The History of Logan, New Mexico

The following article was written in 1910 on McFarland Brothers stationery for advertising purposes:

"Logan Is situated on the north bank of the Canadian River on the main line of the Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad, Highway 54 and 39, Chicago to Los angeles. It is 200 feet higher than the river bed, never overflowing and mosquitoes are never heard or seen.

Logan's first house was built in 1901, and the town has a gradual but slow growth, until now it has a population of about 300.

We have an eight month's school. The assessed valuation of our District is $195,000.00. We are voting bonds for a $6,000.00 school house.

We have three Churches organized here. The Missionary Baptist, M.E. South, and Catholic. They are fixing to build a $1,500.00 Baptist Church soon.

We have three lodges, the Masons, Odd-fellows and Woodmen.

Our main crops planted are corn -- not doing much good in the last 2 years, Maize, Kaffa Corn, Beans, Peas, and other garden crops -- fair to good, but the last 2 years are dryer and less crops than any year in 5.

Trees are doing fine. Trees planted 3 years ago would have borne this year had it not been for the frost. All trees have made a good growth.

There is some land to be filed on 8 to 15 miles from town and relinquishments and deeded land can be bought reasonably close in. Stop off and take a look at our country when out looking for land."

Logan was named after an old ex-Texas ranger and United States Marshal, who was wounded in helping move the Marlow boys from one jail to another, and Logan came into existence when the Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad came down to build the railroad bridge. J.H. Conlin was superintendent and M. Bishop was superintendent of bridge construction. The only special mark at this time was a little cedar tree on the north bank of the river.

The townsite of Logan was filed on by Olie E. Smith, a Clayton attorney, by Power of Attorney from Wiliam Kirkpatrick, an old Union soldier, under a law that gave the old Union soldiers a right to sell their homestead rights by what they called script.

Olie E.Smith complied with the law to prove up on this eighty acres of the townsite and received patent for William Kirkpatrick dated June 22, 1904.

Olie E. Smith, by Power of Attorney by William Kirkpatirck and Nancy Kirkpatrick, his wife, sold the townsite to M. Bishop and Eugene Logan for the consideration of $400.00 on August 7, 1901. M. Bishop sold his interest to J.E. Johnson.

The streets and alleys were dedicated to the public by J.E. Johnson November 15, 1901, by filing map with the County Clerk of Union County, as we were in Union County at that time.

Streets running east and west are 100 feet wide and streets running north and south are 80 feet wide. The name of the north street running east and west is Gallegos Street, the second Street running west from the depot is Martinez Street, the next street south is Armijo Street, the next is Garcia Street, and the next is Vigil Street, and the next is Fuentez Street.

The first street on the east edge of the townsite is First Street, the next is Second Street, the next is Third Street, the next is Fourth Street, and the fifth Street being on the west edge of the townsite being 40 feet, but later made 40 feet more by the west land owners.

This is the history of Logan until lots were sold to various parties.

The first merchant was John Burns. The first school teacher in Logan was Miss Petra Gallegos of Clayton, teaching one month at Logan (in a 16 by 24 frame building), one month at Bryantine, and one month at Gallegos. The Second teacher was Elatorio Baca, and the third teacher was W. W. Moore.

Nepomoseno Martinez, father of Manuel Martinez, was one of the first school board members.

The first school house was built in Logan in 1901 and is now one of the Hilly buildings. The first part of the present school building was built in 1910 and the members of the school board were Sim McFarland, E. L. Merrill, and J.H. Shollenbarger.

The first postmistress was Mrs. John Burns. W. L. Besse was the first resident depot agent. The first resident railroad pumper was Tom Goodrich and the first railroad section foreman was J.W. Furlow. The first merchant was John Burns. The first resident doctor was Abijah Jones.

The First church was the Baptist Church built in 1910. The first religious services in Logan was Sunday School conducted by Mr. and Mrs. W. L. Besse in 1902 in the lobby of the depot. Mr. Besse was railroad depot agent.

The first plot used for a cemetery was located on the Mariana Montoya place now owned by J. D. Meeks. The present cemetery was filed on by the First Baptist Church of Logan in 1910. The first party buried on it was Waddie Peacock, an old L.S. cowpuncher, on Lot 1, Block 4.

The first lumber yard was owned by Fox-worth Lumber Company, operated by W.L. Besse, later purchased by Shollenbarger and Woodard.

The first blacksmith shop in Logan was owned by D. W. Clark.

The first water well in town was the Charlie Meeks well owned then by Jeff Woodard, furnishing water for everybody in town.

You will note that the patent for this land was issued June 22, 1904, and the land was sold by Kirkpatrick to M. Bishop and Eugene Logan August 7, 1901. When final proof was made on this land the Government issued a blue print and the patent followed later.

Now with our new highway bridge and the prospects for irrigation water wells, the E. Goggins well about a mile northwest of town and the R. N. Rogers and Thurman Thomas wells about five miles northwest of town, furnishing plenty of Irrigation water at about 140 feet, and the Dunes Dam which will back water up to about Logan, we hope that the ambitions of the original owner, M. Bishop, who stated that you never saw a city amount to anything that was not located on a water course is now coming true.

Submitted by Sim McFarland in 1957