ST. AUGUSTINE / ISLETA PUEBLO 2023

On this Saturday self-drive tour we meet at 10:00 at St. Augustine in Isleta, just south of Albuquerque. The church was built around 1710 on the ruins of a previous church destroyed during the Pueblo Revolt, and in recent history it was remodeled and restored in 1910-1923, 1959-1960, and 2008-2013. Our visit is guided by Alan Cherino, St. Augustine’s Coordinator of Historic Preservation and Facilities.

We then drive ten minutes north to Pajarito in Albuquerque’s South Valley, where we visit the Gutiérrez-Hubbell House. The house, built in 1860, has been used variously as a private residence, a mercantile, a trading post, a stagecoach stop, and a post office. Site manager David Ottaviano guides our visit.

Lunch (please bring your own meal) is on the portales of the Gutiérrez-Hubbell House or at shaded picnic tables on the grounds. The house is surrounded by ten acres of cultivated farmland with trails, providing the opportunity for a walk.

Following lunch Frank Graziano, author of Historic Churches of New Mexico Today, gives a short, illustrated talk on inculturation (adaptation of Catholicism to diverse world cultures) and syncretism (fusion of religious beliefs and practices) as these pertain to native communities in New Mexico. The tour concludes around 2:00.

At these links are brief histories of the church and the house.

Nearby sites and walks are here, here, and here.

If you’re hungry afterward: Abuelitas.