Join us as we take a look back at history

There are certain points in history where you can tell the world is at a crossroads, when we have reached the end of one era and are on the cusp of a new one. The end of the 2010s was one of those points, marked by the onset of a global pandemic, more frequent extreme weather patterns, social unrest and serious talk of landing the first human on Mars, a new space age. Zooming in on Taos, the changes of this new decade are also evident. More people have moved here during the pandemic. Development is accelerating, both to our benefit, and paradoxically, perhaps, at the risk of losing some of the elements of life we value most in Taos.

But these extraordinary times aren’t unprecedented, and that can be a source of comfort as well as a tool for placing the present moment in its proper historical context.

That’s why we now thought it would be a good time to bring back a favorite column from years past, La Historia, which once ran in the pages of Tempo. Starting this week, readers will find it revived on page B7 in the Spanish language section of the Taos News, El Crepúsculo. In the early 1830’s Padre Antonio José Martinéz of Taos published a Spanish language journal of the same name, El Crepuscúlo de la Libertad. Maybe not all of our readers know that the Taos News is that paper’s modern, spiritual successor, and thus has roots that run more than a century deep.

As such, our archives go back a long way. Every time we have reason to dust off one of our hefty archival tomes, we find ourselves distracted from our initial purpose by the richness of Taos County’s history — photos of residents with big hair from the 80s and 90s, a look of confidence in their eyes that their styles would stand the test of time, black-and-white photos of horse-drawn carriages moving down roads that are now paved, families at early fiestas celebrations on Taos Plaza, ads for 10-cent drug and sundries at the Taos Variety Store.

But more than these historical curiosities, we see a lot of overlap with what’s happening here in more modern times. Disputes over land and water have marked Taos County’s history for as long as humans have lived here. Tensions within our broadly tri-cultural community have risen and fallen over the decades. The fear of the “outsider” and the change that he or she might bring to this place shows up again and again, from generation to generation.

Rick Romancito, our former Tempo editor who began working for the Taos News in 1989, will be the new author of La Historia. We hope you enjoy his new column, and find value in taking a periodic look back at what’s led us to our present moment—as we do.