Finding History in Portales Photos
by Sandy Vigil
In December 2017, the Portales MainStreet Program received old photos from a previous Director, Greg and Pat Erf. As someone not raised in the area, I looked at these photos and wondered who they were and their story. After a few weeks, I decided to take the task of scanning and cropping the 30 plus photos and post them online.
Uncertainty was my first feeling. So often history dies out with the passing of generations. And let’s be honest, how many families display their heritage and genealogy on the wall anymore? Few under the age of 60.
So I did what any millennial would do, (yes according to Wikipedia I am a millennial) I took my quest to Facebook. Pictures were upload to Portales MainStreet’s page, the Forgotten New Mexico page, and the local reminiscing page of Old Portales Memories. To say Portales MainStreet “broke” the internet is exaggerating, but to have my notifications surpass 60 in a few short hours is quite a feat! As of the next morning the virtual photo album reached over 1,000 people.
I should’ve had more faith in our region’s love for history. Many posted that these photos held the image of their family or a former employer.
Not all the photos are identified but that’s not stopping us from finding their homes. As a national MainStreet program preservation of history is at the fore-front of our mission. At times it’s looked over with the mundane day-to-day activities. This project reminds our organization of where Portales came from. It is our goal to share this history with Portales and we uncover it. Stay tuned to see who these individual were and the difference they made in our community.
Editors Note: We just included a few of the photos here, to view all the photographs click on Portales Mainstreet This is an amazing find and we can’t wait to hear of the many connections to the past that will be made through Portales Mainstreet’s project.
