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Cattle Barons and Land Owners

Lucien Maxwell: The Mountain Man Who Owned 1.7 Million New Mexico Acres

A frontier scout who became one of the largest private landowners in American history, then sold the grant and moved to Fort Sumner.

Who was Lucien Maxwell?

Lucien Bonaparte Maxwell was born on September 14, 1818, in Kaskaskia, Illinois Territory. His father, Hugh Maxwell, was an Irish immigrant, and his mother, Odile Menard, was French Canadian and the daughter of fur trader Pierre Menard. He left home at fifteen, spent two years at a Vincentian college in Missouri and headed west at seventeen, according to the Wikipedia article on him.

As a young man he joined the fur trade and then worked as a hunter on John C. Frémont's western expeditions, alongside his friend Kit Carson. That outdoor career led him to Taos, New Mexico, and to the family that would hand him a land empire.

Marriage into the Beaubien land grant

Maxwell married María de la Luz Beaubien. Sources differ on the year: one puts it in 1842, another in 1844. Her father, Carlos Beaubien, held, with Guadalupe Miranda, a Mexican land grant made in 1841 in what is now northeastern New Mexico.

In spring 1847 Maxwell and Kit Carson founded Rayado on the southern part of Beaubien's grant. By 1851 about 20 families had settled there. About a decade after Rayado, the Maxwells founded Cimarron on a 22-square-mile tract they bought from Luz's parents, as described in the New Mexico history biography.

How big was the Maxwell Land Grant?

After Beaubien died in 1864 Maxwell acquired most of the grant. He had bought Guadalupe Miranda's share in 1858 for $2,745, and the heirs' interests were bought out so that the Maxwells had full ownership by about 1869. Figures for the size differ: one source gives 1,714,765 acres, another says about 1.75 million. Either way it ranks among the largest private holdings in United States history.

Up to 500 mostly Hispanic families eventually lived and worked on the grant.

Sheep, cattle and a frontier supply business

Maxwell was a landowner first and a cattleman second. In the 1860s the Maxwells ran about 20,000 sheep, 1,500 cattle and 400 horses and mules. They also operated a gristmill, a store and a hotel in Las Vegas, and during the Civil War they supplied the army and the Fort Sumner Reservation.

Gold discovered on the grant between 1866 and 1868 brought a rush of miners and a surge in population. That rush made the land more valuable, and it also made ownership harder to defend.

The Key to Maxwell's Success

Maxwell's wealth came from owning land at the right moment and putting it to several uses, not from cattle alone. His career is a case of diversified frontier business.

The record also shows the limits: land title disputes, a swift sale and a final cattle venture that ended with his death.

  • He married into the Beaubien family and later bought out other heirs and shareholders to hold the grant whole.
  • He spread income across sheep, cattle, farming, a mill, a store and army and reservation supply contracts.
  • Founding Rayado and Cimarron put settled families on the grant, which supplied workers and customers for his store and mill.
  • He sold at the top of the market: gold had raised the grant's value, and the 1869 sale brought him about $650,000 in one account and $1,350,000 for the larger sale in another. Sources differ.
  • He reinvested part of the proceeds in banking, helping found the First National Bank of Santa Fe.
  • Title questions lingered after he sold, and litigation continued until the U.S. Supreme Court approved a clear title in 1887.

The sale, Fort Sumner and the last cattle ranch

In April 1869 Lucien and Luz sold the grant to the Maxwell Land Grant and Railway Company, led by British investor John Collinson. Another source dates the sale to 1870 and puts the price at $1,350,000. After the sale Maxwell bought the abandoned Fort Sumner from the U.S. government and turned the officers' quarters into a large home, where he started a cattle ranch.

He died there on July 25, 1875, from a summer cold that developed into pneumonia. Luz outlived him by 25 years. Both are buried at Fort Sumner. Pat Garrett killed Billy the Kid at the home of Maxwell's son Pete in 1881.

Honors and legacy

Maxwell was inducted into the Hall of Great Westerners at the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum in 1959; the museum posts its inductee listing online. The land disputes after his sale led to the Colfax County War. For readers who want the wider story of Western cattle country, browse the ranching pages on farm.FM or read a farm.FM story on New Mexico land and cattle.

Timeline

  1. 1818Born in Kaskaskia, Illinois Territory
  2. 1841Frémont expeditions begin; the Beaubien and Miranda grant is made
  3. 1847Founds Rayado with Kit Carson
  4. 1858Buys Guadalupe Miranda's share of the grant
  5. 1864Carlos Beaubien dies; Maxwell acquires most of the grant
  6. 1869Sells the grant to the Maxwell Land Grant and Railway Company (one source says 1870)
  7. 1875Dies at Fort Sumner, New Mexico
  8. 1887U.S. Supreme Court approves a clear title to the grant

Frequently asked questions

Who was Lucien Maxwell?

Lucien B. Maxwell (1818 to 1875) was a mountain man, scout and rancher who came to hold the 1.7 million acre Maxwell Land Grant in New Mexico, then sold it and settled at Fort Sumner.

How big was the Maxwell Land Grant?

Sources differ. One gives 1,714,765 acres and another about 1.75 million acres, among the largest private land holdings in United States history.

How much did Maxwell sell the grant for?

Sources differ. One gives about $650,000 for his share in 1869, and another says $1,350,000 in 1870 for most of the land, sold to a British company.

How did Lucien Maxwell die?

He died at Fort Sumner on July 25, 1875, from pneumonia that developed from a summer cold. He is buried in the Old Fort Sumner Cemetery.

Sources and further reading

Profiles are compiled from public sources and reviewed against them. See our editorial policy to suggest a correction.

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