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The arrival of the railroad in the area brought rapid change to the area. The railroad reached El Paso, ninety miles to the south, in 1882. Charles B. Eddy and partners constructed a branch line from El Paso northward to exploit the timber resources of the
Sacramento Mountains and coal deposits further north near present-day White Oaks, New Mexico. The establishment of the railroad resulted in the founding of Alamogordo in 1898 just a few miles south of La Luz. Eddy then constructed a branch into the Sacramento Mountains that went through La Luz and climbed to approximately 9,000 feet within the span of a few miles. Often referred to as the "Cloud Climbing Railroad" it was an engineering marvel. The mountain section of the railroad was dismantled in the early 1940s. The Village of Cloudcroft was established in the Sacramento Mountains and offered residents of El Paso an escape from the heat during the summer. Eddy's partner and lawyer for the railroad, William Ashton Hawkins, established a farm and large home which still stands in La Luz.
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460:(1882–1945), the heir of an industrial fortune from Rhode Island, came to the area and established a large ranch and farm in the canyon areas above La Luz. He had the Coronado Lodge constructed as a hunting lodge in Cottonwood Canyon out of native stone in the early 1920s. Hazzard also established the La Luz Pottery Works after discovery of rich clay deposits in La Luz Canyon. The pottery works were well known for the manufacture of clay roof tiles and other architectural components such as chimney pots as well as extremely large pottery vessels. The pottery works supplied contractors nationwide at a time when the Spanish Colonial Revival architectural style was at its height. Both the Coronado Lodge and the pottery works remain as fine examples of this type of architecture.
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have been reduced to those lands contained in the
Mescalero Apache Reservation, approximately 30 miles northeast of La Luz. There is some dispute over the founding of La Luz. By some accounts, it was founded by Franciscan friars as early as the 18th Century and called Nuestra Señora De La Luz (Our Lady of the Light). Early maps of the area include this notation and La Luz Canyon may have served as an early pass over the Sacramento Mountains connecting with the Peñasco river, which eventually flows into the Pecos River near present-day Artesia, New Mexico. The Sacramento Mountains reach a height of 9,000 feet.
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In the CDP, the population was spread out, with 26.6% under the age of 18, 6.8% from 18 to 24, 26.6% from 25 to 44, 24.9% from 45 to 64, and 15.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females, there were 93.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there
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The largest employer in the surrounding area is
Holloman Air Force Base. La Luz itself is largely residential and agricultural in land use but a small market is located on the state maintained road that connects the village to Highway 70. La Luz has long been known for the many fruits that are grown
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It is well documented that a large group of
Hispanic settlers came to the area around 1864 leaving villages along the Rio Grande in the vicinity of present-day Socorro, New Mexico, after devastating floods had occurred. These settlers founded the Village of Tularosa along the banks of Tularosa Creek
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Anglo settlers arrived in increasing numbers in the area especially after the Civil War with some establishing large ranches in the
Tularosa Basin and nearby areas to supply beef to nearby Fort Stanton. Increasing rivalries between various competing factions would result in the Lincoln County War.
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Native
Americans lived in the area for thousands of years prior to the arrival of the Spanish in the late 16th Century. The Mescalero Apache homelands covered an area of south-central New Mexico including the Sacramento Mountains and the Tularosa Basin. Today, the ancestral homelands of the Apache
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living together, 12.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.5% were non-families. 23.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.49 and the average family size was 2.95.
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in the area including figs, apricots, plums and peaches. Apples, cherries, and pears are grown in the higher elevations in the canyon areas to the east of the village. The surrounding area also has a number of vineyards and pistachio groves. A number of artists also reside in the area.
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of 2000, there were 1,615 people, 648 households, and 463 families residing in the CDP. The population density was 150.7 inhabitants per square mile (58.2/km). There were 738 housing units at an average density of 68.9 per square mile (26.6/km). The racial makeup of the CDP was 84.71%
370:. The waters of La Luz and Fresnal creeks are used by both the much larger city of Alamogordo, just to the south of La Luz and by La Luz in a ditch or acequia system. The City of Alamogordo has constructed a large reservoir to the south of La Luz to impound these waters.
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The median income for a household in the CDP was $ 28,625, and the median income for a family was $ 29,719. Males had a median income of $ 30,213 versus $ 21,563 for females. The
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658:. La Luz Elementary School is the zoned elementary school of the area, while Chaparral Middle School is the zoned middle school.
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There were 648 households, out of which 31.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.9% were
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for the CDP was $ 15,258. About 10.9% of families and 13.8% of the population were below the
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La Luz sits at the opening of La Luz Canyon Creek, whose headwaters are high in the
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La Luz School
District consolidated into the Alamogordo district on July 1, 1959.
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U.S. Geological Survey
Geographic Names Information System: La Luz, New Mexico
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1224:‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties
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822:"2020 CENSUS - SCHOOL DISTRICT REFERENCE MAP: Otero County, NM"
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and established a large acequia system and agricultural area.
