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- Tatum - on the way to . . .
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- Southeast New Mexico
- Lea County
- Tatum - on the way to . . .
Tatum - on the way to . . .
- By Phyllis Eileen Banks
- Published 12/30/2002
- Southeast New Mexico , Lea County
- Unrated
Phyllis Eileen Banks
Phyllis Eileen Banks is both writer and artist.Her articles have appeared in Southern New Mexico Magazine, FYI, Vision Magazine, Roswell Daily Record, New Mexico Magazine, Ranger Rick, Concern, Anchorage Daily News, and other periodicals. In addition, with Cynthia Smith she authored The Anchorage Fun Book.
Much of her experience has been as an editor.Her editorial experience includes The Alaska Presbyterian, The Alaska Heart, newsletter of the Alaska Heart Association, the book COCAHINIA (Consultation on Church and Human Need in Alaska), and Roaming Southern New Mexico.
"I have invisible antennae that 'vibrate' when something doesn't seem right.Of course editing someone else's work is easier than editing one's own," she says.
People stories, historical pieces, and travel writing are her favorites.She and her husband, Hal, moved to New Mexico from Alaska.
"New Mexico has some of the same mystic of Alaska – wide open spaces, different cultures.The transition was easy," says Eileen."It is truly The Land of Enchantment and no matter where you reside you carry it with you."
Phone:727-544-3713
View all articles by Phyllis Eileen Banks
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Tatum, population 768, elevation 3,986, was founded in 1909 by James G. Tatum when he filed on a homestead of 320 acres and opened a general store. There was no post office, so as a service to his customers he brought mail three times a week from Scott, another settlement, no longer in existence. Eventually Tatum was granted a post office, and Mattie G. Tatum was the first postmistress.
A school was financed with box socials and neighborhood dances. Eventually the Lea County oil boom reached the town in the 1940s and brought some prosperity. Agriculture is still the town's mainstay, although some active oil wells still exist in the area surrou
Rodeos are popular entertainment, and there are two parks, a community building, and a library. The Senior Citizen Center provides a meeting place for the town residents. A local ironworker makes silhouetted scenes in black wrought-iron for street signs, businesses and mailboxes. They are attention-getting because of their individuality.
For those who like the slow-paced living of a small town, where getting together with neighbors for potlucks or coffee is a favorite pastime, Tatum bears investigating.
Obviously Crossroads would or should be at a crossroads. It is - at the intersection of NM Highways 206 and 508, 18 miles north of Tatum. There are conflicting reports as to the date the post office was established. One source indicates it was 1923, and the other 1925. It is a ranching community, and a widow, Lora Miller, homesteaded in this area. She applied for a post office under the name of Cross Roads, reportedly in 1925. Evidently the postal service did not like two-word names so Crossroads was the name assigned to it. In 1980, a couple, Mr. and Mrs. John Wolf, started the Wolf Wagon Works. They built or restored horse-drawn carriages, wagons and even stagecoaches. A small white church is on the south side of the crossroads across from a service station, the center of the settlement.