San Patricio, New Mexico

San Patricio, Lincoln County, is about 20 miles east of Ruidoso. When Ramon Olguin and others settled here in the 1870's they called their community Ruidoso for the Rio Ruidoso on which it's located.

But when the local Catholic Church was built around 1875 and named La Iglesia de San Patricio, the community's name was changed to reflect that of the Church which was built by an Irish priest whose patron was St. Patrick.

Today (1999) it's a quiet ranching community with a growing artist colony, but it once was the site of raids during the Lincoln County Wars. Billy the Kid visited San Patricio often--in fact, rode a horse from San Patricio following his escape from the Lincoln County jail.