Historical Marker

Susan McSween Barber “Cattle Queen of New Mexico” (1845-1931)

Historical marker location:

NM Highway 349, White Oaks, New Mexico

( next to White Oaks cemetery)

Side 1

Born Susan Hummer in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, she married Canadian-born lawyer Alexander McSween. Moving to the New Mexico territory in 1875, the couple figured prominently in the Lincoln County War, joining forces with John Tunstall in opposition to the Dolan-Murphy faction’s corrupt cattle business practices. In retaliation, Susan’s husband was killed, and her house burned down. She lost a court battle due to the Santa Fe Ring’s ties to the faction, but went on to challenge Lawrence Murphy in his own arena—cattle.

Side 2

Her second husband was George Barber. Under the Desert Land Act, they patented 400 acres in 1883. The act required irrigating the land and in 1881 Susan built a dam across Three Rivers stream and a half-mile ditch to convey water to her property. By 1888 Susan had taken on two partners, claimed ownership of 1,158 acres, and acquired 8,000 head of cattle. The Three Rivers Ranch made her the territory’s largest cattle baroness and thus the Cattle Queen of New Mexico. Susan is buried in the White Oaks cemetery.