Mesquite Historic District

Across Spanish America and in some of American southwest towns, the founders laid out the townsites as grids arranged around a central plaza.

The Mesquite Street Original Townsite Historic District is an example of that. U.S. Army Lieutenant Delos Bennett Sackett, at the behest of Don Pablo Melendrez, surveyed the square and rectangular parcels into 84 blocks. One block each was reserved for a church and a plaza.

The church plaza in Las Cruces is visible in the center of the survey plat filed in 1853.

The built environment plays a crucial role in shaping the collective identity, cultural values, beliefs and history of groups of people. For Las Crucens, St. Genevieve’s Catholic Church, erected in 1886, was at the heart of the residential and business communities.

A tremendous infusion of federal dollars after the end of World War II led to a population explosion and Las Cruces began to experience many dramatic changes. The construction of new homes and shopping centers drew people in their new automobiles away from the heart of town. By the 1950s and 1960s business dramatically declined in the original townsite and central business district.

During a later urban renewal, officials tried to convince residents of the benefits of building a modern downtown area that generations of citizens could enjoy. The city altered the traditional cityscape and civic spaces, the church and plaza, were demolished. St. Genevieve Church was demolished in 1967.

Focal points are important for districts; it can be a fountain, or a square, or a building. It is a landmark, like St. Genevieve once was and now the Downtown Plaza currently is.

“If it is surprising and delightful, a whole district will get a magic spillover. All the truly great downtown focal points carry a surprise that does not stale,” said Savannah Quintana-Eddins in her book, “Urban Renewal on Community Identity and Sense of Place in Las Cruces, New Mexico.”

After the loss of St. Genevieve, the focal point of the Mesquite District became Klein Park, where the first settlers cast lots for the newly surveyed properties of the original townsite.

But the specter of urban renewal still haunts the Mesquite Street Original Townsite Historic District.

Editor’s note: This story appears courtesy of the author and is a part of a series of stories honoring the historic value of Las Cruces and, during the month of May, Historic Preservation Month.