by J.Young Postcard shows the round tower, El Torreon, used for defense and protection from Indian raids in Lincoln, (N.M.) Visible in the background are the mountains, as well as a building at left. The postcard’s caption reads “El Torreon. The tower, originally built by early Mexican settlers as a lookout for Indians, used as a fortress and figured in Lincoln Country War 1878, New Mexico.” There is no personal message on reverse. Publisher Center for Southwest Research, University Libraries, University of New Mexico.
When getting, about halfway through Lincoln, you can find the ancient looking tower on the Northside. Observers probably cannot help but imagine the terrible things that once drove people to seek refuge in such a place…
The old iconic Lincoln landmark known as The Torreón was built in 1852. This type of structure was a common feature in New Mexico from the colonial period to the nineteenth century, as It provided the Spanish with protection from attacks by Native Americans.
After a rough start due to several attacks from the Apache, Spanish settlers came well prepared. They began construction and farming around the same time as the Army began building Fort Stanton about 15 miles up the Bonito River. They named their new home “La Placita del Río Bonito”. It was later shortened to La Placita, and then renamed Lincoln about 20 years later.
The Torreon was built by Enrique Trujillo, members of the Miranda family, and other early settlers.
After building the torreón, the settlers next constructed a group of jacales surrounding the Torreón. (Jacales were houses built of wooden posts driven in the ground with the gaps filled in with mud.) Trenches were also dug from the jacales to the Torreón so the villagers could go to the tower without exposing themselves to the danger outside of their houses. An outdoor oven was also added inside the walls known as a horno. The Torreón and the jacales surrounding it became the plaza for the new community.
The original torréon was likely three, perhaps even four stories tall. The rounded walls have portholes and the top once had breastwork to easily rest your rifle down for quick and steady shooting in offense or defense situations. During times of distress, the entire village was said to have fit inside the tower until it was safe to come out.
Women and children went to the ground floor, while armed men occupied the top three stories.
The Torreón was probably surrounded by a ten foot high wall. When the villagers went to the Torreón to seek refuge, they drove their livestock inside the wall for protection.
By the time Fort Stanton was established on May 5th 1855, there were about 100 settlers in Lincoln.
In addition to being used during raids by the Mescalero Apache, The Torreón was used during the Horrell and Lincoln County Wars. During the Horrell War, villagers went inside the protection of its walls while the Horrell brothers and gang ravaged the streets of Lincoln. Amelia Bolton Church related that she, her sister Ella, and her mother spent the night in The Torreón with twenty-four other persons the night the Horrell’s shot up the Patron wedding party. She said, “We spent the night in fear and trembling, close by the side of our mother, but in the morning found us quite safe in the old tower.”
In 1877, Alexander Mcsween purchased from James Dolan, 5 lots in a row including the Torreon. One of these lots is where the McSweens wanted to build a school and Presbyterian church which sadly would never come due to the events that were about to unfold.
During the 5 day battle,Dolan’s men took positions in the Torreón. Susan Mcsween went over to Sheriff George Peppin and demanded the men leave the Torreon, as it was part of the property that was purchased by Mcsween.
The Torreón was later restored in the early 1930’s by the The Works Progress Administration (WPA) under a sponsorship of the Chaves County Historical Society. It became state property in 1935, and is on the National Register of historical places and the State Register of Cultural Properties.
So if you ever get the chance, step inside The Torreón and have a look through the portholes in the wall that surrounds you or climb on to the roof and enjoy the scenery and imagine those scary moments when citizens depended on The Torreons secure thick stone structure, for safety.
