Cloudcroft in Otero County, New Mexico — The American Mountains (Southwest)

Texas Hotel

Village of Cloudcroft

— New Mexico Rails-to-Trails —

Texas Hotel Marker image. Click for full size.

Photographed by James Hulse, June 25, 2024

1. Texas Hotel Marker

Inscription. Railroad construction paused for over a year after the rails reached Toboggan in early 1899. The hotel before you, originally "The Virginia," was built that same year to accomodate tourists who finished the trip to Cloudcroft from the railhead by stage. It changed hands several times before Annie Breckheimer of Marshall, Texas purchased the hotel in late 1906.

New owner Annie Breckheimer remodeled the hotel and changed the name to "The Texas" in 1911. Here is a lobby scene from 1913. She sold to her sister Katie Smith in 1924. The Otero County Electric Cooperative held its founding meeting here in 1939.

This sign was created and is actively maintained by volunteers from the New Mexico Rails-to-Trails Association-o 501 (c) (3) nonprofit organization - in partnership with the Village of Cloudcroft. For more information or to find out how you can help us maintain these important paths through nature and history, please contact us at nmrailstotrails.org or find us on Facebook at /NMRailstoTrails.

Erected by Rails to Trails, Village of Cloudcroft, New Mexico and Sacramento Mountains Historical Society.

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This historical marker is listed in this topic list: Notable Buildings. A significant historical year for this entry is 1899.

Location. 32° 57.521′ N, 105° 44.551′ W. Marker is in Cloudcroft, New Mexico, in Otero County. It is at the intersection of Burro Avenue and Swallow Place, on the right when traveling east on Burro Avenue. Located along the street and across the street from the building. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 602 Burro Ave, Cloudcroft NM 88317, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in New Mexico’s Pecos Valley. It is also in the American Southwest.

Globally, it is in North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once New Spain,

the Comanchería,

and the Republic of Texas.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Burro Avenue • 1903 (a few steps from this marker); Burro Avenue in 1932 (within shouting distance of this marker); From the Ashes (within shouting distance of this marker); Mescalero Baseball Game, ca. 1910 (about 700

The Texas Hotel and Marker image. Click for full size.

Photographed by James Hulse, June 25, 2024

2. The Texas Hotel and Marker

feet away, measured in a direct line); Old Lodge (approx. 0.2 miles away); Casino & Land Office (approx. 0.2 miles away); The Pavilion - A Magical Place (approx. 0.2 miles away); Cloudcroft Depot (approx. 0.2 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Cloudcroft.

Also see . . . The History of Cloudcroft. Sacramento Mountains Historical Society

More than a century ago, brothers Charles Bishop Eddy and John Arthur Eddy—organizers of the El Paso and Northeastern Railroad— arrived in the brand new town of Alamogordo, hoping to continue the rail line. Because they needed railroad ties and timber, the brothers sent a survey crew into the nearby Sacramento Mountains to assess the possibility of laying a line that reached the summit. In the fall of 1898, the crew reported that not only could a line be built, the area’s majestic beauty would draw visitors from far and wide. The crew suggested the name Cloudcroft,“a pasture for the clouds.”

By the end of 1898, the railroad line reached Toboggan Canyon. The following summer, John Arthur Eddy officially opened the Pavilion at the summit that provided accommodations
Photographed by James Hulse, June 25, 2024

3. Texas Hotel
for visitors including a kitchen, dining room, parlor, entertainment hall and 40 tents set on wooden platforms. Guests attended the festivities by taking the train to Toboggan Canyon and then a stagecoach up to Cloudcroft. The new resort received rave reviews in El Paseo and other area newspapers, and crowds began to visit the area. Fire twice destroyed the Pavilion but it was rebuilt each time in its original style.

(Submitted on July 16, 2024, by James Hulse of Medina, Texas.)

Credits. This page was last revised on July 19, 2024. It was originally submitted on July 15, 2024, by James Hulse of Medina, Texas. This page has been viewed 511 times since then and 43 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on July 16, 2024, by James Hulse of Medina, Texas.