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Calendar honors early-war veterans with Doña Ana County connections

Las Cruces Sun-News - 12/21/2016

Dec. 21--DOÑA ANA -- More than a century after their deaths, a dozen southern New Mexico pioneers are still helping the village of Doña Ana.

Louis W. Geck, Conrad Aubel, Pablo Ledesma, Jose Maria Ramirez, Manuel Barela, Henry C. Haring, John D. Barncastle, Charles H. Coleman, Joseph F. Bennett, Albert J. Fountain, Thomas Branigan and William Rynerson are featured in a calendar of early-war veterans from Doña Ana County. The calendars debuted Monday and are being sold for $15 a piece by a committee promoting historic preservation in Doña Ana.

"A lot of these early-war veterans, many of them who fought in the Mexican-American War, the Civil War, and the Spanish-American War aren't included on the (Veterans Memorial) Wall at Veterans Park," said Doña Ana resident Mary Jane Garcia. "They figured prominently in the history of Doña Ana County and New Mexico. This calendar is to honor these men for their service."

The Veterans Memorial Wall includes the names of Doña Ana residents who joined the military during wars and major conflicts the U.S. was involved in. Veterans who were not from Doña Ana County, or joined the military elsewhere do not have their names included on the wall. Documentation is also required to verify the eligibility of person's name being included on the wall.

The early-war veteran calendar includes photos of each of the featured men, with brief biographies, and locations of where they are buried. A separate, supplemental card has the names of 53 early-war veterans who lived in Doña Ana County and identifies, through global positioning system, where their graves are.

"Very nice," said Mesilla business owner Chris Alexander, a descendant of Col. Albert Jennings Fountain, one of the featured calendar veterans. "It's stuff like this that people should be able to get more information about. I'm honored to be associated with Colonel Fountain."

Doña Ana resident Pia Blanchard, the great-granddaughter of Jose Maria Ramirez, said the calendar has special meaning to her family. Ramirez enlisted in 1865 in the 1st New Mexico Cavalry, and served in Company E.

"It means I can go back and read about what he did," said Blanchard, who is also a member of the committee that developed the calendar. "He was ready to serve the United States even though it was at a time that (New Mexico) was a Mexican territory. This wasn't a state when this happened."

New Mexico became a state in 1912.

Ramirez is among six veterans featured in the calendar who are buried in the Doña Ana cemetery, the oldest in southern New Mexico. Geck, Aubel, Ledesma, Barela and Haring have also been laid to rest there. According to the calendar, Geck's grave site is about 200 feet from where he lived in Doña Ana.

Barncastle, Coleman, and Branigan are key names in Las Cruces' history.

Barncastle, a member of the California Column, settled in Las Cruces upon leaving the military and became a prominent businessman. He is credited with a prominent role in the original construction of the Armijo-Gallagher house on Lohman Avenue at Loretto Towne Center. The historic home is currently being renovated and will become the future home of the Greater Las Cruces Chamber of Commerce. Barncastle is buried at Masonic Cemetery.

Coleman, one of Las Cruces' first landowners, is credited with helping lay out the city's original town site. The calendar states his name is on the original Las Cruces town plat. Coleman is buried in the Rodey Cemetery, but a grave marker could not be found.

Branigan was Doña Ana County assessor in 1899 and 1900, and also served on the Las Cruces school board. Branigan Memorial Library, 106 W. Hadley Ave., was founded in 1935 in his honor at the bequest of his widow, Alice Branigan. Branigan Memorial Library moved to its current location, 200 E. Picacho Ave., in 1973. Branigan is buried at Masonic Cemetery.

Rynerson served in the 1st California Infantry from 1861 to 1866. He served as a senator in the territorial legislature of New Mexico in 1868. He was a rancher, lawyer, publisher and militia commander in the New Mexico territory, and was secretary and treasurer of the New Mexico A&M College Board of Regents from 1889 until his death. New Mexico A&M would later change its name to New Mexico State University.

Proceeds from calendar sales will be used to help in the restoration of Doña Ana Cemetery.

"There's a lot of work there that needs to be done," Garcia said. "It is one of the oldest in the state, and definitely the oldest in southern New Mexico. It used to be the old Methodist cemetery, but it was split (with the Catholic church) in 1920."

The village of Doña Ana, the oldest community in southern New Mexico, was established in 1843, but Garcia said there are archive records dating back to 1842.

Purchasing information about the limited-edition calendar is available by calling Garcia, 575-526-5048.

Steve Ramirez can be reached at 575-541-5452, sramirez@lcsun-news.com, or @SteveRamirez6 on Twitter.

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(c)2016 the Las Cruces Sun-News (Las Cruces, N.M.)

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