Ranchos de Taos Plaza
Ranchos de Taos Plaza is a historic district in Ranchos de Taos, New Mexico, about four miles south of the town of Taos, New Mexico. There are 21 buildings over 84 acres in the historic district, including the San Francisco de Assisi Mission Church, a U.S. National Historic Landmark. Overview Before Spanish colonialists settled in the Taos area in 1716, the area was home to Taos Native Americans who ranched and farmed in the area. There was a Spanish settlement in the Ranchos de Taos area by 1742 and there may have been residents of the Taos Pueblo who had farmed in the fertile area before that, in which case they sought the shelter of the Taos Pueblo during attacks by Comanche tribes. The plaza is the original location of the village of Ranchos de Taos, built in the late 1770s. In 1776, Francisco Atanasio Domínguez wrote that "the settlement consists of scattered ranchos, and their owners are the citizens who live in the pueblo." At that time, Ranchos de Taos was the largest Spanish settlement in the Taos Valley. It is believed the fortified plaza was built by 1780 when Juan Agustin de Morfi wrote that "the settlement forms