Solano can be found in northeastern New Mexico on NM Hwy 39, 10 miles south
of Roy and 9 miles north of
Mosquero. This
town is at an elevation of 5628 feet (1715 meters). It was between Mosquero and Roy on the
Southern
Pacific Railroad. Its post office was established in 1907.
Solano Post Office
The town was named for a local
mail carrier,
Cipriano Solano.
In 1907, F.M. Hughes built a house and store at the
present site of Solano. The economy was based on the railroad
which went from Dawson near Raton, NM to Tucumcari, NM. The station was
named "Solana". Solano had over 500 residents at on time and was the
largest town in Harding County for a while. There
were 4 stores, 4 saloons, several restraunts, 1 dry goods store and
Millinery store, 2 blacksmith shops, 2 lumber yards, 2 hotels, a train
depot, 1 newspaper - the Solano Herald. In 1950, the Dawson
mines closed and so did the town. The
closing of the mines in Dawson caused the railroad to stop service to
Solano. Dry weather and the lack of jobs also led to
the decline of the town. A dry-ice plant kept the town alive until
it closed in the early 1980's. Today, there are only a few people
who live in the town. The Wagon Mound Ranch Supply
store inside the old gym, a church, the post
office and a few
houses are all that remain.
Solano Side Street
Fire
Department
The Solano Schoolhouse is almost destroyed now.
Someone bought it in the 1990's and started dismantling it to salvage
the bricks. He sold the property before he had completed the task.
However, the building is now unsafe to enter. It can still be seen
by visitors but exploration is discouraged by the new owner, Bob Bachen
of Wagon Mound Ranch Supply.
Solano High School had a basketball team called the
Solano Eagles.
Woody
Hutchison who later played professional basketball in California
played on the Solano team. The team only existed for about 15
years. For more information about the Solano Eagles, see Steve
Flores book "Ghost Town
Basketball".
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