Mission Church of Lemitar, SOCORRO CO, NM

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Located about 6 miles north of Socorro, the Mission Church in Lemitar has been an 
important part of that community for 150 years.  Lemitar was settled by people 
from Atrisco, Albuquerque and Belén around 1831. Some of the names of the 
founding families are Armijo, Chávez, Gonzáles, Vigil, López, Sánchez, and 
Santillańes.  The land the present church stands on was donated by Juan Platera.  
While the church was being built José Chávez had Mass held in his residence near 
the building site.  The first recorded burial at these settlers' church was in 
1835.  The church had been built some time before that date.  They called "Los 
Dulces Nombres de Jesús, María y José de Lemitar" (The Holy Name of Jesus, Mary 
and Joseph of Lemitar).  Today the Church is also known as "La Sagrada Familia 
(The Holy Family).  The Church was built in the cross-traditional cross-shaped 
plan.  Thirty vigas were used to support a flat, dirt-filled roof.  Over the 
years, the people in Lemitar maintained and served their Church through 
societies.  The Caballeros Católicos de San Miguel, Sociedad de San José, 
Sociedad de Nuestra Seńora del Carmen, and Sociedad de Sagrada Corazón de Jesús 
helped repair and improve the church structure.  When money was needed, these 
societies would raise it.

The present roof of galvanized tin was built on the church after 1920. In Conrad 
Hilton donated $100 to the Sociedad del Sagrada Corazón de Jesús for improvements 
to the Lemitar Church.  With this money as a beginning, the Iglesia de los Dulces 
Nombres was greatly altered and modernized.  The sacristy .was rebuilt, the 
interior walls were re-plastered, gas heaters replaced the wood stoves.  That 
same year Hilton's donation was made, the undecorated doers at the main entrance 
were replaced with the present day hand-carved doors.  In the early 1960's, the 
bell towers and the facade between them were raised to cover up the now pitched 
roof.

These changes over the years only reinforce the idea that Church in Lemitar has 
been an important and well cared for part of the Community.  Masses are still 
said there and on the Feast of the Holy Family those families that have long 
since moved away from Lemitar come back to renew their ties to the Community and 
to the Church that their forebears built and cherished.

--Sherry Krukowski-