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This is a list of people from New Mexico, which includes notable people who were either born or have lived for a significant period of time in the U.S. state of New Mexico or its predecessors, the Spanish and Mexican Nuevo México and the American New Mexico Territory.[1][2] They are referred to by the demonym "New Mexican", and by the Spanish language demonym "Neomexicano" or "Neomejicano" (as well as the feminine "Neomexicana" or "Neomejicana").
Athletics
[edit]- Kyle Altman (born 1986) – soccer player
- Jason Anderson (born 1993) – born in Rio Rancho, New Mexico, Supercross racer
- Ross Anderson (born 1971) – lives in Taos, record holder in speed skiing
- Hank Baskett (born 1982) – born in Clovis, former NFL player
- Notah Begay III (born 1972) – born in Albuquerque, golfer
- Ray Birmingham (born 1955) – born in Hobbs, baseball coach
- Alan Branch (born 1984) – born in Rio Rancho, NFL player
- Alex Bregman (born 1994) – baseball player
- Bill Bridges (1939–2015) – born in Hobbs, former NBA player
- Brenda Burnside (born 1963) – born in Albuquerque, boxer
- Shelia Burrell (born 1972) – born in Albuquerque, heptathlete; fourth place in 2004 Olympic Games
- Edgar Castillo (born 1986) – born in Las Cruces, Liga MX
- Jackie Chavez (born 1983) – born in Albuquerque, lives in Las Cruces, boxer
- Carlos Condit (born 1984) – born in Albuquerque, UFC fighter
- Ryan Cook (born 1983) – born in Albuquerque, NFL player
- Christian Cunningham (born 1997) – raised in Albuquerque, basketball player in the Israeli Basketball Premier League
- John Dodson (born 1984) – born in Albuquerque, mixed martial artist
- Michael Dunn (born 1985) – born in Farmington, MLB player
- Doug Eddings (born 1968) – born in Las Cruces, MLB umpire
- Arian Foster (born 1986) – born in Albuquerque, running back for the Miami Dolphins
- Bob Foster (1938–2015) – born in Albuquerque, light-heavyweight boxing world champion
- Jack Gardner (1910–2000) – college men's basketball coach
- Mitch Garver (born 1991) – born in Albuquerque, baseball player
- Frank "Bruiser Brody" Goodish (1946–1988) – professional wrestler
- Aaron Graham (born 1973) – former NFL center
- Fred Haney (1896–1977) – Major League Baseball manager
- Pat Henry (born 1951) – collegiate track-and-field head coach
- Holly Holm (born 1981) – born in Albuquerque, mixed martial artist
- Damion James (born 1987) – born in Hobbs, player for the New Jersey Nets
- Ralph Kiner (1922–2014) – Baseball Hall of Famer
- Nancy Lopez (born 1957) – raised in Roswell, Hall of Fame golfer
- Ronnie Lott (born 1959) – Pro Football Hall of Famer
- Colt McCoy (born 1986) – born in Hobbs, quarterback for the Washington Redskins
- Tommy McDonald (1934–2018) – Pro Football Hall of Fame wide receiver
- Matt Moore (born 1989) – lived in Edgewood, MLB player
- Steve Ontiveros (born 1961) – baseball player
- Dorothy Page (1921–1989) – known as the "mother of the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race"
- André Roberson (born 1991) – born in Las Cruces, professional basketball player
- Trevor Rogers (born 1998) – born in Carlsbad, MLB player
- Cody Ross (born 1980) – born in Carlsbad, MLB player
- Diego Sanchez (born 1981) – born in Albuquerque, UFC fighter
- Mike E. Smith (born 1965) – born in Roswell, Hall of Fame jockey
- Tony Snell (born 1991) – professional basketball player
- Vern Stephens (1920–1968) – born in McAlister, baseball player
- Chuck Stevens (1918–2018) – born in Colfax County, baseball player
- Blake Swihart (born 1992) – raised in Rio Rancho, MLB player
- Johnny Tapia (1967–2012) – born in Albuquerque, boxer
- Jeff Taylor (1960–2020) – raised in Hobbs, former NBA player
- Jeffery Taylor (born 1989) – raised in Hobbs, player for the Charlotte Hornets
- Al Unser (born 1939) – born in Albuquerque, race car driver
- Al Unser Jr. (born 1962) – born in Albuquerque, race car driver
