Land Of The Dead

This blog is about a very unusual cemetery Cindy, and I came upon in a small town in New Mexico.
 
The town is part of the Turquoise Trail’s early history from New Mexico. It’s nestled in a narrow canyon in the Ortiz Mountains. Once a historic coal mining town and ghost town, it is now a creative community where one finds an assortment of sculptures, jewelry, pottery, and other art forms showcasing New Mexico’s spirit.
 

The area is the oldest coal mining region in New Mexico, going back to the 1850s. By 1892, the town was large enough to warrant the construction of a railroad line that connected to the main line of the Santa Fe Railroad. 
 
The town flourished until about the 1950’s when the mines closed. Then, in the 1970s, the town was revitalized by attracting rugged individuals, artists, and artisans to make a home in the mountains of New Mexico. It is a quiet residential area with a Main Street filled with merchants and artisans.
 
This past weekend, we explored the old mining cemetery from the late 1800s. Next to this old cemetery is another cemetery. And this is what this blog is all about. 
 

We don’t have the whole story, only partially told by the woman who bought the old mining cemetery and an adjacent plot of land to serve as a newer cemetery. She tells us it is where local townspeople have been buried since the 70s. We don’t know where people were buried beforehand. There isn’t much information about “The Land of the Dead” except that a resident manages it.
 
She told us that many of her friends are buried there. It is the celebratory nature of the gravestones that is the story here. You’ll see what I mean once you start looking at the pictures. 
 
Her goal: celebrate the lives of the deceased and make death a more visible part of life. She would like to create a death institute on this site, where people can learn about death without fear. 
 

An update disabled the slideshow. Click on the picture and then use the the cursor key (right arrow = forward). I will try to work on it.