Embracing culture: State-run museums, historic sites attendance grows by 21%

Here are some of museums and historic sites run by state of New Mexico

Nov 6, 2023

Attendance is increasing and revenue continues to grow throughout the New Mexico Department of Cultural Affairs properties.

In fiscal year 2023, which ran from July 1, 2022, through June 30, 2023, the department saw a 21% growth over the previous fiscal year.

The state oversees eight museums and seven historic sites.

According to the DCA, the state museum and historic sites together had a total of 767,900 visitors. The revenue for paid attendance across the department was $3.08 million, up from $2.8 million the previous year.

One of the biggest jumps in attendance was seen by the National Hispanic Cultural Center — a 77% increase along with a 55% increase in revenue.

“NHCC is a highlight in the Barelas neighborhood of Albuquerque and a building block that attracts attention and visitors from across the city, state, nation, and tourists from outside the U.S.,” said Daniel Zillmann, DCA spokesman.

Zack Quintero has been at the helm of the NHCC since March 13. In the months he’s been there, Quintero has seen the community begin to embrace the center again.

He credits the staff with laying the foundation to many of the NHCC community initiatives.

“It’s a combination of a lot of things,” Quintero said. “The Colcha Community Stitch-along and Happy Arte Hour are hitting their stride in getting the community to the center to learn something new.”

Quintero said a free Ozomatli concert in the Plaza Mayor brought out thousands of attendees. The NHCC also held watch parties for the Women’s World Cup.

“We’ve also been hitting the ground and going into the North Valley, South Valley and Downtown and leaving fliers about our events,” he said. “I think the bump in numbers is setting a strong tone for the current year.”

Quintero is looking forward to kicking off the Cultural Ambassador Program, which will take NHCC programs out to communities around the state.

“It’s about bringing quality programming to the community,” Quintero says. “There’s a lot happening on the campus. We’ve also been using our programming to let visitors know about programming in other departments. Those things add up clearly. We work to make the community feel like the NHCC is home.”

In Las Cruces, the New Mexico Farm & Ranch Heritage Museum saw attendance jump nearly 40% spurred by its outreach programs, events, and a new partnership with 4-H clubs.

Craig Massey, NM Farm & Ranch Heritage Museum spokesman, said it’s a number of things that contributed to the museum’s increase in attendance. The museum had 38,338 visitors in fiscal year 2023, up from 27,598 in fiscal year 2022.

Massey said the longtime event Cowboy Days, held in March, continues to grow after nearly a decade running.

The museum also added events with great turnout such as Summertime on the Farm, Farm-La-La and HomeGrown: A New Mexico Food Show & Gift Market.

Massey said the exhibit “Riding Herd with Billy the Kid: The Rise of the Cattle Industry in New Mexico” was a hit among schools and visitors. The exhibit took a look at the cattle industry, which started with the 1866 cattle drive along what would become the Goodnight-Loving Trail in eastern New Mexico, and ends with the Lincoln County War in the late 1870s and its aftermath.

“The museum was able to hire an event planner last year,” Massey said. “She was able to get our events going on another level. This is a big positive for us. ‘Riding Herd’ was a strong exhibit for us because it involves Billy the Kid.”

Massey said the New Mexico Farm & Ranch Heritage Museum’s attendance continues to grow and is the biggest year since 2020, when all the state museums were shut down during the pandemic.

“We’re pleased with the momentum since 2020,” he said. “The staff has worked hard at making these events happen and getting the community to the museum.”

The NHCC and NM Farm & Ranch Heritage Museum are only two of the highlights from the report.

According to the DCA, the New Mexico Museum of Natural History & Science continues to be the state’s most-visited museum. In fiscal year 2023, the NMMNHS had 256,684 visitors, up from 198,347 in fiscal year 2022.

Zillmann said a renewed interest in space programs and exploration has ignited a 22% growth in visitors over last year at the New Mexico Museum of Space History in Alamogordo.

“The museum offers educational activities that attract new visitors weekly, and members of our staff have been featured as experts in TV and radio programs talking about space exploration and the growth of space tourism in New Mexico,” Zillmann said.

Visits to New Mexico Historic Sites are growing in attendance, reflecting DCA’s efforts to draw visitors and grow revenue numbers for the state, Zillmann said.

“There’s a resurgence in visiting New Mexico locations and its history driven by teams at (Department of Cultural Affairs) sites with their efforts to bring crowds back to our facilities,” Zillmann said.

Here are some of museums and historic sites run by state of New Mexico

According to the DCA, there were three DCA properties that experienced a drop in attendance. Those were the Museum of Indian Arts & Culture and New Mexico Museum of Art in Santa Fe, and the Bosque Redondo Memorial at Fort Sumner Historic Site.