28 Fun New Mexico Facts

By James Israelsen, Associate Writer

Published June 25, 2022

Until 2010, New Mexico law banned "idiots" from voting._[9]
Early indigenous New Mexicans wove baskets so air-tight that they could hold water. As such, archaeologists refer to these people as the Basketmakers._[10]
New Mexico ranks fifth among the states of America in both size and altitude._[14]
Experts theorize that the first residents of New Mexico arrived over 12,000 years ago, after migrating across a land bridge that connected Russia to North America in the last Ice Age._[7]
Major Native American groups that settled in the New Mexico region include the Apache, Navajo, and Pueblos._[7]
The area that would become New Mexico was colonized by the Spanish. In 1821, when Mexico declared their independence from Spain, the area became part of Mexico. After the Mexican-American War of 1848, it was won as a US territory; and, finally, in 1912 it became the 47th state._[7]
New Mexico received its name from the Spanish conquistadors, who called it a “Neuva” or “New” Mexico, in hopes that the region would prove to be as rich as they had found Mexico._[7]
New Mexico is one of the four states whose corners all touch. The other three are Arizona, Utah, and Colorado._[7]

It is a world of unique natural beauty

New Mexico's nickname is the "Land of Enchantment," due to its beautiful and varied scenery, which ranges from mountains and forests to lakes, rivers, and deserts._[7]
The black-footed ferret, most likely the rarest mammal in all of North America, is found in New Mexico._[7]
Nearly 75% of the United States’ potash, an important ingredient in fertilizer, is mined in New Mexico._[7]
Almost half of New Mexico’s revenue from natural resources comes from natural gas extraction._[7]
There have been Pueblo people living in Taos Pueblo, located in north-central New Mexico, for over 1000 years._[7]
John Denver, Jeff Bezos, and Georgia O’Keefe were all New Mexico-born._[7]
New Mexican turquoise has been mined so heavily that only a small amount remains, causing some pieces of turquoise to be worth thousands of dollars._[7]
American scientists created both the first nuclear bomb and the first hydrogen bomb in the Los Alamos Laboratory in New Mexico._[3]
Due to a unique combination of perfect temperatures and predictable wind patterns, New Mexico's Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta features more than 500 hot-air balloons every year, making it the world's largest ballooning festival._[1]

2022 marks the 50th anniversary of the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta

Until the 19th century, the monumental structures built by the ancient Puebloans at Chaco Canyon, New Mexico, were the largest buildings in North America._[4]
Jack Kelley, the main character played by Christian Bale in the popular Disney film Newsies, has a life-long dream to escape poverty in New York City by moving to Santa Fe, New Mexico, and becoming a cowboy._[5]
The town of Roswell, New Mexico, has built upon the UFO lore surrounding it by erecting a UFO museum, adorning their streetlights with aliens, constructing a flying-saucer McDonald's, and placing a fake family of stranded aliens on a roadside._[6]
In the summer of 1947, wreckage found near Roswell, New Mexico, was originally announced by the Roswell Army Air Field to have been evidence of a flying disc. The government released subsequent statements denying that the wreckage was of alien origin, but these only served to fuel conspiracy theories about an extra-terrestrial crash site at Roswell._[6]

"beep beep"

Although New Mexico's state bird, the Roadrunner, is usually associated with desert areas, they can actually be found as far east as the Mississippi River._[7][12]
The 4,000-foot-long and 255-foot-high Carlsbad Cavern in southeastern New Mexico is the seventh largest cave chamber in the world. The cavern is part of a massive complex of caves that has been declared a World Heritage Site._[2]
There are over 21,000 petroglyphs carved by unknown prehistoric peoples in New Mexico's Chihuahuan Desert, making it one of the largest petroglyph sites in the Southwest._[13]
New Mexico's official state question is "Red or green?"—a reference to the colors of the various chili peppers for which the state is famous._[11]
New Mexicans spell the "chili" in "chili peppers" with an "e" at the end instead of an "i" — "chile"._[11]
With a rim at 8,182 feet above sea level, Capulin Volcano in northern New Mexico is considered to be one of the largest and most perfectly symmetrical cinder cones in North America._[8]
New Mexico's state flower is the flower of the yucca plant._[7]