- Bobby Unser (1934–2021) – lived in Albuquerque, race car driver
- Brian Urlacher (born 1978) – grew up in Lovington, NFL player
- Duane Ward (born 1964) – born in Los Ojos (formerly Park View); grew up in Farmington, MLB player
- Kathy Whitworth (born 1939) – lived in Jal, New Mexico where her family owned a hardware store, professional golfer
Architecture
[edit]- John Gaw Meem (1894–1983) – architect known for his work reviving traditional New Mexican architecture[3][4]
- Mike Reynolds – architect, designer of Earthships[5]
- Antoine Predock (1936–2024) – architect of Petco Stadium, Tacoma Art Museum[6]
Art, literature, and journalism
[edit]- Edward Abbey – novelist, graduated from the University of New Mexico
- Rudolfo Anaya – novelist
- Richard Artschwager – painter, illustrator and sculptor
- Jimmy Santiago Baca – poet and author
- Oscar E. Berninghaus (1874–1952) – founding member of Taos Society of Artists
- Ernest L. Blumenschein (1874–1960) – founding member of Taos Society of Artists
- Fray Angelico Chavez – poet and painter
- Linda Chavez (born 1947) – author, commentator, radio talk show host
- E. Irving Couse (1866–1936) – founding member of Taos Society of Artists
- Stanley Crawford (born 1937) – writer and farmer
- W. Herbert Dunton (1878–1936) – founding member of Taos Society of Artists
- Nicolai Fechin (1881–1955) – painter known for his portraits and works featuring Native Americans
- Forrest Fenn – poet, scholar, artist and painter, author, historian, teacher, environmentalist
- R. C. Gorman (1931–2005) – Navajo artist
- Grant Hayunga (born 1970) – artist and musician
- Tony Hillerman (1925–2008) – journalist, mystery writer, "Edgar" award winner, MWA Grand Master[7]
- Peter Hurd (1904–1984) – artist
- Barbara Latham (1896–1989) – painter, printmaker, illustrator
- D. H. Lawrence (1885–1930) – novelist, poet, playwright, essayist, literary critic and painter[8]
- Marjorie Herrera Lewis – author and journalist
- Albert Looking Elk (1888–1940) – Taos Pueblo painter
- Mabel Dodge Luhan (1879–1962) – writer and patroness of Taos art colony[9]
- Albert Lujan (1892–1948) – Taos Pueblo painter
- Charles Fletcher Lummis (1859–1928) – journalist and Indian activist, photographer[10]
- Agnes Martin (1912–2004) – abstract painter
- George R. R. Martin (born 1948) – lives in Santa Fe, screenwriter and author of fantasy, horror, and science fiction, including Game of Thrones
- Maria Martinez (1887–1980) – pottery artist, famous for her pioneering work in black on black pottery
- Bill Mauldin (1921–2003) – editorial cartoonist, Pulitzer Prize, 1945 and 1958
- Cormac McCarthy – author of No Country for Old Men, The Road, Pulitzer Prize winner
- Michael McGarrity – novelist, former deputy sheriff of Santa Fe County
- Juan Mirabal (1903–1970) – Taos Pueblo painter
- N. Scott Momaday (1934) – Kiowa, Pulitzer Prize-winning author and visual artist[11]
- Agnes Morley Cleaveland (1874–1958) – writer, cattle rancher, women's basketball player
- Howard Morgan – television weather forecaster
- Dan Namingha – Hopi artist
- Bruce Nauman – artist
- Georgia O'Keeffe (1887–1986) – artist
- Bert Geer Phillips (1868–1956) – founding member of Taos Society of Artists
- Ernie Pyle (1900–1945) – war correspondent, Pulitzer Prize 1944[12]
- Joseph Rael (born 1935) – Native American ceremonial dancer, shaman, writer, and artist
- Anita Rodriguez (born 1941) – artist and painter
- Antonio Roybal – artist
- Hib Sabin (born 1935) – sculptor
- George I. Sánchez (1906–1972) – scholar and activist
- Joseph Henry Sharp (1859–1953) – founding member of Taos Society of Artists
- Lori "Pop Wea" Tanner (died 1966) – Taos Pueblo painter and potter
- Anne Trujillo – television news anchor and reporter, KMGH (ABC) in Denver
- Sabine Ulibarri (1919–2003) – poet and teacher
- Alisa Valdes – New York Times and USA Today bestselling author, staff writer Boston Globe and Los Angeles Times, screenwriter and producer
