Oney Ranch Field Trip – March 15, 2003

A large group of TCASer’s met Saturday morning, March 15, for an all day field trip about 9 miles west and 12 miles south of US 60 on the Oney Ranch.  Jerry Shaw and Waynette Burnett led the group which included:  Mel and Della Stephenson, Donna and Bob Jerigan, Curtis and Linda Benz, Nancy and Ed Priestly, Sharon Hanna, Bill and Barbara Simms, Judith Tamm, Marrow Hall, Reggie Wiseman, Linda Powell, Paula Crane, and Marion Shaw. 

Rancher, Monte Oney, met us south of US 60 and we drove to Arracie Springs.  The Arracie ruins and eagle snares are still visible.  In the early 1800’s a Basque family settled this area and there is a stone structure from this time.    The snares are on top of a hill – 3 large rock towers about 7 feet tall.  The middle tower has fallen.  Snare traps were designed to catch eagles before they could swoop down on the rancher’s sheep.

Our next stop was south of Chupadera Mesa at a historic Catholic church, a stone ruin with a graveyard.  There were ten to fifteen graves, one enclosed grave, and one broken gravestone with a readable date of 1860.  Little is known of this church, but it is good sized and should be researchable.  Lunch was considered a good idea at this point.

Moving on we drove to the original homestead site of the Shaw family.  In 1929 Jerry Shaw’s grandfather came to this area and farmed beans and corn.  Mike and Medina Shaw, Jerry’s parents, also homesteaded a section during that time, moving to Mountainair in 1938.  The two-room clapboard shed where Jerry’s parents and three older brothers lived is still standing. 

Driving south on a county  road we noticed interesting buildings with a large structure surrounded by a good fence.  This is a government facility where the Hera missile is used as a test target for the Patriot missile .  When these tests are going on the ranchers in this area are asked to leave.  Very interesting! 

We then drove to the Oney ranch headquarters and admired the lovely  Shaw School House outhouse – still usable with the words barely visible, “Death to Those Who Defy the Shaw School House”. 

Not far from the ranch house are the Indian Wells ruins.  Quite a large pueblo at least two stories tall.  There has been indiscriminate digging and even a large dirt tank and dam has been built over the north end of the ruin.  Reggie Wiseman dated some corrugated and white on black pottery from the 1100’s – 1200’s.  Also Glaze A pottery 1325 – 1500 as well as piece of blackened corn cob.   We left this area reluctantly.  On the way back we drove via the Cisneros Ranch and stopped at the Serpent’s Gate area to see the petroglyphs.  An exhilarating day! 

Jerry Shaw’s Parent’s Homestead (1929)

Old Spanish Mission

(name unknown)

Group at ancient eagle snare

Overlooking Arracie Site

(Target missle site in distance)