Northwest Region

Constructed 1924. The Allen Theater was built on the site of the former Allen Opera House that was destroyed by fire in 1922. The first talkies were played at the Allen Theater in 1937 and the first concession stand was installed in 1947. The two story building was a cream Read more…

Constructed 1920. The Chief Theater on Coal Ave., originally opened in 1920. It could seat 650 patrons. In 1936, the Chief was completely remodeled in Pueblo Deco style. Its owner at the time R.E. Griffith, also owned the El Rancho Hotel. Long-closed as a movie house, the former Chief Theater Read more…

Constructed 2004. Beginning in the 1930s with the famous WPA murals, Gallup began a lasting tradition of publicly-accessible outdoor artwork. In the early 2000s, local artists were commissioned to retell Gallup’s story through a series of outdoor murals on downtown buildings. Each mural is unique in style and captures a Read more…

Constructed 1937. The Farmington library was moved to a new building constructed in 1937 as a Works Progress Administration project located on the small city park at the corner of East La Plata and Orchard. The collection consisted of 2,000 books. This building was remodeled in 1961 and again in Read more…

Constructed 1928. The 460-seat El Morro Theater opened in 1928, featuring a Spanish Colonial Revival exterior. The El Morro was named for the famous El Morro rock cliff near Zuni Pueblo also called “Inscription Rock.” The theater was designed by the Boller Brothers architectural firm of Kansas, who designed over Read more…

Constructed 1936. El Rancho Hotel was built in 1936 in an inspired ranch style fantasy by R. E. Griffith, the brother of film director D. W. Griffith. It was a popular home for dozens of Hollywood film stars who stayed there during Gallup’s heyday as a Western film location in Read more…

Constructed 1930. After the mid 1870s, the population of the Four Corners area began to grow with the actual settlement of Farmingtown, later shortened to Farmington. The town was settled by pioneers from Animas City, CO at the confluence of the La Plata, Animas, and San Juan Rivers. Farmington began Read more…

Constructed 1918. The Amtrak stop in Gallup is a two-story stucco station built in 1918 in the Mission Revival architectural style. It was originally constructed to serve as an area headquarters for the Santa Fe Railway, the successor to the Atlantic and Pacific Railroad. A Harvey House hotel and restaurant, Read more…

Constructed 2008. The city of Gallup, NM has completed a series of monuments dedicated to the service men and women of McKinley County. The various pillars honor veterans of World War I, World War II, Korean War, Vietnam, Gulf Wars, World War II Navajo Code Talkers, and more. The plaza Read more…

Constructed 1939. Built in 1939, the McKinley County Courthouse was partially funded by the Public Works Administration and is listed on the state and national historic registers. Designed by the regionally renowned firm Trost & Trost, the four-story Spanish-Pueblo Revival style building is embellished in its interior with wood beams, Read more…