“Reserve (Catron). “Farming and ranching community on NM 12, 22 mi N of Mogollon; settled in the late 1870’s. Known as Upper Frisco Plaza in the 1880’s and locally as Milligan’s Plaza for a prominent merchant and saloonkeeper here….Called Reserve after John Kerr established the U. S. Forest Ranger headquarters here later. The name therefore refers to U. S. forest reserves. Post office, 1901─.”
New Mexico Place Names: A Geographical Dictionary. Edited by T. M. Pearce.


“RESERVE (Catron; settlement, county seat; on NM 12, in the SW part of the county; PO 1901-present). Settled in the late 1870’s, Reserve was originally known as Upper San Francisco Plaza, or simply Upper Frisco Plaza, one of three closely related settlements along the San Francisco River; see San Francisco Plaza.”
The Place Names of New Mexico. Revised Edition. Robert Julyan.


Facts about Reserve

  • Elevation: 5,771 ft (1,759 m)
  • Population 490
  • Median Age 25.5
  • Poverty Rate 50.5%
  • Median Household Income $27,067

The 5 largest ethnic groups in Reserve, NM*