- Harold Joe Waldrum (1934–2003) – artist
- Linda Wertheimer – Senior National Correspondent for NPR
- Cody Willard – anchor for Fox Business Network and co-host of Fox Business Happy Hour
- Jack Williamson – novelist, professor at Eastern New Mexico University
Business
[edit]- Paul Allen (1953–2018) – founded Microsoft in Albuquerque
- Jeff Bezos (born 1964) – founder of Amazon
- Mack C. Chase (1931–2023) – oil and natural gas businessman, also the richest New Mexican
- Bill Gates (born 1955) – founded Microsoft in Albuquerque
- Maria Gertrudis "Tules" Barceló (c. 1800–1852) – entrepreneur and gambler
- Conrad Hilton (1887–1979) – founder of Hilton Worldwide
- Forrest Mims (born 1944) – founded Micro Instrumentation and Telemetry Systems in Albuquerque
- Ed Roberts (1941–2010) – founded Micro Instrumentation and Telemetry Systems in Albuquerque
Crime
[edit]- Billy the Kid (1859–1881) – outlaw
- Jose Chavez y Chavez (1851–1924) – cowboy and outlaw
- Francisco Martin Duran – attempted assassin of Bill Clinton
- William Walters aka (William E. "Bronco Bill" Walters) (1869–1921) – outlaw
Film and theater
[edit]- Ari Aster (born 1986) – director, writer, Hereditary, Midsommer
- Aviva – actress, Superbad
- Kathy Baker (born 1950) – actress, CBS's Picket Fences, Fox's Boston Public
- Greg Baldwin (born 1960) – actor, Uncle Iroh on the Nickelodeon animated series Avatar: The Last Airbender
- Bruce Cabot (1904–1972) – actor, King Kong, Dodge City, The War Wagon
- Jan Clayton (1917–1983) – actress, star of films and TV series Lassie
- Ronny Cox (born 1938) – actor, Deliverance, RoboCop
- Jesse Tyler Ferguson (born 1975) – actor, ABC's Modern Family
- Tony Genaro, actor – Anger Management, Phenomenon
- Annabeth Gish (born 1971) – actress, Fox's The X-Files and Showtime's Brotherhood
- Drew Goddard (born 1975) – screenwriter, producer
- Jeremy Foley (born 1983) – actor, Nickelodeon's Caitlin's Way
- Adrian Grenier (born 1976) – actor, HBO's Entourage
- Anna Gunn (born 1968) – actress, HBO's Deadwood, AMC's Breaking Bad
- William Hanna (1910–2001) – animator, director, producer, cartoon artist, and co-founder of Hanna-Barbera
- Neil Patrick Harris (born 1973) – actor, How I Met Your Mother, Doogie Howser, M.D.
- Alexa Havins (born 1980) – actress, BBC's Torchwood, ABC's All My Children and One Life to Live
- Judy Herrera – actress
- Dennis Hopper (1936–2010) – actor, filmmaker, photographer, and artist
- Mike Judge (born 1962) – actor, animator, producer, and creator of King of the Hill and Beavis and Butt-Head
- Minka Kelly (born 1980) – actress, Lee Daniels' The Butler, The Roommate
- Val Kilmer (born 1959) – actor, Heat, Tombstone, Top Gun
- Mae Marsh (1894–1968) – actress, Intolerance, Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm
- Benito Martinez (born 1971) – actor, FX's The Shield
- Patrice Martinez (1963–2018) – actress, The Family Channel's Zorro
- Demi Moore (born 1962) – actress, Ghost, Indecent Proposal, A Few Good Men
- Freddie Prinze Jr. (born 1975) – actor, I Know What You Did Last Summer, She's All That
- Steven Michael Quezada (born 1963) – actor, Breaking Bad
- Tracy Reiner (born 1964) – actress, When Harry Met Sally..., A League of Their Own, Apollo 13
- Jay Roach (born 1957) – director, producer, the Austin Powers films, Meet the Parents
- Willow Shields (born 2000) – child actress, Hunger Games
- Ron Shock (1942–2012) – comedian
- Geno Silva (1948–2020) – actor, Scarface, The Lost World: Jurassic Park, Amistad
- Madolyn Smith (born 1957) – actress, Urban Cowboy, Funny Farm
- Austin St. John (born 1975) – actor, Jason Lee Scott, the original Red Ranger, on Mighty Morphin Power Rangers
- Kim Stanley (1925–2001) – actress, The Goddess, To Kill a Mockingbird
- French Stewart (born 1964) – actor, 3rd Rock from the Sun
- Slim Summerville (1894–1968) – actor
- Heidi Swedberg (born 1966) – actress, Seinfeld
- Raoul Trujillo (born 1955) – actor
- Jeremy Ray Valdez (born 1980) – actor
