The City of Deming | ||
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City | ||
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Motto: "An Enterprise Community" | ||
Location of Deming in New Mexico |
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Location in the United States | ||
Coordinates: 32°15′40″N 107°45′21″W / 32.26111°N 107.75583°WCoordinates: 32°15′40″N 107°45′21″W / 32.26111°N 107.75583°W | ||
Country | United States | |
State | New Mexico | |
County | Luna | |
Founded | 1881 | |
Government | ||
• Type | City Council | |
• Mayor | Benny Jasso | |
Area | ||
• Total | 9.3 sq mi (24.2 km2) | |
• Land | 9.3 sq mi (24.2 km2) | |
• Water | 0.0 sq mi (0.0 km2) | |
Elevation | 4,335 ft (1,321 m) | |
Population (2000) | ||
• Total | 14,116 | |
• Density | 1,512.0/sq mi (583.5/km2) | |
Time zone | MST (UTC-7) | |
• Summer (DST) | MDT (UTC-6) | |
ZIP codes | 88030-88031 | |
Area code(s) | 575 | |
FIPS code | 35-20270 | |
GNIS feature ID | 0920584 | |
Website | http://www.cityofdeming.org/ |
Deming is a city in Luna County, New Mexico, United States, located 60 miles (97 km) west of Las Cruces and thirty-three miles north of the Mexican border. The population was 14,855 according to the 2010 census. Deming is the county seat and principal community of Luna County.
The city, founded in 1881 and incorporated in 1902, was an important port of entry on the US-Mexican border until the Gadsden Purchase of 1853. A nickname was given to the city at the time of its founding, "New Chicago." It was expected that with the surge of railroad usage, that the city would grow drastically and resemble Chicago, Illinois.
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 transcontinental railroad to be completed in the United States.
There are numerous ancient Native American sites around Deming. The 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. The artifacts have since then been deported to Mexico, where they are now on display at multiple museums.