Rainy weather adds to authenticity of Ft. Seldon's Frontier Days

Bagpipers in full regalia wailed plaintive tunes amidst ruins in the foggy mountains Saturday. The scene seemed like a Scottish "Brigadoon" fantasy come alive. But the ruins are weathered adobe bricks and the uniforms of soldiers and clothing of their wives and children reflect New Mexico styles in the late 1800s at the 24th annual Fort Selden State Monument Frontier Days, continuing from 8:30 a.m. to noon today. Rain led to cancellation of some of the first-day events, but as fate would have it, the cloudbursts and steady drizzle seemed to lend more authenticity to the proceedings. "Territory of the Time, Celebrating New Mexico's Centennial" is the theme for this year's Frontier Days. The fort actually was decommissioned a few decades before New Mexico became a state. Built in 1865, the fort housed units of the U.S. Infantry and Cavalry, whose mission was to protect settlers and travelers in the Mesilla Valley from criminals and Apache Indians. The fort was home to units of the famed Buffalo Soldiers and Gen. Douglas MacArthur lived there as a boy when his father was post commander in the late 1880s. The fort was decommissioned and abandoned in 1891. It was opened to the public as a state monument in 1974. Frontier Days bring the 1800s back to life with talks, demonstrations and period military re-enactors, a military encampment with infantry cavalry horsemanship and artillery demonstrations. Today's events will include a talk about a typical "lady's day" at the fort, along with demonstrations, kids' period games, and, weather permitting, cannon artillery and re-enactors' infantry drills...more