Aztec Museum and Pioneer Village

We've been wanting to go see the Aztec Museum and Pioneer Village since just about the first day we got here.  We walk by it a lot, and though it looked interesting, so today was the day.  The museum had a lot of neat things, but this was probably my favorite.

This is called "Pecos West" and was designed and hand-carved by Valenty Zaharek.  It is 18 ft in diameter, has over 100 wood carvings, and weighs over 3000 pounds.  It rotates on a base, and depicts early western life in the Four Corners region.  Mr Zaharek began working on it after contracting first meningitis, and later polio, and he was unable to get around much.  It took him 20 years to complete.

First up outside was this wooden Ft Worth Model D drilling rig.

This is called the Gasbuggy.  This is the test device that was lowered into a well 4,240 ft below the surface of the earth east of Aztec.  In December 1967, an actual 29 kiloton nuclear device was then lowered in and detonated (the Hiroshima atomic bomb was 15-kilotons).  The purpose of the explosion was to stimulate natural gas flow through rock fractures.  But instead of fracturing the rock, the blast created a large underground cavity that was sealed off by molten glass, closing off the rock fractures.  Oopsie!!

Some farming equipment

Model TT truck

And now on to the Pioneer Village... Most of the buildings were located in the Aztec area and moved to this site.  A couple were reproductions of a "typical" building.

First, Brad is off to jail.  This is one of the first jails in Aztec.  I thought the walls were interesting... They are 2x6 boards, laid flat to strengthen the walls.  Originally there were no walls inside, the prisoner was just locked inside, and the sheriff would bring meals over each day.  The prisoners were responsible for building a fire in the stove to keep warm.

Next up was the print shop.  This old printing press is similar to one that my dad had, that he used to print up things for local people or businesses.

This caboose is actually a re-creation that some local guys made from an old boxcar.

The blacksmith shop

This cabin was located south of Aztec, near the Salmon Ruins that we visited a couple of weeks ago.  In 1880, during a Christmas gathering, the Porter Stockton gang crashed the party and shot and killed two men.  Stockton was later killed by a posse led by the local deputy.

The cabin had just one room inside, and there was very little room to move around with the bed, a stove, and a table and chairs, yet the Hamblet family raised 9 kids there.

The inside of the old bank. I thought it was a real person in there when we first walked in.

This is a replica of a "more modern" farmhouse.  It had a couple of bedrooms, a large sitting room, a kitchen, and a sewing room.

Heading to church!  This church was completely dismantled at its original site, and reassembled here.  It was originally built in 1906.

The old school... I had to get a picture inside.

The general store

Post office

Justice of the Peace... Come in to get your marriage license or dog license.

Doctor's office

It was a fun walk through history in the Aztec area.

We hadn't intended to eat out for lunch, but the gal in the museum told us "The Bistro" across the street was amazing, so we decided to check it out.  We weren't disappointed.  Brad got the chili chicken stew and I got "The Ultimate" sandwich, which had turkey, bacon, avacado, peppers, arugula, and some kind of yummy sauce.  It was really pleasant sitting out on the patio in the shade.