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NEW MEXICO HISTORIC SITES
Fiscal Year Feats
$9,000
raised for exhibitions
$6,000
raised for education
$75,000
received in grants
$19,000
in endowment payouts
100+
summer camp activity kits distributed from Los Luceros
150
take home kits for Virtual Summer Camp at Fort Sumner
40,000
views of Marlon Magdalena’s virtual concert at Jemez
New Mexico Historic Sites
History is our best teacher A Year of Unexpected Engagement
When it came to connecting would-be visitors with the New Mexico Historic Sites during the COVID-19 shutdown at the end of fiscal year 2020 (July 1, 2019 to June 30, 2020), it’s hard to see how site staff could have handled the situation any better.
From 25 Virtual Classroom programs and a wildly successful Virtual Summer Camp series to an episode of A&E’s “Ghost Hunters” at Fort Stanton, all eight sites managed to capture the attention of audiences in New Mexico and across state lines.
“Our main job has always been interacting with people, and if we can’t do that face to face, we’re going to do it online,” says Matthew Barbour, manager at Coronado and Jemez historic sites. Barbour says the Our Fair New Mexico virtual concert filmed live at Jemez on May 6, featuring Instructional Coordinator Marlon Magdalena and his array of flutes, has since been viewed by more than 40,000 people.
A safety net of public-private support—$127,000 raised by the Museum of New Mexico Foundation in FY2020 —shored up the sites. A slew of exciting new hires also expanded their programmatic potential. Two new managers, Ethan Ortega and Wesley Meiss, joined the teams at Los Luceros and Lincoln/Fort Stanton, respectively, in January. Before that, in July 2019, Tim Roberts and Kristine Navarro-McElhany were named deputy directors of the division.
“Now that we are fully staffed with two skilled professionals positioned as deputy directors, New Mexico Historic Sites will see direct benefit in our fiscal and facilities management,” Patrick Moore, New Mexico Historic Sites executive director, said at the time of their appointments.
Expanding Stories of Place
Managers are looking to 2021 to continue improvements that will bolster the valuable stories imparted by each place. Highlights include digital tours available via smartphone to enhance either virtual or in-person
Left: A participant from Voices of the Past, an annual living history event at Fort Selden Historic Site that drew hundreds of online visitors. Top right: Marlon Magdelena plays flute in a virtual concert at Jemez Historic Site. Bottom right: A young participant shows off her Stories from the Land camp kit. Photos courtesy New Mexico Historic Sites.
visits, as well as the much-anticipated interactive remodel of the main exhibition at the Bosque Redondo Memorial.
In September, a Save America’s Treasures grant of $451,252 was awarded to the site by the Historic Preservation Fund of the National Park Service, Department of the Interior. That grant was matched by the Foundation and the State of New Mexico to total $1.16 million. This support will fund the preservation and stabilization of the Los Luceros Hacienda and adjacent storehouse.
Los Luceros manager Ethan Ortega says the restoration of the storehouse, which has not been previously open to the public, offers an opportunity to dig into the lives of the Norteños who cared for the historic property. “It tells the stories of the people who were living here every day during the 1920s, ’30s, ’40s,” he says.
After a year marked by the unexpected success and expansive reach of their virtual offerings, site staff are eager to continue connecting with their constituents.
“We want to be engaging with people, and we found great means to do that during the shutdown,” says Barbour. With the recent launch of the $10 million Campaign for New Mexico History, which benefits both New Mexico Historic Sites and the New Mexico History Museum, site staff are looking to the campaign to help strengthen their role in educating the public about the state’s rich historic landscape. To date, the campaign has attracted $3 million in contributions, including $600,000 in private giving and $2.3 million in public funds.
“The Campaign for New Mexico History is the Foundation’s first-ever statewide fundraising campaign,” says Foundation President/CEO Jamie Clements. “This is an exciting opportunity to raise significant funds for all eight historic sites throughout New Mexico.”
