Lincoln

Formed January 25, 1869 (12^th county)

Lincoln County (20,273), Carrizozo (974), Ruidoso (7,682)

The Modern Pueblo style facility in the middle of this small community is perfect for the surrounding environment.  The building is on Central Avenue between 3^rd and 4^th avenues.  It was built in 1964 to replace the 1913 courthouse in Carrizozo.  George A. Buffington was the designer of this stone and stucco structure.  The building was enlarged in 1982 and in 2014.  United States Highway 54 is one block east.  There was an 1878 courthouse in Lincoln.  Lincoln County was the 12^th county formed on January 25, 1869.  The county seat is named for the local Carrizozo Springs (Spanish for “reed grass”).  Abraham Lincoln provided his name to the county. 

Lincoln County government consists of a manager, a sheriff, a treasurer, an attorney, an assessor, and a clerk (executive).  It has 5 Commissioners (legislative.)  Four District Court Judges serve Lincoln and Otero counties (judicial.)  Lincoln County is in south central New Mexico southeast of Albuquerque, New Mexico and northeast of Las Cruces, New Mexico.  The county center is 38.4 miles Northeast of Carrizozo nearer Ancho.  The county is surrounded clockwise by Guadalupe, De Baca, Chaves, Otero, Sierra, Socorro, and Torrance counties. 

The area of the county is 4831 square miles.  It is 8 out of 33 in the state.  It ranks 19 out of 33 in population in the state.  It has a density of 4.2 persons per square mile making it 22 out of 33 in the state.  Lincoln County has 63.2% of its population in its incorporated areas.  United States Highway 54 crosses the western part of the county from north to south, Torrance County to Otero County.  United States Highway 70 enters from Chaves County on the east and exits into Otero County on the south.  United States Highway 380 is joined with United States Highway 70 from Chaves County, splits, and continues west into Socorro County.  Carrizozo is in the southwest corner of the county.  Ruidoso is on the southern border.  Carrizozo is the county seat and Ruidoso is the largest city.  Carrizozo is 4.8% of the county population while Ruidoso is 37.9% of the county population.  The county shape is a capital letter D turned backwards and having an extension in the southwest, west of Carrizozo.  The county seat is pronounced CARE-RI-ZOE-ZOE.  This county is in the Ruidoso Micropolitan Statistical Area.