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Rowe, New MexicoPhoto: Asaavedra32 · CC BY-SA 3.0
–Not graded
History · Rowe

Rowe’s post office opened in 1884

Most of Rowe was built recently: 0.0% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1981. Below: maps from 1966 on.

1884first post office
0on the National Register
0.0%homes built before 1940
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Photo: Asaavedra32 · CC BY-SA 3.0
Quick answers

How Rowe began

When was Rowe founded?

1884

The Rowe post office opened in 1884, the earliest record of the town by name.

2020 census: 304142 years
Founding year: the first Rowe post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓

What stands out about Rowe’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

A history waiting to be writtenNo old photos of Rowe are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Rowe’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Rowe’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
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The story

How Rowe came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Rowe.

Read it all →

Rowe was established to provide labor for the Santa Fe Railroad in the late 1870s and early 1880s. The majority of the population came from Las Ruedas 2 miles (3.2 km) away on the Pecos River. A pipeline to provide water for steam engines was laid between Rowe and the then village of Las Ruedas. Las Ruedas ceased to exist and by the time of the 1880 U.S. Federal Census most of the former residents of Las Ruedas were resettled in Rowe.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

By decade

Rowe, decade by decade

Today3 recent
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On the map

Rowe on the map, 1966 to 2002

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Rowe. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

Rowe on the 1966 USGS mapRowe on the 2002 USGS map1966Rowe sheet · 1:24,000

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Rowe.

Famous people

Famous people close to Rowe

Nobody well known was born in Rowe itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.

See all →
A
Adrian GrenierAmerican actor, director, producer, musician · b. 1976
Ben Ray LujánU.S. Senator from New Mexico · b. 1972
Lori NelsonAmerican actress and model · b. 1933
L
Lucky VarelaAmerican politician · b. 1935
C
Concha Ortiz y PinoAmerican politician · b. 1910
Places that used to be

Old burying grounds

Rowe’s post office has been open since 1884.

3cemeteries and burying grounds inside Rowe
Holy Family CatholicRoweSaint Josephs Chapel

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Questions about Rowe’s history

What year was Rowe founded?

The Rowe post office opened in 1884, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
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Sources

Where this page comes from

Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021). How TownRatings grades history →

From Wikimedia Commons (3), Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock) and the USGS Geographic Names Information System. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.