"Established in 1851, San Luis is the oldest continuously inhabited town in Colorado. The district contains an important collection of buildings that includes the county courthouse, the convent and Church of Most Precious Blood, numerous residences, and the town’s commercial core. The district also includes the Vega, a common ground for animal grazing, and the San Luis People’s Ditch." (frorm (
visit link) )
NRHP form Plaza de San Luis de la Culebra may be found at (
visit link) .
"San Luis, the oldest town in Colorado, was established on April 5, 1851, with a present population of approximately 750. San Luis is predominately Hispanic, with strong ties to Spain's religious, cultural, and artistic traditions. Once a part of four Spanish land grants decreed by the King of Spain, the town's adobe architecture and classic Spanish town layout retain the texture of the historical and cultural influences which shaped the early communities of Southern Colorado. The surrounding area is mainly a farming and agriculture area.
San Luis has an exceptional tourist attraction, The Stations of the Cross Shrine. These sculptors are ¾ to life size bronze statues of the 15 stations of the cross with the resurrection being the 15th. The Shrine is located on a mesa (flat top mountain) in the center of San Luis where we have recreated our own Calvary. The Shrine of the Stations of the Cross was built as an act of faith and love by the parishioners of the Sangre de Cristo Parish in San Luis, Colorado. We want a place of prayer and solace open to members of all faiths and good will and hope that those visiting will find consolation and peace in your life.
The spiritual traditions evident in this Shrine reflected in the lives of the people of San Luis and the surrounding area have deep roots. The Hispanic first settlers of this area brought with them Spanish and Mexican traditions of communal ownership of land and water, a strong allegiance to their language and customs, and intense religious faith. We are proud to be their descendants, and we are committed to preserving our sacred heritage." (from (
visit link) )
"San Luis, the oldest town in Colorado, was established on April 5, 1851, with a present population of approximately 629. San Luis is predominately Hispanic, with strong ties to Spain’s religious, cultural and artistic traditions. Once a part of four Spanish land grants decreed by the King of Spain, the town’s adobe architecture and its classic Spanish town layout retain the texture of the historical and cultural influences which shaped the early communities of southern Colorado. The surrounding area is mainly a farming and agriculture area.
Hispanic settlers from the Taos Valley established several small villages along the Rio Culebra in the San Luis Valley and officially took possession of this portion of the Sangre de Cristo Land Grant on April 5, 1851. Settlers built a church in the central village of La Plaza Medio and dedicated it on the Feast of Saint Louis, June 21, 1851.The village was renamed San Luis de la Culebra in honor of its patron saint. San Luis remained part of the Territory of New Mexico until 1861 when the Territory of Colorado was established. Today, San Luis is the oldest continuously inhabited town in the state of Colorado."
"La Vega sits to the southeast of the oldest town in Colorado and is the only Mexican-Era land grant commons in the state. In 1863, villagers living in the Rio Culebra Basin allocated the commons 18 miles south to the New Mexico border. Today, 633 acres of La Vega remains and its fate rests in the hands of local descendants. A commission created in the ‘70s governs the commons, which is still a traditional, uncultivated wetlands used only for grazing cattle and horses for five months out of the year.
In the past, the big herds would go up to the mountains in the summer months. La Vega was a place to keep animals for easy access, like your horse that you ride up to the mountains to check your herd.”
Running through La Vega is water from Rito Seco Creek and Río Culebra. It meanders through the meadow’s high grass and eventually finds it way to The San Luis People’s Ditch, an original acequia. The gravity-fed irrigation system was built in 1852 and it was eventually awarded the first adjudicated water rights in Colorado nearly a quarter of a century before Colorado became a state. Within the next decade, 14 other acequias were developed in the Culebra Watershed. Today, over 240 families in the Culebra watershed use acequias to irrigate over 24,000 acres of privately owned pastures and croplands.
With a little help over the years from government agencies and the eventual return of younger San Luis generations with knowledge of a world beyond the Sangre de Cristo’s, La Vega and the acequias are still an integral part of the town’s heritage and its future plans." (from (
visit link) )
The plaque reads:
[map of La Vega]
Plaza de San Luis de la Culebra
The Original Ordinance of the Town of San Luis
May 11, 1863
All the inhabitants shall have use of pasture, wood, water, and timber and the mills that have been erected shall remain where they are, not interfering with the rights of others. No stock shall be allowed in said lands, except for household purposes. All those who come as settlers shall abide by the rules and regulations and shall keep as good citizens and be provided with the necessary weapons for the defense of the settlement.
Carlos Beaubien
Administrator of the Sangre de Cristo Grant
Town Rules for the Town of San Luis, May 11, 1863
As follows:
1. The town shall be kept as clean as possible and the scattering of trash shall be prohibited.
2. Drunkenness will be prohibited in the presence of women and children.
3. No non-resident shall be allowed to settle in the town of San Luis, before having appeared before the judge and having been approved by said official.
4. It is prohibited to block the roads leading into town.
5. Any person wishing to buy a lot in the town of San Luis shall appear before the judge and after having qualified as a good citizen shall pay the price of the lot. Said price of the lot shall be turned over to the church for its benefit and use.