1848

1848. . , 1848 , The 1848 Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo ended two years of war between Mexico and the United States. New Mexico, along with Arizona, California and parts of Nevada, Utah and Colorado were now a part of the United States. A group led by Manuel Alvarez, most of whom were former Mexican citizens, petitioned the U.S. Congress to admit New Mexico as a state. Congress rejected the Alvarez petition and statehood would elude New Mexico for another 62 years. New Mexico was designated a U.S. Territory in the Compromise of 1850. Perhaps the English-speaking Congress that represented a mostly Protestant constituency was hesitant to embrace a state composed mainly of Spanish-speaking Catholics. The U.S. Congress finally overcame its hesitancy and made New Mexico the 47th State of the Union in 1912. , Sociedad Colonial Española de Santa Fe