Zia Rising: The 47th State

President Taft proclaimed New Mexico the 47th state of the Union on January 6, 1912. When our territorial governor got the big news, his 16-year-old daughter promptly raised a brand-new 47-star flag over the State Capitol in Santa Fe, and church bells rang out in celebration.

We were one of the very last states to join the contiguous United States. Twenty western territories achieved statehood during the 66 long years New Mexico waited! In that pivotal time, New Mexico learned how to govern itself, and set out to prove itself to the world.

Achieving statehood is still a watershed moment in New Mexican history. Our people worked hard to get here, proving their worth and accomplishing so much along the way.

Join us on Friday, September 18, 5 - 7 p.m., for a free opening celebration, featuring live music by the Santa Fe Concert Band, hands-on activities, and refreshments provided by the Women’s Board of the Museum of New Mexico.

By 1912 New Mexico was a bustling, well-developed region with law and order, major mining, timber, and sheep industries, and public schools and universities…with more improvements on the way. Good roads were linking farm communities to cities, and irrigation projects were laying the groundwork for grand agricultural efforts. Thanks to improved communication and vigorous efforts to sell New Mexico’s resources, people started coming to visit. Some even built new lives here.

While statehood was a huge milestone, it couldn’t solve all of our problems. But what we are today is rooted firmly in that time—we’re still a mostly rural, agricultural state where tradition and innovation coexist and run deep.

The exhibition lets visitors step back into the year 1912 through a striking matrix of historic objects mounted in a unique display that reveals interesting, surprising, and sometimes unusual connections from that time, sparking curiosity about the past.

A special aspirational video project titled “Voices of 1912,” proclaiming the future will be what we make it, blends words from 1912 politicians and poets and is presented in both English and Spanish. Visitors will also see early film footage from across the state in “100 Years Ago, New Mexico’s Early Film History,” by ¡COLORES! New Mexico PBS.

Exhibition highlights include:

-Great Seal of the State of New Mexico crafted from everyday hardware

-Governor William C. McDonald’s top hat and formal wear

-Charles Ilfeld’s personal desk

-Santa Rita Mine copper ore car

-Piano used to compose our first state song

-Wheelchair from Fort Bayard Sanatorium

-And more!

So, let’s join Felipe Maximiliano Chacón, the New Mexican Bard, and shout: “Long live the state of New Mexico!”