Archive for the ‘History / Santa Fe Style’ Category

The story of renovation in Santa Fe is the story of the systematic removal of most of the city’s historic architectural heritage and has always been a subject of intense discussion and controversy.  Many of Santa Fe’s most prominent buildings in the historic district have been renovated into what is loosely called Santa Fe style…. [more]

Keep Reading ⇒

Imagine if you lived in Santa Fe before the horseless buggy and before the arrival of the first railroad cars.  A few thousand residents and scattered houses along the Santa Fe river valley and the plaza teamed with the tired oxen who carried the wagons along the Santa Fe Trail.  A system of acequias, or… [more]

Keep Reading ⇒

Before Santa Fe was a “style” the local people were building their homes with the materials they had available to them in response to the climate and environment in which they lived.  They werebuilding for the lifestyle they were leading, which to a large degree was subsistence and survival. The mud walls, viga ceilings and dirt… [more]

Keep Reading ⇒

The woodworkers of New Mexico have always been at the forefront of creating the details of SantaFe Style. When Onate came to settle New Mexico in 1598 with his entourage of hundreds only a handful were listed as carpenters or carpinteros. These men likely were trained in the well established guild system of Mexico and… [more]

Keep Reading ⇒

There are numerous influences for our Northern New Mexico sense of design which can be found in the idioms of the early mission churches, the Indian pueblos and rural dwellings, the Anasazi ruins, and the household articles crafted by the early settlers and Native Americans during the 17th and 18th century. From the Anasazi ruins… [more]

Keep Reading ⇒

The architecture of Taos Pueblo is undoubtably one of the primary sources of inspiration for whatis now known as Santa Fe Style. The main part of the present Taos Pueblo buildings were mostlikely constructed between 1000 and 1450 A.D. They appeared much as they do today when thefirst Spanish explorers arrived in Northern New Mexico… [more]

Keep Reading ⇒

Even before Santa Fe was a “style” the local people were building “cute little adobe homes” using available materials and in response to the environment. Theywere building for the lifestyle they were leading ,which to a large degree wassubsistence and survival. The mud walls, viga ceilings and dirt roofs wereunpretentious and in keeping with the… [more]

Keep Reading ⇒

SEPTEMBER 2007 VOLUME 11, ISSUE 6 by Kurt Faust There are numerous influences for our northern New Mexico sense of design which can be found in the idioms of the early mission churches, the Indian pueblos and rural dwellings, the Anasazi ruins, and the household articles crafted by the early settlers and Native Americans during… [more]

Keep Reading ⇒

Some people just assume that “Santa Fe style” is part of a natural progressionof the buildings that were always being built here and that the style graduallybecame popular. However, it had its beginnings when the railroad bypassedSanta Fe to the south through Lamy. As an effort to encourage tourism, cityofficials began to promote the idea… [more]

Keep Reading ⇒

I came across an interesting list from the  Annual Builder Practices Surveyproduced by the National Association of Homebuilders Research Center. It is alist of the most common building practices in America: 80 percent of all exterior walls are 2×4 construction. 50 percent are only 8 feethigh. 72 percent of all interior walls are 2×4 construction…. [more]

Keep Reading ⇒