Red River

History

Prior to the arrival of European-Americans, the area now occupied by Red River was used as a summer hunting ground by the Jicarilla Apache and Utes, who hunted big horn sheep, mule deer, elk, Mountain cottontail, and mallards, amongst other species. The town of Red River had its beginnings late in the 19th century, when miners from nearby Elizabethtown in the Moreno Valley were drawn in by gold strikes in the area and trappers sought game. It was named after the perennial stream, Red River, that flows through the town, coming from the northern slopes of Wheeler Peak. By 1895, Red River was a booming mining camp, with gold, silver and copper in some abundance, and a population estimated at three thousand. Mining hit its peak in 1897, and by 1905 the mining and the population dwindled but the town survived, gaining a reputation as a great getaway from hot weather and as a trout fishing paradise. The last serious mining efforts extended until 1931. By that time tourism had become the principal economic livelihood. In 2019, the Christmas tree displayed at the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C. was harvested in Red River.

Geography

Red River is located in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains, part of the southern Rocky Mountains, and is surrounded by the Carson National Forest. According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of , all land. The Enchanted Circle Scenic Byway, also known as New Mexico Route 38, passes through Red River.

Race & ethnicity

Most-observed species

• Mountain Chickadee

  Poecile gambeli (Ridgway, 1886) · Aves
  1,421
• American Robin

  Turdus migratorius Linnaeus, 1766 · Aves
  1,227
• Common Raven

  Corvus corax Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  1,126
• Broad-tailed Hummingbird

  Selasphorus platycercus (Swainson, 1827) · Aves
  1,105
• Steller's Jay

  Cyanocitta stelleri (Gmelin, 1788) · Aves
  1,002
• Dark-eyed Junco

  Junco hyemalis (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  862
• Woodhouse's Scrub-Jay

  Aphelocoma woodhouseii (S.F.Baird, 1858) · Aves
  820
• Northern Flicker

  Colaptes auratus (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  765

Largest nearby schools

• QUESTA HIGH
  High · QUESTA · 100 students · 9.1:1 ratio
• RED RIVER VALLEY CHARTER SCHOOL
  Elementary · RED RIVER · 81 students · 9:1 ratio
• QUESTA JR HIGH
  Middle · QUESTA · 56 students · 14:1 ratio