- Kristen Vigard (born 1963) – actress, Annie, Guiding Light, The Survivors
- Nick Wechsler (born 1978) – actor, The WB's and UPN's Roswell
Fashion
[edit]- Judith Baldwin – Miss New Mexico 1965, runner-up Miss USA 1965, actress
- Tom Ford – grew up in Santa Fe, fashion designer and businessman
- Arizona Muse – fashion model
- Millicent Rogers (1902–1953) – socialite, fashion icon, and art collector
- Mai Shanley – Miss USA 1984
Government
[edit]- Toney Anaya (born 1941) – former governor
- Jerry Apodaca (born 1934) – former governor
- Clinton Presba Anderson (1895–1975) – former U.S. senator
- Jeff Bingaman (born 1943) – former U.S. senator
- Tomás Vélez Cachupín – 47th and 52nd Spanish Governor of New Mexico, judge, achieved peace between Spaniards and the Amerindian peoples of New Mexico
- Dennis Chavez (1888–1962) – former U.S. senator
- Cochise (1812–1874) – Chiricahua Apache chief
- Colorow (1810–1888) – Ute chief
- Bronson M. Cutting (1888–1935) – former U.S. senator
- Pete Domenici (1932–2017) – former U.S. senator
- Ed Foreman (born 1933) – former U.S. representative
- Geronimo (1829–1909) – Chiricahua Apache chief[13]
- Thomas E. Horn (born 1946) – Trustee San Francisco War Memorial and Performing Arts Center, lawyer, publisher Bay Area Reporter
- Dolores Huerta – civil rights activist
- Gary Johnson (born 1953) – former governor; Libertarian presidential candidate, 2012 and 2016
- Bruce King (1924–2009) – former governor
- Timothy Kraft (born 1941) – campaign manager for U.S. President Jimmy Carter in 1980
- Manuel Lujan (1928–2019) – former U.S. representative
- Joseph Montoya (1915–1978) – former U.S. senator
- Janet Napolitano (born 1957) – former governor of Arizona, former United States Secretary of Homeland Security, current president of University of California System
- Steve Pearce (born 1947) – U.S. representative
- Popé (ca. 1630 – ca. 1688) also spelled Po'pay – leader of the Pueblo Revolt[14]
- Bill Redmond (born 1954) – former U.S. representative
- Bill Richardson (born 1947) – Energy Secretary, Ambassador to the United Nations, former governor, first Hispanic candidate for the U.S. Presidency
- Edward R. Roybal (1916–2005) – U.S. representative from California, member of the Los Angeles City Council
- Joe Skeen (1927–2003) – former U.S. representative
- Tina Smith (born 1958) – U.S. Senator
- Victorio (1825–1880) – Chiricahua Apache chief
Military
[edit]- Carl Nelson Gorman (1907–1998) – U.S. Marine Corp soldier, Navajo code talker during World War II, as well as artist, and professor.
- Pete Jimenez (1917–2006) – U.S. Army soldier in World War II
Music
[edit]- Lorenzo Antonio (born 1969) – born in Albuquerque, Latin pop and Mexican pop singer
- Antonia Apodaca (1923–2020) – born in Rociada, New Mexico and American folk music singer
- Consuelo Luz Arostegui – lives in Angel Fire, Latino musician
- Ryan Bingham (born 1981) – born in Hobbs, singer-songwriter
- Zach Condon (born 1986) – born in Santa Fe, musician in Beirut
- John Denver (1943–1997) – born in Roswell, singer-songwriter
- Bradley Ellingboe (born 1958) – composer
- Al Hurricane (1936–2017) – born in Dixon, singer-songwriter, dubbed "The Godfather" of New Mexico music
- Al Hurricane Jr. (born 1959) – born in Albuquerque, singer-songwriter, dubbed "The Godson" of New Mexico music
- John Lewis (1920–2001) – raised in Albuquerque, Albuquerque High School and University of New Mexico graduate. Pianist and musical director of the Modern Jazz Quartet
- Demi Lovato (born 1992) – born in Albuquerque, pop music singer-songwriter
- James Mercer (born 1970) – singer, musician and leader of the Shins and Broken Bells
- Robert Mirabal (born 1966) – Taos Pueblo musician
- Jim Morrison (1943–1971) – lived in Albuquerque for several years during his childhood
- Michael Martin Murphey (born 1945) – author of New Mexico's state ballad, "The Land of Enchantment"
- Norman Petty (1927–1984) – musician, songwriter, record producer
