San Diego Crossing, was a major
ford
Ford commonly refers to:
* Ford Motor Company, an automobile manufacturer founded by Henry Ford
* Ford (crossing), a shallow crossing on a river
Ford may also refer to:
Ford Motor Company
* Henry Ford, founder of the Ford Motor Company
* Ford F ...
on the
Rio Grande, in
Doña Ana County, New Mexico
Doña Ana County is located in the southern part of the State of New Mexico, United States. As of the 2020 U.S. Census, its population was 219,561, which makes it the second-most populated county in New Mexico. Its county seat is Las Cruces, t ...
during the 19th Century. It was named for
San Diego Mountain, on the east side of the Rio Grande, located directly west of the crossing. It was 11 miles north from
Doña Ana, New Mexico
Doña Ana is a census-designated place (CDP) in Doña Ana County, New Mexico, United States. The population was 1,211 at the 2010 census.
History
Doña Ana is named for Doña Ana Robledo, who died there in 1680 while fleeing the Pueblo Revolt.
...
then 7 miles northwest
from the
Camino Real to the crossing and 17 miles along the west bank from the crossing to their last camp along the river before their junction with
Cooke's Wagon Road.
[Robert Eccleston, Edited by George P. Hammond and Edward H. Howes, Overland to California on the Southwestern Trail, University of California Press, Berkeley, 1950, pp.162-167]
In 1849, it was described in the diary of
Robert Eccleston
Robert A. Eccleston (1830-1911) was a pioneer, forty-niner, and diarist whose records offer crucial insights into the discovery of the Tucson Cutoff and Yosemite Valley.Robert Eccleston, Edited by George P. Hammond and Edward H. Howes, Overlan ...
, who was traveling west from the
Jornada del Muerto with the wagon train of a party of
49ers on October 6, 1849:
:"...after getting over the hill from which we could see the river, the oxen had to pull heavy to get through the sand. The valley looked pretty from the eminence on the hill, but no encampment was in sight on either side of the river. ... We came up to our boys & proceeded to the ford. We crossed safely, but No.1 got stuck, & I had to return with our two lead yoke to draw them up. Even with 5 yoke we could hardly stir the load, as, the ground being spongy, the wheels sunk in the sand. The distance in crossing is some 300 yards, as we follow up the middle ground some distance after crossing half way, part of which was bare."
:"We camped below where we came out & nearly opposite the entering of the ford on the margin of the river. ... Exactly opposite our camp is the Mountain (
San Diego Mountain) of brownish hue, with dark green shrubbery distributed here and there."
In August 1862, during the
American Civil War
The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states ...
, Lt. Col.
Edward E. Eyre,
1st Regiment California Volunteer Cavalry
The 1st Regiment California Volunteer Cavalry was a cavalry regiment in the Union Army during the American Civil War. It was first formed of five companies as 1st Battalion, 1st Regiment California Volunteer Cavalry between August and October 31, ...
, gave precise mileage from
Fort Thorn Fort Thorn or Fort Thorne, originally Cantonment Garland, was a settlement and military outpost located on the west bank of the Rio Grande, northwest of present-day Hatch, and west of Salem in Doña Ana County, New Mexico, United States. It was ...
down the west bank of the Rio Grande to the San Diego Crossing as 18 miles. He gave the location of the head of Cooke's Wagon Road as a further 3 miles up river from the fort.
[WAR OF THE REBELLION, SERIES I, VOLUME L, IN TWO PARTS. PART I, p.125 Letter from Lieutenant- Colonel, E. E. EYRE, First California Volunteer Cavalry at Fort Thorn to Headquarters, Column from California, July 8, 1862.]
References
{{coord, 32, 36, 13, N, 107, 01, 09, W, display=title
Geography of Doña Ana County, New Mexico
Crossings of the Rio Grande