Comanche Country

The Jicarilla the panel says were driven out had farmed these plains as well as hunted them. When Governor Antonio de Valverde led an army onto the plains in 1719, it found Jicarilla living along the streams in adobe houses, some terraced like pueblos. The Numunuu, newly mounted and allied with the Utes, had first raided near Taos in 1704, and by the 1730s they had pushed the Jicarilla off the plains into the mountains of northern New Mexico. The Jicarilla offered allegiance to the Spanish king for protection and got little of it.

What the plaque says

Official Scenic Historic Marker Comanche Country By 1700 the Comanches had ac- quired the horse and began mov- ing into this area. They drove out the Jicarilla Apaches, and their raids on New Mexico's eastern frontier posed a threat to Indian, Spanish, and Anglo settlements for over a century. The Comanches were finally de- feated by the U.S. Army in 1874.

Where it stands

Worth the stop nearby

• Blue Hole — 26 mi
  A bell-shaped artesian spring in Santa Rosa, 81 feet deep and a steady 61 or 62 degrees, where divers from across the region learn to dive at altitude.

More markers nearby

• Llano Estacado — steps away
• Santa Rosa — 25 mi
• Santa Rosa Lake State Park — 27 mi
• Santa Rosa — 27 mi