Caballo Lake State Park

Historical marker location:

NM Highway 187, Truth or Consequences vicinity, New Mexico

( located in the park)

Caballo Reservoir was established 1936-1938 when an earthen dam was built across the Rio Grande for additional water storage and irrigation. At full capacity it is 18 miles long and nearly one mile across, making it New Mexico’s third largest lake. Caballo Lake State Park was established in 1964 and today is a popular recreational destination for boating, fishing, camping and birding. This vicinity also is known for several important events in the late nineteenth-century wars between the Apache Tribe and the U.S. Army.

New Mexico played a significant role in the American Civil War, with Union and Confederate forces fighting several battles in the territory. The most famous of these was the Battle of Glorieta Pass in 1862, which ended Confederate hopes of capturing the Southwest.