Abandoned Record
About Watrous
Watrous is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Mora County, New Mexico, United States. Its population was 99 as of the 2020 census, down from 135 in 2010.
This is a site record: what public sources say about Watrous, gathered in one place. We haven't written a full guide yet, so history, current access and photos are still to come. Treat the status as unknown until a guide confirms it.
Map
Where Watrous is
Historic maps
6 historic USGS maps cover Watrous
Topographic sheets from the USGS Historical Topographic Map Collection (public domain), oldest first. Older sheets often show the camp, mines and roads while the place was alive. The downloads are large map scans; USGS topoView shows them in the browser.
- 1892 Watrous sheet, 1:125,000 · GeoTIFF download
- 1894 Watrous sheet, 1:125,000 · GeoTIFF download
- 1954 Santa Fe sheet, 1:250,000 · GeoTIFF download
- 1958 Santa Fe sheet, 1:250,000 · GeoTIFF download
- 1966 Watrous sheet, 1:24,000 · GeoTIFF download
- 1981 Roy sheet, 1:100,000 · GeoTIFF download
Directions
Getting there
Before you go
- Many ghost town sites are on private land, active mining claims or tribal land. Check land status and ask permission.
- Roads to old townsites are often unmaintained dirt. Map apps may route over closed or impassable tracks.
- Removing artifacts from public land is illegal under federal and most state laws.
Nearby
Other sites near Watrous
Straight-line distance to other mapped sites in our New Mexico index.
- Trementina33.8 mi SE · San Miguel
- Tererro39.0 mi W · San Miguel
Sources
Sources
- ghosttowns.com, "Watrous": county, roads, climate, best time to visit, remains.
- Wikipedia, "Watrous, New Mexico": coordinates and summary.
- Wikidata Q6166565.
- USGS GNIS 896280.
- USGS 3D Elevation Program, elevation at the coordinates.
- USGS The National Map and Historical Topographic Map Collection (public domain).