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5 DOWNTOWN TO OLD TOWN: FOLLOW THE BRASS

BOUNDARIES: Civic Plaza, Old Town Plaza

DISTANCE: 1.75 miles one way

DIFFICULTY: Easy

PARKING: Civic Plaza Parking Garage (Marquette Ave. west of 3rd St.); metered parking along Tijeras Ave. and 5th St.

PUBLIC TRANSIT: Bus 30 stops on the east side of Civic Plaza; bus 92 stops on the north side. Rail Runner Downtown Station is four blocks southeast of Civic Plaza.

In 1706 New Mexico Governor Francisco Cuervo y Valdes founded the Villa de Albuquerque on the site of what is now known as Old Town. Fast-forward to 1880: the railroad arrived about 2 miles east, encouraging commercial and residential development along its north–south tracks. The new town was called New Town and later New Albuquerque and was platted in a grid format—a pattern that sharply deviated from the plaza-oriented layout that was common to this Spanish Colonial region. Despite portents of the old-fashioned villa’s imminent demise, the two towns maintained a tenuous connection via a streetcar system and a powerful political district known as the Fourth Ward. So the villa persisted, although not without a struggle, and in 1949 the city annexed Old Town without overwhelming its original character. This walk examines their remaining differences and the prominent neighborhood that developed to fill the space between them. The route mostly follows Albuquerque’s official “Plaza to Plaza Tour,” a trail marked with brass plaques embedded in the sidewalks. The corresponding brochure is recommended for supplemental coverage of sites along the way. It’s available at visitor information centers located on both plazas.

 Start anywhere in the Harry E. Kinney Civic Plaza. A statue of the former two-term mayor (striking a Captain Morgan pose) stands on the far northeast corner near Marquette Ave. and 3rd St. The plaza is big enough to accommodate 20,000 revelers during special events, typically on weekend evenings throughout summer. Prior to 1938 the original alignment of Route 66 ran through this space on its course between Santa Fe and Los Lunas. A later east–west alignment followed what is now Central Ave., two blocks south of the plaza. The intersection of 4th and Central (two blocks south) is the only place in America where historical alignments of Route 66 cross.On the south side of the plaza, a wrought iron column lit from within depicts 78 silhouettes ascending a smokestack. Five stone pillars surrounding it provide Holocaust memorial information. South of the sculpture, the Albuquerque Plaza building (aka the Bank of Albuquerque Tower) and its mini-me counterpart, the Hyatt Regency (aka Albuquerque Plaza II) are the two tallest buildings in town. Both were completed in 1990 on the site of what was a century earlier the heart of the red-light district. Built in the postmodern style, the pyramid-topped pair are the most recognizable features in the otherwise clunky skyline. Many of the larger structures nearby can be attributed to a decades-long infatuation with International-style architecture. Both Civic Plaza and the monstrous Convention Center on its east side were conceived in the height of the affliction and completed in 1972—more than 260 years after the plaza at the other end of this walk. At the time of this writing, the Civic Center was in the midst of an extensive and long-overdue makeover, 4th St. was reestablished between Marquette and Central, and plans were announced for additional renovations to the plaza.Opposite the Civic Center, the mismatched trio of buildings is the City/County Complex, which includes the mayor’s office and nearly 100 works from the Public Art Program collection. The old city hall building fronting Marquette Ave. appears to be the dullest on the block, but take a closer look at the polished limestone slabs facing the walkway and you’ll find a variety of fossils, including clams and snails. Sea lilies (crinoids) are the easiest to spot. The limestone came from travertine quarries located approximately 40 miles southwest of Albuquerque.

