Manassa in Conejos County, Colorado — The American Mountains (Southwest)
The First Bed and Breakfasts
| | Los Caminos Antiguous Scenic & Historic Byway | |
Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, July 12, 2025
1. The First Bed and Breakfasts Marker
In order to survive the Valley's first of many harsh winters, the earliest settlers needed to build shelter quickly. Jacales were constructed by digging a trench, setting vertical posts and covering them with adobe stucco. Annual travelers from New Mexico into the San Luis Valley would be granted posada or shelter in such homes when they came here to sell apples and chile.
If travelers had no money to offer, often times they would trade their goods for a meal, a bed to sleep in, and feed for their horses.
Maclovio Martinez
Local Historian, San Acacio Resident
The road from San Luis to New Mexico was known by many as the Jacal Road, pronounced hah-CAHL. These structures, made from upright poles daubed with mud, provided travelers who came to the San Luis Valley a place to rest at night. Many travelers moved through the valley by foot, horseback, and wagon along the roads that we drive today.
Erected by Colorado Scenic and Historic Byway Commission, U.S. Forest Service Department of Agriculture, Colorado Historical Society, and the Colorado Department of Transportation.
Topics. This historical marker is
this page online
Location. 37° 10.421′ N, 105° 56.166′ W. Marker is in Manassa, Colorado, in Conejos County. It is on Main Street (State Highway 142) just west of South 4th Street, on the left when traveling west. The marker is beside the sidewalk in front of the Jack Dempsey Museum. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 412 Main Street, Manassa CO 81141, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in Colorado’s San Juan Mountains and in the San Luis Valley. It is also in the American Mountain West. 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 8 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: "The Manassa Mauler" (a few steps from this marker); Morman Pioneers (about 500 feet away, measured in a
Courtesy Ron Kessler
2. Marker detail: Many jacales built in the 1800s still stand along the road you are traveling today
Courtesy San Luis Museum
3. Marker detail: Juan Albino & Peresa Arguello
Juan Albino and Peresa Arguello moved to the San Luis Valley from New Mexico to raise a family. Like many settlers that traveled through the valley, they would stay in jacales along the way.
Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, July 12, 2025
4. The First Bed and Breakfasts Marker
Looking south from Main Street. The Jack Dempsey Museum is in the background.
Credits. This page was last revised on January 18, 2026. It was originally submitted on January 15, 2026, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida. This page has been viewed 51 times since then. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4. submitted on January 18, 2026, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.
