being written. “(A)s centuries have passed, as people, languages, and cultures have intermingled, New Mexico’s place-name autobiography has expanded and undergone continuous change.”

So we are excited to hear from TACA board member, Jerry Widdison, that a new edition is in the works! He is acknowledged in the first book as a “meticulous editor, tireless researcher, observant traveler, and generous friend.”

We look forward to a crisp new edition for Robert Julyan and Jerry Widdison to sign! 

Renowned Arabian horse breeder and author, Carl Raswan, moved to New Mexico in about 1939 and developed a 90 acre site just south of San Antonito into a horse ranch. He is featured in the East Mountain Historical Society publication, Timelines of the East Mountains. I’ve written a little more about him here. The photo above is from the dust jacket on the 1961 edition of his 1942 book for young adults, Drinkers of the Wind.

KRQE has a recent story (December 21, 2022) by Scott Brown that features an interview with TACA President Ann Carson and photos of TACA’s Preservation Station. The neighborhoods of Princess Jeanne and the North Valley are also described with interviews and illustrations. It provides a good overview of just a few of Albuquerque’s diverse neighborhoods.