Encyclopedia
Deming is a city in Luna County,
New Mexico,
United States. The population was 14,116 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Luna County.
Interesting Facts and Trivia
Deming is the birthplace of songwriter Nacio Herb Brown.
Deming is the home of Clean Water and Fast Ducks! Here they host the annual Duck Races.
The Spanish Disco, one of the few remaining discotheques in the state, is clearly visible as one drives through the town. The building displays a large sign, "Spanish Disco Dancing", advertising dancing on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays. It is a source of humor for both Deming residents and travellers passing by. The building has been abandoned for some time.
Deming is named after Mary Ann Deming Crocker, wife of Charles Crocker, one of the "Big Four" of the railroad industry. The Silver Spike was driven here in 1881 to commemorate the meeting of the Southern Pacific with the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe railroads. This was the second complete transcontinental railroad meeting in the United States.
Geography
Deming is located at .
According to the
United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 24.2 kmē . 24.2 kmē of it is land and none of the area is covered with water.
Deming is in the Basin and Range Province, which covers much of southwest United States and Northern Mexico. The land around Deming is appears quite flat, but numerous nearby mountain ranges make the view senic in all directions. Although the land appears flat, there are wide rubble aprons around the nearby mountains and imperceptable grades in various directions. The Mimbres river is an exotic river that floods the Deming area once a decade or so, in periods of unusually heavy rainfall in the Cook Range and Black Range mountains to the north. Deming and the surrounding area is underlain by an aquifer of very pure water. The aquifer is slowly recharged primarily by water from the mountains to the north.
Climate
Deming is located within the Upper Chihuahuan Desert climate zone. The climate is dry, hot, and breezy. Winters are mild, with occasional snow that usually melts within a day or two. Summer temperatures often exceed 100 F., but the high altitude and dry air make summer days more comfortable than one would expect given the high temperature. Most precipitation occurs as thunderstorms and showers during the July-August 'monsoon' period. Minor flooding sometimes occurs over large areas of flat ground. There are periods lasting from 5 to 20 years of relatively wet or dry years. Springtime is often windy, and during dry years dust storms can be severe--sometimes lasting for days. Snow is likely to fall in winter, but usually melts in a day or two. Temperatures in winter are sometimes below freezing at night, but winter days are generally mild and sunny.
Flora and Fauna
There are numerous species of wildflowers and weedy plants that grow naturally depending on rainfall, but the natural landscape is dominated by creosote bush, mesquite, and soap yucca. Numerous species of cactus are common on and around the many small mountain ranges.
Jack rabbits and cotton-tail rabbits are common, as are kangaroo rats and other small rodents. With such abundant, easy-to-spot small animal prey, hawks and buzzards are often flying overhead. Coyotes can often be heard at night. Porcupines and skunks are common. Songbirds, sparrows, jays, crows, and roadrunners are abundant. Rattlesnakes, bullsnakes, and several other snake species are to be found. Deer, bear, sheep, and even parrots can be found in some of the nearby mountains.
Demographics
As of the
census of 2000, there were 14,116 people, 5,267 households, and 3,628 families residing in the city. The
population density was 583.5/kmē . There were 6,192 housing units at an average density of 256.0/kmē . The racial makeup of the city was 69.66%
White, 1.23%
African American, 1.37% Native American, 0.48% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 24.19% from
other races, and 3.07% from two or more races. 64.58% of the population were
Hispanic or Latino of any race. There were 5,267 households out of which 34.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.0% were married couples living together, 15.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.1% were non-families. 27.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 15.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.63 and the average family size was 3.23.
In the city the population was spread out with 30.9% under the age of 18, 8.2% from 18 to 24, 23.1% from 25 to 44, 19.3% from 45 to 64, and 18.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 89.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.9 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $20,081, and the median income for a family was $23,030. Males had a median income of $25,379 versus $16,462 for females. The per capita income for the city was $10,943. About 28.5% of families and 32.9% of the population were below the
poverty line, including 47.4% of those under age 18 and 16.6% of those age 65 or over.
Economy
Deming's economy is based on transportation, real estate, agriculture, energy, retirement, tourism, and the Department of Homeland Security.
Deming is the only major stop on Interstate 10 between Lordsburg and Las Cruces . Deming is also the closest major town to Silver City and provides access to Mexico via
Columbus, New Mexico . Deming also sits astride the major railroad line linking the East and West coasts.
In the 1970s, people realized that in many ways, Luna County was an excellent retirement location. The climate is warm and dry. Land is plentiful, cheap, and easy to develop. Underground water is abundant, shallow, pure, and ubiquitous. Rules for development were lax and money talked loudly. Properties were subdivided into lots with access primarily by dirt roads easily bulldozed though flat desert. These lots were sold primary to people on the East coast. Since the 1970's, the value of these properties has increased and people have built homes. The econmic value is a plus for Deming, although some would argue that the added cost of fire, police, road maintenance, etc. makes the net economic value marginal overall.
Farming became a mainstay of the Deming economy when the centrifugal pump and rural electrification became realities in the 1940s. Much of the flat land around Deming is highly fertile with abundant ground water at shallow depth. The growing season is long and sunny. Staple crops such and cotton, sorgam, and alfalfa have been partly replaced by wine grapes and pecan orchards since the 1970s. Ranching is also fairly extensive in Luna County.
Skeleton Closet
There are numerous old Native American Indian sites around Deming. The native people, who either visited seasonally or lived near Deming semi-permanently in wet periods, built no large structures. The native sites are not obvious to the casual observer. However, the so-called Mimbres and Casas Grandes cultures made pottery of remarkable quality, and the Deming area is rich in native pottery artifacts...as well as beads, stone implements, stone carvings, graves, etc. Unfortunately, there were not many living Native Americans nearby to protect these ancient artifacts. In the 1960's and 70's, many sites were literally bulldozed to reveal valuable pottery and other artifacts...which were sold to private collectors. Laws against these deplorable practices were passed, but the damage had been done. The Deming area, whose dry desert did so much to preserve ancient Native American sites, is now an archeological desert.
Footnotes
See also
Transcontinental railroad
External links
