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Located in the southernmost portion of New Mexico and only a short distance from the Mexican border, the Mesilla Valley has always been defined by cultural aspects. This was evident in the earliest settlements, where disputes over land and cultural misunderstandings became the norm. What began in  as a fertile valley with only one village, Doña Ana, became the location of numerous Mexican towns within only a few years due primarily to the arrival of the Americans and the resultant cultural disparities. Following the culmination of the Mexican War in , three separate entities claimed the Mesilla Valley as their own: Mexico, New Mexico, and Texas (not to mention the Apaches, who had called the region home for centuries). It took many years and countless millions of dollars to sort out these issues satisfactorily and with minimal bloodshed. The arrival of the Americans in  brought about an entirely new era in New Mexico history. Two vastly different cultures would attempt to live in harmony among each other, and in many cases this was not just improbable , but impossible. The people already living in New Mexico were firmly set in their traditions, and it would take more than a few thousand newcomers from the United States to enact any profound change. These cultural differences remain, in some cases, partially unchanged and are a distinctive characteristic of New Mexico to this day. One thing that did not change when the Americans arrived was the raiding habits of the Indians. The Apaches had been a constant burden upon the citizens of New Mexico, Chihuahua, and Sonora since the arrival of the first Spaniards, and this held true long after the United States extended its jurisdiction over New Mexico. Those in the Mesilla Valley enjoyed a considerable amount of military protection in the form of U.S. troops stationed in the immediate vicinity: first at Doña Ana beginning in , then at Fort Fillmore in . The last Apaches surrendered to the U.S. Army in September . However, raiding of the Mesilla Valley settlements had nearly ceased by the s, owing to the continually increasing population of the area. Mesilla and Las Cruces continued to grow, and the influx of AmeriConclusion 212 CONCLUSION cans from the east overwhelmed the Apaches to the point that it simply became too risky for them to raid near these towns. More than anything else, the Civil War years had been a trying time for the residents. The banner of the Confederacy waved high above the Mesilla plaza in , openly embraced by many of the residents. Mesilla became the capital of a new Confederate territory—Arizona—only to once again revert to its original status as a traditional Mexican farming village and commercial center less than a year later. The Union army, arriving at the same time the Confederates retreated, proved to be unforgiving to the people. Martial law forced a heavy burden upon all classes and ethnicities, with the military commanders confiscating food stores and supplies from the citizens; many former Confederate sympathizers abandoned everything and fled for their lives lest Major Carleton get a hold of them. The Rio Grande would continue to be an unpredictable, sometimes dangerous river for decades to come. Since the time of its founding in , the town of Mesilla had been situated on the west bank of the river. However, two major floods of the Rio Grande in  and  forever changed the course of the river. The town then became, and remains to this day, situated on the eastern bank. Mesilla had been a place of importance throughout this era, being the largest town between San Antonio, Texas, and Los Angeles, California, for many years. This all began to change shortly after the Civil War. Nearby Las Cruces, which previously consisted of only a few dozen scattered adobe homes, began to grow. In  the railroad arrived in the valley but bypassed Mesilla entirely, instead laying its rails directly through Las Cruces. This simple act spelled tragedy for Mesilla’s prosperity. The county seat was moved away from Mesilla soon thereafter. To this day the population of the village remains almost the same as it was in : about three thousand. By contrast, Las Cruces, a town that in  claimed a mere seven hundred inhabitants, now approaches one hundred thousand. Much transpired during the brief time span from  to , and those events laid the groundwork for the continuous development of the valley. This account ends with the Civil War for a number of reasons. The...

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