 Walk west to the southwest corner of Marquette Ave. and 5th St., keeping an eye out for route markers. A mule cart indicates the direction to Old Town Plaza, and a locomotive to Civic Plaza. The pair of 14-foot Indians standing on the southwest corner is a masterpiece by Apache artist Allan Houser (1914–1994). Behind it is the 15-story Bank of the West, formerly the Albuquerque Petroleum Building. Dark red stone in the columns, walkways, benches, and entry is Carnelian granite from South Dakota, and the lighter stone is Radiant Red granite from Texas. The granites date back about 2.6 billion and 1.1 billion years, respectively.

 Turn north and cross Marquette Ave. The Compass Bank building on the northwest corner houses New Mexico’s only Secret Service field office. Continue north, following the scent of fresh pastries, courtesy of Roma Bakery and Deli, ahead at the northwest corner of 5th and Roma. Directly across the street, narrow windows resembling embrasures are a security feature in the fortresslike Regional Correctional Center.

 Turn west on Roma. A block ahead, Lew Wallace Elementary School stands on the west side of 6th St. While serving as governor of the New Mexico Territory from 1878 to 1881, Wallace also found time to finish his novel, Ben-Hur. The school building, completed in 1934, is Louis Hesselden’s first project as Albuquerque Public Schools architect. Hesselden later designed Highland High School and the Nob Hill Shopping Center (Walk 26).Just ahead on the northwest corner at 7th St. is the Brittania & W. E. Mauger Estate B&B Inn, a classic example of Queen Anne–style architecture. Maude Talbot ordered the construction of the brick house in 1897 for $1,600 on land she’d inherited from her father, W. E. Talbot, proprietor of the Montezuma Saloon on 2nd St. The popular saloon was the first in business in Albuquerque with electric lights. Likewise, Maude’s house was outfitted with push-button switches. After an unhappy marriage, however, she left the house and returned to New York. In 1907 her mother sold the house to W. E. Mauger for $4,350. Mauger came to Albuquerque from Boston in the hopes that the sunny, dry climate would clear up his tuberculosis. He opened a hardware store on 1st St., amassed a small fortune in the wool trade, and died in 1923. His wife, Brittania, followed in 1970 at the age of 102. The Estate has since undergone a major restoration. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1985 and became a B&B in 1987.A block ahead, 8th St. delineates the east boundary of the Fourth Ward District, one of the city’s 14 historic districts listed on the National Register. The 1901 Albuquerque City Directory suggests that the Fourth Ward was a mix of middle class employers and laborers. However, it’s better remembered today as the elite district during the railroad era. Only a few of the most opulent homes are intact today.

Trumbull-Hesselden House

 Cross Luna Blvd. and turn south, deviating slightly from the official tour to see the best example of Prairie School–style architecture in Albuquerque. Located on the west corner of Marquette Ave. and 10th St., the Berthold Spitz House was named for one of the many German Jewish merchants who contributed to the early economic development of New Albuquerque.

 Turn west on Marquette Ave. and go one block to 11th St., also known as Judges’ Row. Before turning up that street, note the neon sign on the historic El Portal Apartments on the southeast corner. The U-shaped single-story building has a courtyard, ten units, and seldom a vacancy.

 Turn north and head back toward Roma Ave. The house at 415 11th St. was home to John Simms when he served as a Justice for the New Mexico Supreme Court from 1929 to 1930. His sons John F. Simms Jr. and Albert G. Simms would later serve respectively as governor of New Mexico and a U.S. congressman.

 Turn west on Roma Ave. to rejoin the official route. The Tudor Revival home on the northwest corner of Roma and 11th was designed by Kate Nichols Chaves and completed in 1909. Daughter of architect Nicholas Nichols, she lived here with her husband, Amado Chaves, until her sudden death in the home in 1914.At 1211 Roma, the Trumbull-Hesselden House has the distinction of being one of Albuquerque’s few stone houses and possibly its first duplex. The mansard roof is another unique feature in this region known for flat rooftops, though at the time of its completion in 1882, not another structure stood near it. Its first owner, Walter Trumbull, died in 1891, and the house served for the next 11 years as the Goss Military Institute. The 1896 city directory mentions that the institute “furnishes for boys and young men, a training in military tactics as well as a mental training.” Wallace Hesselden bought the duplex in 1902, using half for immediate family and the other half for other relatives.

