Pueblo Indian Agency (New Mexico)

Indian Tribes Associated With This Agency
Jicarilla Apache, Pueblo, Southern Ute, Navajo

History
The Pueblo Agency was established in 1854 at Santa Fe, New Mexico. It originally had responsibility for 19 Pueblo villages. In 1876, the Cimarron Agency's jurisdiction was added to the Pueblo Agency and in 1878, the Abiquiu Agency was also added to the Pueblo Agency.

In 1882, the Jicarilla Apache were transferred to the Mescalero Agency and then to the Southern Ute Agency in 1887. In 1891, they were transferred back to the Pueblo Agency, which was renamed the Pueblo and Jicarilla Agency until 1901, when it was abolished and a separate Jicarilla Agency was established.

In 1901, the agency duties formerly carried out by the Pueblo and Jicarilla Agency were transferred to the Albuquerque and Santa Fe Indian Schools. From 1911 to 1914, the agent responsibilities were transferred to the superintendents of the Albuquerque Day Schools and the Santa Fe Day Schools, respectively. In 1912, the Pueblo Day Schools at Santa Fe jurisdiction was abolished and its duties were returned to the superintendent of the Santa Fe Indian School. The Pueblo Day Schools at Albuquerque jurisdiction was abolished in 1914.

A jurisdiction named Pueblo Indian Agency and Day Schools was created in 1914. It assumed the responsibilities of the Santa Fe Indian School, the Albuquerque Indian School, the day schools at both Albuquerque and Santa Fe, the Laguna Sanatorium, and the Navajo communities at Canoncito and Puertocito.

In 1919, the Pueblo Indian Agency and Day Schools jurisdiction was abolished and its duties divided between the Northern Pueblos Agency and the Southern Pueblos Agency.

Records
Agencies and subagencies were created as administrative offices of the Bureau of Indian Affairs and its predecessors. Their purpose was (and is) to manage Indian affairs with the tribes, to enforce policies, and to assist in maintaining the peace. The names and location of these agencies may have changed, but their purpose remained basically the same. Many of the records of genealogical value (for the tribe and tribal members) were created by and maintained by the agencies.

Some records for the Pueblo Agency, 1871-1900, are in the Rocky Mountain Regional Archives of the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) in Denver, mostly consisting of correspondence and fiscal records of the agency. Some records for the later agency are also filed under the Pueblos Indian Agency and Day Schools name in the Rocky Mountain Regional Archives, including school census reports, 1912-1922.

Agents and Appointment date
Abraham G. Mayers 1854, Samuel M. Yost 1857, John T. Russell 1859, Ramon Luna 1861, Toribio Romero 1865, John D. Henderson 1866, Nicholas Quintana 1868, Lt. Charles Cooper 1869, Lt. George E. Ford 1869, Lt. J.A. Manley 1870, William F.N. Arny 1871,John O. Cole 1872, Edwin C. Lewis 1873, and Benjamin M. Thomas 1874