History of Cloudcroft

For centuries, the Mescalero Apache roamed the high country of the Sacramento Mountains, living in harmony with the land that would one day become Cloudcroft. They hunted deer and elk among the towering pines, gathered wild plants for food and medicine, and found spiritual connection in the misty peaks that seemed to touch the sky.

The name "Mescalero" comes from the agave plant, called mescal, which was a staple food source. The Apache would roast the hearts of these plants in underground pits, creating a nutritious food that could sustain them through harsh mountain winters. Evidence of these roasting pits can still be found throughout the Sacramento range.

The arrival of Spanish explorers in the 16th century began a period of conflict that would last for centuries. Yet the Apache people endured, and today the Mescalero Apache Reservation, established in 1873, preserves their culture and heritage just south of Cloudcroft. The Inn of the Mountain Gods resort, owned and operated by the Mescalero Apache Tribe, continues their tradition of mountain hospitality.

Cloudcroft owes its very existence to visionary railroad entrepreneurs Charles B. Eddy and his brother John A. Eddy. In 1897, their El Paso and Northeastern Railroad reached the newly founded town of Alamogordo in the Tularosa Basin below. But the real prize lay high in the Sacramento Mountains - vast forests of virgin timber that could fuel the growing Southwest.

To harvest this timber, the Eddy brothers needed a railroad that could climb nearly 5,000 feet in just 32 miles. Engineers declared it impossible. The Eddys built it anyway. Construction of the Alamogordo and Sacramento Mountain Railway began in 1898, and workers laid track at a breathtaking pace, climbing the steep mountain grades through some of the most challenging terrain in America.

The railroad required 58 timber trestles to span the rugged canyons, including the magnificent Mexican Canyon Trestle - 323 feet long and 52 feet high, a marvel of engineering that still stands today. The route climbed so steeply that it became known as the "Cloud Climbing Railroad," carrying passengers from the desert floor to the cool mountain heights in just a few hours.

On June 19, 1899, the first train pulled into what would become Cloudcroft. Legend holds that surveyors, standing in the clouds at this high meadow, declared "On this cloudy croft we will build a town." The poetic name stuck, and a new chapter in mountain history began.

Almost immediately after the railroad arrived, the Eddy brothers recognized that Cloudcroft offered something more valuable than timber - escape. In the days before air conditioning, El Paso and the desert Southwest sweltered in brutal summer heat. The cool mountain air of Cloudcroft, often 30 degrees cooler than the basin below, was a precious commodity.

In 1899, the same year the railroad was completed, a simple wooden pavilion was built as a summer retreat for railroad workers and their families. It proved so popular that the railroad company quickly expanded, building the first Lodge - an elegant Victorian structure that became the social center of the new mountain resort community.

Tragedy struck in 1909 when fire swept through the original Lodge, destroying the beloved landmark. But the spirit of Cloudcroft would not be deterred. By 1911, a magnificent new Lodge rose from the ashes - the same building that graces the Cloudcroft skyline today. Its distinctive four-story copper-domed tower became an instant landmark, visible for miles and symbolizing the resort's resilience and elegance.

Today, The Lodge Resort remains the crown jewel of Cloudcroft, offering historic elegance alongside modern amenities. Its golf course, added in 1909, is the oldest in the Southwest, and guests still gather on the sunset deck to watch the alpenglow paint the mountains gold - just as visitors have done for over a century.

While tourists discovered Cloudcroft's cool summers and scenic beauty, the railroad's original purpose - harvesting timber - drove the regional economy for decades. The Sacramento Mountains held vast stands of ponderosa pine, Douglas fir, and Engelmann spruce, trees that had grown undisturbed for centuries in the high mountain valleys.

The Alamogordo Lumber Company established operations almost immediately after the railroad arrived. Logging camps sprang up throughout the mountains, small communities of hardy workers and their families who lived in the forest and sent trainloads of lumber down to Alamogordo. The camp at Marcia, named for the daughter of railroad executive H.J. Simmons, became one of the largest.

In 1921, the Cloudcroft Lumber and Land Company took over operations, continuing the harvest that would eventually total over 160 million board feet. But the virgin forests that had seemed inexhaustible were finally depleted. By the 1940s, the great logging era was drawing to a close, and Cloudcroft would need to reinvent itself.

Passenger service on the Cloud Climbing Railroad ended in 1938, and the last freight train - loaded with timber - made its final descent in 1947. The rails were pulled up, the locomotives sold, and an era ended. But the trestles remained, silent sentinels of a vanished age, including the magnificent Mexican Canyon Trestle that still draws visitors today.

The end of the railroad era might have meant the end of Cloudcroft. But even as the logging trains made their final runs, a new pathway to the mountains was being carved. Highway 82, winding up from Alamogordo through the spectacular canyons, opened in the mid-1940s and brought automobiles - and tourists - streaming into Cloudcroft.

The highway transformed Cloudcroft from a seasonal railroad resort to an accessible mountain getaway. Families could now drive up for a weekend, escaping the desert heat just as railroad passengers had a generation before. Cabins, lodges, and vacation homes multiplied, and the population that had declined with the lumber industry began to grow once more.

The true transformation came in 1963 when visionary entrepreneur Buddy Ritter founded Ski Cloudcroft. The modest ski area, with its rope tows and pine-lined runs, gave Cloudcroft something no desert city could offer - winter sports just an hour from El Paso. Suddenly, Cloudcroft wasn't just a summer escape; it was a year-round destination.

By the 1970s, Cloudcroft had fully embraced its identity as a mountain resort community. Artists and craftspeople discovered the inspiring mountain light. Retirees found the perfect blend of small-town charm and natural beauty. And generations of families from Texas and New Mexico made Cloudcroft their summer tradition, just as their grandparents had done in the railroad days.

Walk down Burro Avenue today and you'll pass buildings that have stood since the railroad days, now housing galleries, restaurants, and shops. The Lodge still presides over the village, its copper tower catching the mountain light. And each summer, when temperatures soar in the desert below, visitors still make the climb to Cloudcroft - now by car instead of train, but seeking the same cool escape.

The community that numbers about 700 year-round residents swells to several thousand on summer weekends. Hikers explore the Lincoln National Forest on trails that wind through the same forests the Mescalero Apache once roamed. Golfers play the historic course at The Lodge. And newcomers discover what generations have known - that there's something special about this small village in the clouds.

To the east, toward Mayhill, a community of amateur and professional astronomers has grown, drawn by some of the darkest skies in America. The National Solar Observatory at Sunspot, perched on the mountain rim overlooking White Sands, conducts world-class solar research. Cloudcroft has become not just a retreat from the heat, but a gateway to the stars.

The challenges have changed - wildfire management, sustainable growth, preserving small-town character amid increasing popularity. But the spirit remains: a community that values its heritage while welcoming newcomers, that treasures its natural setting while sharing it with visitors, that looks back at its remarkable history while looking forward to its future in the clouds.