New Mexico

New Mexico

The land of Enchantment 

Facts:

The “Land of Enchantment” describes the beauty in the state, and its rich history. This nickname became the official nickname in 1999.

       New Mexico is one of four states which border to Mexico. New Mexico also borders to: Arizona, Utah, Colorado, Oklahoma and Texas.  1,819,046 people lives in New Mexico, 62 000 of them in lives in the capital Santa Fe. But it is Albuquerque which is the largest city. It lives a half of a million in this town. With this New Mexico is the 36th largest state of population. In 1608 the Spanish explorers from the 1500’s, founded Santa Fe. Therefore it’s not weird that 40% of the people in New Mexico speak Spanish.

      The governor in New Mexico is Bill Richardson. He has been the governor since 2003, which makes him keeping on with his second therm. Bill Richardson belongs to the Democratic Party. New Mexico also represents the U.S. Congress by two senators and three representatives.  

History:

The Spanish gold-miner Francisco Vásquez de Coronado explored New Mexico in 1540-1542. He travelled straight through today’s state. In 1598 the first Spanish settled near the Rio Grande River. Then it was almost war between the Spanish settlers and the Pueblo-tribe, the immigrants. And it was the Spanish who retreated from the colonies they’ve made. Twelve years later Santa Fe was founded. 1846–48, war between the United States and Mexico about territory. USA won, and as a result of that: In 1912 New Mexico was founded, as the 47th state in the US. The Palace of the Governors in Santa Fe is the oldest government building in the United States. The Spanish explorers were those who built it.

Geography:

The total area of New Mexico is 315 100km2. That’s almost as large as Norway! The landscape in New Mexico ranges from desert, like in Texas, to snow-dressed mountains, more like Alaska. The highest mountain in New Mexico is Wheeler Peak (picture). Wheeler Peak is 4013 meters tall. The most Southern part of Rocky Mountains ends around Wheeler Peak. If you go 8 meters down and some North-East, you will end up at Mount Walter. This is the second tallest mountain in New Mexico.