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Contact: Valerie Duran, 505-425-8025
"Taos Revolt of 1847: The Murder of Governor Bent" Las Vegas, NM: "Taos Revolt of 1847: The Murder of Governor Bent" will be featured on Thursday, September 20, 2012, at 7:00PMat the CCHP/Santa Fe Trail Interpretive Center, 116 Bridge Street, Las Vegas, NM. The valleys and mountains of New Mexico thundered with sounds of cannon fire during the Mexican American War of 1846. The towns of Mora and Taos were in an uproar over the fluctuating ideas of nationality, land ownership, and political boundaries. Charles Bent, born in West Virginia in 1799, moved out west seeking fame and adventure. Establishing relations with French businessman Ceran St. Vrain and his younger brother William in Colorado, these men would create the trade empire along the Santa Fe Trail known as Bent's Fort. Serving as the first territorial governor of New Mexico during the Mexican American War, Bent would come to know, as author Michael McNierney wrote, that "the seeds of rebellion run far deeper than the cordial relations of familiarity." George Ortega was born in 1962 in Fairview, New Mexico and was raised on a ranch in the Espanola Valley. He graduated from Los Alamos High School in 1980 and shortly after joined the USA Army Engineer Corps. Mr. Ortega served as a Combat Engineer from 1980 through 1997. During his 17 year career he traveled throughout Europe, Korea, and the United States. It was through his travels and experiences in the military that inspired him to delve into history. Mr. Ortega retired in 2002 and was eager to research New Mexico history and the cultural resources of the Taos area. He has served as the docent at the Governor Bent House and Museum in Taos for the last ten years. |
Last updated: February 24, 2015