Bonito City - New Mexico Ghost Town

BONITO CITY

NAME: Bonito City
COUNTY: Lincoln
ROADS: 2WD
GRID #(see map): 5
CLIMATE: Mild winter, warm summer
BEST TIME TO VISIT:Spring, winter, fall

COMMENTS: Under Water
REMAINS: Under Water

Now under seventy-five feet of water below Bonito Canyon dam, the town is best remembered for the multiple murder committed by the town's constable, a Martin Nelson. Labeled as one of the worst crimes in New Mexico history, the constable went berserk, entered the Mayberry Hotel and shot and killed seven people including four members of the Mayberry family. The next morning, the constable was discovered by a posse and was shot and killed. Although Bonito City survived until the early twentieth century, its end came when the Southern Pacific Railroad chose Bonito Canyon as the most likely location to build a dam to fulfill its need for a water supply. Courtesy Henry Chenoweth.	Bonita Lake (site) Courtesy Kurt Wenner

Now under seventy-five feet of water below Bonito Canyon dam, the town is best remembered for the multiple murder committed by the town's constable, a Martin Nelson. Labeled as one of the worst crimes in New Mexico history, the constable went berserk, entered the Mayberry Hotel and shot and killed seven people including four members of the Mayberry family. The next morning, the constable was discovered by a posse and was shot and killed. Although Bonito City survived until the early twentieth century, its end came when the Southern Pacific Railroad chose Bonito Canyon as the most likely location to build a dam to fulfill its need for a water supply. Courtesy Henry Chenoweth.

Bonita Lake (site)
Courtesy Kurt Wenner

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