Hagan, New Mexico
Travel December 30th, 2009
Ghost towns are aplenty across the United States, especially in the South West. Most are no more than a few outlines and at the intersection of two dirt roads, but all the same they are reminders that our cities and towns are also mortals. Once in a while, you stumble upon something different, a place so unique you return time and time again. Such is Hagan, New Mexico.
Located between Santa Fe and Albuquerque, Hagan is accessible by a dirt road that begins at the very back of the San Felipe Hollywood Casino parking lot. Although the site is only a few miles from Interstate 25, the trek will take about a half hour. Do not attempt this drive if it is raining, the many arroyos will flash flood and cause serious grief for you and your vehicle.
The history of Hagan is intertwined with the history of coal and the rail road. First settled by coal miners in the first years of the 20th century, the town had under a hundred inhabitants. Named for mining investor William Hagan, by 1910, the coal mine and settlement were abandoned as transporting the coal by wagon to the nearby San Felipe Pueblo was too costly.
In 1919, a Louisiana investor re-opened the mines and connected the town with the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad in San Felipe. By then, the town had over 500 inhabitants and its own power plant, running water, post office, a general store and a hotel but before long the coal ran out in 1931 and the town died out by the 1940s.
Today various buildings are still partially standing; they are the power plant and the mercantile. Others, built with adobe brick, are dissolving away with time. The colourful landscape offers tones that go from golden to ochre, a stark contrast to the crisp blue skies that are so frequent in the land of enchantment.
Update (Oct 20, 2011) : as per the comment posted below, the town of Hagan is private property and access is only possible through NM Jeep Tours.
Photos: S. Kelly
Comments on this website are the responsibility of their respective authors.
October 20th, 2011 at 11:56 am
Hello. This is private property. I do Jeep tours on this property and also act as the care taker. I request that you either remove this blog inviting people onto private property, which is clearly marked, or edit to advise people to keep out. This in and of it’s self is evidence or your trespassing as well. Thank you for your attention to this matter.
October 21st, 2011 at 2:50 am
Hello Roch
I will not remove the post as when I visited Hagan in 2006 and 2008, there was no indication the town was on private property. At the time, we even found signs of geocaching. We discovered the town after reading a book purchased in Santa Fe and enjoyed the beauty of site.
I updated the article, as well as one written in French on a sister blog.
Why don’t you provide us with the website and contact info for prospective future visitors ?
Thanks
October 21st, 2011 at 2:52 am
On a side note, we like to joke around with some of our acquaintances. When they ask us where we’re from, we sometimes tell them we’re from Hagan NM, just for kicks.
December 15th, 2011 at 5:56 pm
Mr.Cormier: Enjoyed your website immensly. I, too, tell people I’m from Hagan but it’s NO JOKE ! I was born at Hagan 85 years ago…yes…on February 7, 1926 in a bedroom of one of those adobe Company houses. My Dad worked as a mechanic and electrician. For extra pay, he would sometimes “shot-put”dynamite to loosen coal in the mine. I last visited Hagan about the mid sixties. It’s sad for me to see my past melting away, but…”That’s Life”! Thanks for the Memories. Guy Owensby
December 17th, 2011 at 12:11 am
Dear M Owensby, what a pleasant comment! Thank you for dropping by and telling us about your life in Hagan. Please tell us more:
1) How many people lived there during your time?
2) How did you get to Santa Fe and Albuquerque, was it by train or road?
3) What’s your favorite memory of Hagan?
Take care and write back soon!
December 21st, 2011 at 7:59 pm
Dear Mr. Cormier,
Responding to your questions regarding my recollectons of Life in Hagan: mine are a composite of Family stories handed down from my parents and four older siblings inasmuch as I was less than a year old when the coal mine shut down and we moved to the Raton NM area. My Family is amazing!: I am the youngest at age 85; my brother (at Albuquerque) is 88; a sister (of Raton NM)is 91, and a sister (of Torrance, Wyoming) is 95. All are mobile and “sharp as a tack”. I only mention all this because it documents the credibility of the Family History that was handed down to me. So, now, to proceed: You asked how many people lived at Hagan when we lived there in 1924-1926: probably no more than four to five hundred. There is no memory of ever going any place by train…only by automobile which in our case was a Flint Touring Motor Car. Instead of glass windows, it had celluloid “curtains” which “snapped” in place. Although it had air-filled tires, it had wooden spokes. Hagan had a fairly state-of-the art company general store and few trips to Albuquerque or Santa Fe were needed to provide basic necessities. My sisters recall attending elementary school with itinerant teachers. One favorite Family Memory of Hagan: I was an infant. and my oldest sister,who was ten years old,was left in charge of me and the other siblings, while my mother briefly went next door. When Mom returned, I had vanished from the bed.
After many moments of chaos, fear and anguish, I was discovered content and sound asleep between the matress and the bedroom wall. Today, I have hanging in my office, an 18″ piece of distressed wood which is from the window-sill of the bedroom of the adobe Compsny house in which I was born. My Mother recovered it on a visit there in the 60’s or 70’s. My nephew’s wife then decopauged two snapshots of the house onto the wood. I have always been proud of my Heritage, and with “tongue-in-cheek” bragged about my humble beginnings: ABRAHAM LINCOLN AND HIS LOG CABIN, AND ME AND MY HAGAN ADOBE CASA! Thanks for allowing such a verbose reply to your inquiry. Regards….Guy H. Owensby, Annapolis. Maryland
December 24th, 2011 at 2:17 am
Dear Mr Owensby, thank you again for sharing those great memories.
I uploaded a new batch of pictures from our 2006 and 2008 trips to Hagan for your enjoyment.
Please follow this link to the album. Each picture can be enlarged.