- Pascual Romero (born 1980) – musician, television producer
- Sparx members – born in Albuquerque, Latin pop sisters Verónica, Rosamaria, Kristyna and Carolina Sanchez
- James Tenney (1934–2006) – born in Silver City, composer
- Kristen Vigard (born 1963) – lives in Taos, singer (Red Hot Chili Peppers, Fishbone)
- Tony Vincent (born 1973) – born in Albuquerque, performer
- Randy Castillo (born 1950–2002) – born in Albuquerque, Drummer (Ozzy Osbourne, Lita Ford)
Law enforcement
[edit]- Elfego Baca (1865–1945) – gunman and lawman in the American frontier
- Pat Garrett (1850–1908) – sheriff known for shooting Billy the Kid
- Lonnie Zamora (1933–2009) – police officer who reported a famous UFO sighting outside Socorro in 1964
Religion
[edit]- Cormac Antram (1926–2013) – Catholic priest, known for his work translating the Catholic mass into the Navajo language, last Franciscan priest who could speak Navajo fluently
- Anton Docher (1852–1928) – missionary and defender of the Indians
- Jeff King – Navajo hataałii (medicine man)
Science and technology
[edit]- Adolph Francis Alphonse Bandelier (1840–1914) – archaeologist after whom Bandelier National Monument and Bandelier Elementary School (in Albuquerque) in New Mexico is named
- Edward Condon (1902–1974) – nuclear physicist
- Robert H. Goddard (1882–1945) – built the world's first liquid-fueled rocket
- Sidney M. Gutierrez (born 1951) – astronaut
- Jaron Lanier (born 1960) – computer scientist
- Edgar Mitchell (1930—2016) – aeronautical engineer, NASA astronaut
- William Nordhaus (born 1941) - economist, winner of the 2018 Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences
- Harrison Schmitt (born 1935) – astronaut, geologist and former U.S. Senator from New Mexico
- Mark Spencer – computer engineer
- John Stapp – pioneer in studying the effects of acceleration and deceleration forces on humans, "the fastest man on earth"
- Clyde Tombaugh – astronomer and discoverer of the celestial body Pluto (at the time considered to be the 9th planet in the solar system)
- Lydia Villa-Komaroff – molecular and cellular biologist
- Michael Wartell – chancellor of Indiana University – Purdue University Fort Wayne
- Annie Dodge Wauneka (1895–1997) – Navajo health educator, winner of Presidential Medal of Freedom
- J. Robert Oppenheimer (1904–1967) Theoretical Physicist; The Manhattan Project, Los Alamos
See also
[edit]
- List of New Mexico State University people
- List of people from Albuquerque
- List of New Mexico suffragists
- List of St. John's College (Annapolis/Santa Fe) people
- List of University of New Mexico alumni
- List of University of New Mexico faculty
- List of University of New Mexico presidents
- Lists of Americans
References
[edit]- ^ Sánchez, Joseph P.; Spude, Robert L.; Gómez, Art (26 September 2013). New Mexico: A History. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press. ISBN 978-0-8061-4256-2. Retrieved 26 July 2024.
- ^ Weigle, Marta; Levine, Frances; Stiver, Louise (2009). Telling New Mexico: A New History. Santa Fe: Museum of New Mexico Press. ISBN 978-0-89013-552-5. Retrieved 26 July 2024.
- ^ "John Gaw Meem: Respecting the Past, Building the Future". Historic Santa Fe Foundation. 23 July 2020. Retrieved 26 July 2024.
- ^ Wingert-Playdom, Kate (2012). John Law Meem at Acoma. University of New Mexico Press. ISBN 978-0-8263-5209-5. Retrieved 26 July 2024.
- ^ Brown, Patricia Lee (10 January 1993). "Father Earth". The New York Times. Retrieved 26 July 2024.
- ^ Bernstein, Fred A. (5 March 2024). "Antoine Predock, Architect Who Channeled the Southwest, Dies at 87". The New York Times. Retrieved 26 July 2024.
- ^ Weigle 2009, p. 306.
- ^ Weigle 2009, p. 14, 375, 377.
- ^ Weigle 2009, p. 339, 375–78.
- ^ Weigle 2009, p. 238–39, 285, 292.
- ^ Weigle 2009, p. 306.
- ^ Weigle 2009, p. 306.
- ^ Weigle 2009, p. 199, 202.
- ^ Weigle 2009, p. 87–88, 105, 107–12, 143, 257–58, 384, 415–21.