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886:"Middle School Zone Maps Effective 2014-2015 School Year"
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Census-designated places in Otero County, New Mexico
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691:List of census-designated places in New Mexico
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662:is the district's comprehensive high school.
16:"La Luz" redirects here. For other uses, see
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1045:Map of New Mexico highlighting Otero County
623:of any race were 31.70% of the population.
502:. Unsourced material may be challenged and
412:. Unsourced material may be challenged and
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1269:Census-designated places in New Mexico
922:"History of Alamogordo Public Schools"
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331:. It is located immediately north of
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615:, and 2.66% from two or more races.
500:adding citations to reliable sources
410:adding citations to reliable sources
343:. Until 1848, La Luz was a part of
335:and lies in the eastern edge of the
1211:Mescalero Apache Indian Reservation
198:0.03 sq mi (0.07 km)
989:Municipalities and communities of
775:"Census of Population and Housing"
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347:. The CDP gets its name from the
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728:"ArcGIS REST Services Directory"
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456:In the early Twentieth Century,
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339:and on the western flank of the
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25:CDP in New Mexico, United States
65:Location of La Luz, New Mexico
1:
755:. United States Census Bureau
730:. United States Census Bureau
96:Location in the United States
227:147.70/sq mi (57.02/km)
206:4,721 ft (1,439 m)
53:Our Lady of the Light Church
801:United States Census Bureau
361:United States Census Bureau
1290:
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926:Alamogordo Public Schools
893:Alamogordo Public Schools
857:Alamogordo Public Schools
850:"Elementary School Zones"
656:Alamogordo Public Schools
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992:Otero County, New Mexico
753:"Census Population API"
317:census-designated place
18:La Luz (disambiguation)
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660:Alamogordo High School
124:32.96972°N 105.93889°W
1044:
956:at Wikimedia Commons
797:"U.S. Census website"
584:U.S. Decennial Census
544:Historical population
250: • Summer (
1242:United States portal
496:improve this section
406:improve this section
368:Sacramento Mountains
341:Sacramento Mountains
224: • Density
129:32.96972; -105.93889
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1203:Indian reservation
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954:La Luz, New Mexico
829:U.S. Census Bureau
543:
458:Rowland Hazard III
351:word for "light".
216: • Total
195: • Water
179: • Total
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32:La Luz, New Mexico
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1235:New Mexico portal
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105:Coordinates:
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1193:Three Rivers
1110:
1106:Holloman AFB
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929:. Retrieved
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904:. Retrieved
897:the original
880:
868:. Retrieved
861:the original
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832:. Retrieved
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804:. Retrieved
791:
779:. Retrieved
777:. Census.gov
769:
757:. Retrieved
732:. Retrieved
722:
664:
653:
644:poverty line
637:
633:
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539:Demographics
533:
518:
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494:Please help
482:
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404:Please help
392:
365:
358:
321:Otero County
312:
311:
22:
1173:Hortonville
1165:communities
1090:Boles Acres
1007:County seat
806:January 31,
759:October 12,
734:October 12,
613:other races
329:2000 census
127: /
115:105°56′20″W
1258:Categories
1146:Twin Forks
1136:Sacramento
1101:High Rolls
1062:Cloudcroft
1032:Alamogordo
1014:Alamogordo
697:References
590:As of the
512:March 2023
422:March 2023
333:Alamogordo
325:New Mexico
303:feature ID
211:Population
156:New Mexico
112:32°58′11″N
1220:Footnotes
1126:Orogrande
1121:Mescalero
1095:Chaparral
650:Education
483:does not
393:does not
355:Geography
319:(CDP) in
291:FIPS code
279:Area code
233:Time zone
203:Elevation
1141:Timberon
1067:Tularosa
1054:Villages
931:July 30,
906:July 28,
870:July 27,
834:July 27,
669:See also
617:Hispanic
607:, 0.56%
603:, 1.24%
599:, 0.43%
295:35-38330
267:ZIP code
1188:Sunspot
1116:Mayhill
781:June 4,
504:removed
489:sources
464:Economy
414:removed
399:sources
374:History
349:Spanish
306:2408506
141:Country
1183:Newman
1111:La Luz
621:Latino
592:census
549:Census
345:Mexico
313:La Luz
163:County
1161:Other
1131:Piñon
900:(PDF)
889:(PDF)
864:(PDF)
853:(PDF)
825:(PDF)
609:Asian
597:White
574:1,578
315:is a
272:88337
261:(MDT)
259:UTC-6
238:UTC-7
219:1,578
168:Otero
151:State
1151:Weed
1085:Bent
1077:CDPs
1024:City
933:2021
908:2021
872:2021
836:2021
808:2008
783:2016
761:2022
736:2022
570:2020
558:Note
553:Pop.
487:any
485:cite
397:any
395:cite
301:GNIS
174:Area
619:or
498:by
408:by
252:DST
40:CDP
1260::
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323:,
1097:‡
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Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
