Trail Dust: Priest revitalized Tomé, 'ensured' victory for Union

On Nov. 10, 1856, six graduates from the French seminary of Mont-Ferrand arrived in Santa Fe to be welcomed by New Mexico's first bishop, Jean Baptiste Lamy. They had come at his request to help meet the shortage of priests and teachers. A month later, the seminarians were ordained in final orders by Lamy within Santa Fe's old parochial church. Then they were sent to various posts around the territory. Surely, the most notable of the lot, as measured by his term of service and contribution to his assigned community, was Jean Baptiste Ralliere. He drew the old colonial town of Tomé, on the east bank of the Rio Grande between Los Lunas and Belen. The town dated from the mid-18th century and took the name from Tomé Domínguez de Mendoza, owner of a nearby estancia and one of the wealthiest colonial settlers prior to the 1680 Pueblo Revolt. The original town had comprised a plaza, church and few houses, since most of the people lived and worked on the surrounding farms. Close on the east and standing alone in the river valley was the Cerro de Tomé, a low, rounded hill whose summit has today become a major pilgrimage site in the Rio Abajo...more