New Mexico Ghost Towns

County: Santa Fe 

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Year Established: Approx 1920, although records date back to 1892

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Year Abandoned: 1954 when the mines closed in Madrid

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Location: Waldo Canyon Road (County Road 57)  8.3 miles long, running north-south from CanAm Highway to NM-14. From Cerrillos, drive north across the train tracks, turn left, and drive over the Devil's Throne. Waldo is just under two miles from Cerrillos. 

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About: Waldo, established as a railroad siding in 1883, has a rich history rooted in the expansion of the railway. The town was named after Henry L. Waldo, a New Mexico territorial jurist. By 1892, a spur line connected Waldo station to the coal mining town of Madrid, its importance in the region.

 

Over the years, 15 coke ovens were constructed along the track, contributing to the local industry. In the early 1900s, Waldo thrived with a school, hotel, and post office, showcasing its vibrant community life. The principal industries were the ovens which were built by the Colorado Fuel and Iron Company and produced coke for smelting and the water wells that supplied Madrid with 150,000 gallons of water a day. By 1906 the mines at Waldo Gulch were closed but the town continued to exist. 

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Waldo, once a vibrant town, experienced a dramatic shift in October 1916 when a corporation acquired it and established a Zink plant. This ownership lasted until 1937, when R.D. Smith purchased the town and dedicated the next five years to dismantling it, selling the remnants as scrap. Today, all that remains of Waldo are a few structures and the old coke ovens, along with a cement slab that serves as a reminder of its past.

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Waldo experienced a significant decline in its population by the 1950s, leading to the eventual closure of the office in the 1970s. By 1997, the town was officially deemed abandoned, marking the end of its story as a once-thriving community.

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​​​Remains: Not much remains, rows of coke ovens and the occasional run in with cattle

 

Summary of our visit:  

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