Gravesite for Billy the Kid. Courtesy photoTCHS News:
The Taos County Historical Society has announced its program on “Famous and Unusual Gravesites in New Mexico” by Dr. Richard Melzer, Professor of History at UNM-Valencia, 2 p.m., June 3, at 118 Cruz Alta Road., in the Boardroom of the Kit Carson Electric Cooperative.
The program is open to the public and free of charge. This talk is part of the Taos Arts and Cultural Consortium 2017 theme, Taos Stories and Legends.
The talk will include the graves of Billy the Kid, perhaps one of the most well-known in New Mexico, Pat Garrett and Geronimo. Although located in Oklahoma, Geronimo is one of New Mexico’s historic and famous individuals. Famous Taos gravesites include Kit Carson, Padre Martinez, Mabel Dodge Luhan and several famous artists.
In the Pasatiempo (Santa Fe New Mexican) of Sept. 30 – Oct. 6, 2016, Dr. Melzer said, “each grave has story far beyond the usual things we hear about these characters and their lives”. Dr. Melzer doesn’t focus upon particular cemeteries but includes samples from many across the state and he further states, “some sad, many unusual, and others extremely funny”.
Dr. Melzer has been Professor of History since 1979 at UNM Valencia, Dr. Melzer has published and lectured on a wide variety of topics in 20 th Century New Mexico history including these books Breakdown: How the Secret of the Atomic Bomb was Stolen During World War II (2000) and Coming of Age in the Great Depression: The Civilian Conservation Corps Experience in New Mexico, 1933-42 (2000) and Buried Treasures: Famous and Unusual Gravesites in New Mexico (2007). Recent books include Fred Harvey Houses of the Southwest (2008) and TB Sanatoriums of New Mexico (2014).
The Taos County Historical Society, a 501(c)3 non-profit organization was formed in 1952 for the purpose of “…preserving the history of Taos area.” and membership is open to all upon the payment of dues.
Visit www.taoscountyhistoricalsociety.org for additional information.
