A Grave in the Middle of Nowhere

Genealogy: A haystack full of needles.  It's the thread I need! (unknown)

During my genealogy search, I found out that my great-grandfather, Nabor Aragon, was buried in a field somewhere in New Mexico.  His tombstone, I was told, had a lamb and a rope carved into the stone. A cousin of mine, Manuel Gonzales, who had visited the grave and taken pictures did not know where his slides were packed and would be unable to show them to me. Other cousins said they had heard about the tombstone in the middle of nowhere but they had never seen it.  The more I inquired, the more curious I became about the relative who was buried in a field.  Last year, I met a few more cousins and one of them, Fred Aragon, said he had photos of the grave and would send them to me. He mentioned that it was near Vaughn, New Mexico and the person who owned the property was named Koontz.  I got on the Internet and found a Jim Koontz and a phone number.  I called Mr. Koontz and left a message.

That evening, Jim Koontz called me.  He told me that he had always wondered about the grave on the property. "You are the first person to inquire about it and in order to get to it, you have to come by our ranch." I told him that some relatives had visited the grave but they must have gone directly to the grave.  Mr. Koontz told me that in order to get to the grave, a four wheel vehicle is needed because of the rough terrain. He said that from Albuquerque to the grave site it would take about five hours!

When his family moved to the area in 1964 he was a young boy but remembers seeing a house with glass windows and beams on the ceiling.  "Now," he said, "everything is gone."  He mentioned Salado (a place that I have heard my ancestors lived) and which was Nabor's homestead.  He said that some of the buildings, made out of stones and adobe, were in shambles and that there was a windmill called the Aragon Windmill on the property.

Mr. Koontz was kind enough to take photos of the grave site and e-mail them to me. I have heard that a 2nd cousin of mine, by the name of Tito Aragon, and son of Nolasco and Adela Aragon, was the artist who made the tombstone.

Along with the photos, he send me this note:

Linda, I took these pictures today. 

The inscription states:

EN MEMORIA, DE NABOR ARAGON,

FALLESIO EL DIA 14, DE FEBRERO AD, 1898.

Two pictures of the homestead that is nearby are included. 

I have an old map done in 1931 listing

different homesteads for Township 4 North Range 23 East

and some of the Aragon names listed are

Manuel A, Eligio, Ensebio,(Eusebio) Doroteia (Dorotea) Lucero de, Pedro N., Escolastica.    

Jim Koontz

 

He mentioned that there are other graves in the area with crosses but without names. He told me that the adjacent farm had been owned by a Mr. Trujillo, who he suspects directed those cousins who had visited the grave site. I found Mr. Koontz to be helpful, interesting and friendly in relaying what he knew about the grave. He mentioned that he is trying to preserve the grave and tombstone.

It is odd that my great-grandmother, Dorotea is buried in Pastura, New Mexico while her husband is in the middle of nowhere. How wonderful it would be to know all the facts about when my ancestors lived. I mentioned my concern to Mr. Koontz and he remarked, "Nabor probably worked the ranch and when he passed on he was buried on his homestead." I had to agree.

I have placed my great-grandfather's grave site on my bucket list! I hope that some day I will stand on the property that once belonged to my ancestors.