Pecos
Pecos is a mapped river in the YearMaps hydrographic index. River courses organise settlement, agriculture and frontier-making more durably than any political boundary, and this reach is indexed against the dams, lakes and cities within its catchment.
- Feature Class
- River
- Coordinates
- 32.34°, -104.03°
About Pecos
The Pecos River ( PAY-kəs; Spanish: Río Pecos) originates in north-central New Mexico and flows into Texas, emptying into the Rio Grande. Its headwaters are on the eastern slope of the Sangre de Cristo mountain range in Mora County north of Pecos, New Mexico, at an elevation of over 12,000 feet (3,700 m). The river flows for 926 miles (1,490 km) before reaching the Rio Grande near Del Rio. Its drainage basin encompasses about 44,300 square miles (115,000 km2).
The name "Pecos" [p'æyok'ona], derives from the Keresan term for the Pecos Pueblo, c[p'æyok'ona]. The river was also historically referred to as the Río Natagés for the Mescalero people.
Encyclopedic summary adapted from Wikipedia: Pecos River (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Pecos in Depth
History
The river was the eastern territory of the Faraon (‘Pharaoh’) Apache Indians, a tribe of Apache, probably closely related to the Mescalero Apache, if not part of them. Their divisions were Ancavistis, Jacomis, Orejones, Carlanes, and Cuampes, but of these the Carlanes at least belonged to the Jicarillas. The river later played a large role in the exploration of Texas by the Spanish. In the latter half of the 19th century, "West of the Pecos" was a reference to the rugged desolation of the Wild West. New Mexico and Texas disputed water rights to the river until the U.S. government settled the dispute in 1949 with the Pecos River Compact. The Pecos River Settlement Agreement was signed between New Mexico and Texas in 2003.
Sections adapted from Wikipedia: Pecos River (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Major River Dossiers
Hand-written studies of the great river systems of history.
Connected Reaches
Nearby watercourses in the same drainage network.
Water Bodies in the Catchment
Settlements Along the Reach
Hydraulic Infrastructure Nearby
Surrounding Terrain
Pecos: Quick Answers
- Where is Pecos?
- Pecos is located in United States, at 32.3408° N, 104.0314° W.
- Are there dams on the Pecos?
- No dam on the Pecos is recorded in the YearMaps dam index, which covers major structures only.