 Veer northwest just past 13th St. for a quick stroll through Mary Fox Park.

 Turn north on 14th St. and enjoy this quiet stretch of cottages and bungalows before leaving the Fourth Ward.

 Turn west on Lomas. The sudden increase in traffic and nearby businesses—a smoke shop and a pawn shop—contributes to a dramatic shift in atmosphere. Gertrude Zachary Jewelry Etc., the indigo-tiled structure ahead, is hard to ignore (as is her castle in Walk 3). Pick up the scent of Monroe’s Mexican Food and follow it down to its classic neon sign shaped like a heart and arrow. Customers have loved this restaurant since it opened in 1962 as a small drive-in.

 At the Manzano Day School, you might find it easier to use the crosswalk here to reach the north side of Lomas, then rejoin the marked route a quarter mile later at the west corner of Central and San Felipe. Or you can stay on course and negotiate the traffic at the Y-junction of Lomas and Central. The landscaped archipelago of traffic islands there, known as the Phil Chacon Transit-Pedestrianway, is maintained by the city’s Park Management Division. On September 10, 1980, Albuquerque police officer Phil Chacon was volunteering at a shelter for battered women when two children who lived at the shelter alerted him to a robbery at the nearby Kinney shoe store. Unarmed and in civilian clothing, the off-duty officer chased a hooded bandit to a doughnut shop, where the suspect turned and gunned down Chacon. The murder remains unsolved. A city park and a police substation have also been named in his honor.

 Turn north on San Felipe St. The salmon-pink American Foursquare on the east side of the street is the Bottger Mansion. Completed in 1912, this Old Town home is relatively new. Charles Bottger demolished a 19th-century governor’s mansion to make way for what would eventually become the bed-and-breakfast inn you see today.The portal-shaded walkways so characteristic of Old Town begin at the American International Rattlesnake Museum. You can earn a certificate of bravery just for going inside. Continue north to the intersection with S. Plaza St., where Old Town Plaza is in full view. Finish the walk at the gazebo and take a moment to rest in this arboreal oasis.

POINTS OF INTEREST

Roma Bakery and Deli romabakeryanddeli.com, 501 Roma Ave. NW, 505-843-9418

Mauger Estate B&B Inn maugerbb.com, 701 Roma Ave. NW, 800-719-9189

Gertrude Zachary Jewelry Etc. gertrudezachary.com, 1501 Lomas Blvd. NW, 505-247-4442

Monroe’s Mexican Food monroeschile.com, 1520 Lomas Blvd. NW, 505-242-1111

Bottger Mansion of Old Town bottger.com, 110 San Felipe St. NW, 505-243-3639

American International Rattlesnake Museum rattlesnakes.com, 202 San Felipe St. NW, 505-242-6569

ROUTE SUMMARY

1 Start at Civic Plaza. Walk to the southwest corner of Marquette Ave. and 5th St.

2 Turn north and go to the northeast corner of 5th St. and Roma Ave.

3 Turn west and go to the northwest corner of Roma Ave. and Luna Blvd.

4 Turn south and go to Marquette Ave.

5 Turn west and go to 11th St.

6 Turn north and return to Roma Ave.

7 Turn west and go to Mary Fox Park.

8 Walk northwest through the park to 14th St.

9 Turn north and go to Lomas Blvd.

10 Turn west on Lomas Blvd. and go to the west corner of Central Ave. and San Felipe St.

11 Turn north and go to Old Town Plaza.

CONNECTING THE WALKS

Walk 1 crosses 4th St. 1.5 blocks south of Civic Plaza. Walk 6 begins on the west side of Old Town Plaza. You can return to Civic Plaza via Walk 7, which begins nearby on the west corner of 19th St. and Mountain Rd.