Chama in Rio Arriba County, New Mexico — The American Mountains (Southwest)

Chama

Population 1,090 - Elevation 7,860 ft.

Photographed by Maribeth Robison, June 8, 2014

1. Chama Marker

Inscription. From a small crossroads town, Chama became an important site on the Denver & Rio Grande Western Railroad after 1880. The Cumbres & Toltec Scenic Railroad is a remnant of the San Juan Extension a narrow-gauge line which once served the mining areas of southwestern Colorado

Erected by New Mexico Historic Preservation Division.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Railroads & Streetcars • Settlements & Settlers. A significant historical year for this entry is 1880.

Location. 36° 51.522′ N, 106° 34.658′ W. Marker is in Chama, New Mexico, in Rio Arriba County. It is on Highway 84/64 (State Road 84). Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Chama NM 87520, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in Northern New Mexico.

It is also in the American Southwest,

in the Mountain West,

and at the Four Corners.

Globally, it is in North America,

the Rocky Mountains,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once New Spain

and also the Republic of Texas.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 10 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Old Spanish Trail (approx. 1.8 miles away); Denver & Rio Grande Railroad San Juan Extension (approx. 3 miles away); a different marker also named Chama (approx. 3.1 miles away); The Chama Railyard (approx. 3.1 miles away); Coal Tipple (approx. 3.1 miles away); 1881 Log Bunkhouse (approx. 3.2 miles away); Continental Divide (approx. 8.8 miles away); Fort Lowell (approx. 9.6 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Chama.

Also see . . . The Cumbres & Toltec Scenic Railroad

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. The Cumbres & Toltec Scenic Railroad is another famous narrow-gauge tourist railroad in southwest Colorado and northwest New Mexico. (Submitted on June 9, 2014.)

Photographed by Maribeth Robison, June 8, 2014

2. Chama Marker

Credits. This page was last revised on August 8, 2025. It was originally submitted on June 9, 2014, by Maribeth Robison of Moriarty, New Mexico. This page has been viewed 967 times since then and 25 times this year. Last updated on July 30, 2025, by Bill Wingate of Albuquerque, New Mexico. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on June 9, 2014, by Maribeth Robison of Moriarty, New Mexico. • Devry Becker Jones was the editor who published this page.