Text adapted from research and tour organization materials by Paul and Marilyn Duncan and Dave Ferro. Edited by Mark Wing. Photos by Mark and Susan Wing unless otherwise noted.
Tour day 3 primary activities: Power Plant – Shopping – Parade – Drive to Clayton – Eklund Hotel – Luna Theater
Due to the 83-mile distance between Raton and Clayton, it was necessary to load up our cars in the early afternoon and trailer them to Clayton. We were due to check into the historic Eklund Hotel in Clayton in the mid-afternoon. However, Friday morning through the early afternoon was mostly unscheduled and options included a to visit the historic Raton Power Plant, shopping in downtown Raton, and even a community homecoming parade! Vern and Pat Willan were going to meet family members in the Raton area, so they remained there and did not proceed on the Clayton part of the tour.
Several of the tour members returned to Frank Ferri’s garage and walked with him across the the street to the Raton Power Plant where Frank had worked for 35 years. This plant, built in 1927, no longer burns coal to power the steam generators, but it is still active as a monitoring and switching station for all of Raton. It is also a museum, preserving the elements of coal fired electricity generation. On the power plant grounds is the old Raton municipal swimming pool, now closed, where Dr. Paul Duncan (our current Tin Lizzie President) used to swim in his youth when living in Trinidad, CO from 1949-51. The pool in Raton was the closest venue after the pool closer to his home in Colorado was closed due to health concerns. This pool used to be heated by the power plant.
Seeing our Model T’s on the streets of downtown, our club was invited to join a Raton community “homecoming parade” down First Street. Dave Ferro and Rebecca Weigand (driving Dave’s 1918 depot hack) and Paul and Marilyn Duncan (1920 touring car) accepted the offer and joined the parade! For these tour organizers, this was an unexpected event and the community was very enthusiastic! (photos of the Homecoming Parade by Paul and Marilyn Duncan).
Clayton, New Mexico
After the Power Plant tour, shopping, and parade, we loaded our Model T’s into our trailers and drove eastward where we checked into the historic Eklund Hotel in Clayton, NM. This hotel is located at 15 Main St. and was built in the 1890’s. This important Clayton landmark has preserved it’s antique decor and charming ambience.
Our tour group was joined in Clayton by Tin Lizzie member Orlando Ortega of Portales, NM. Orlando had recently turned over ownership of his last Model T (a 1926 pickup truck) to his brother Nino, and had acquired a very sharp looking 1931 Model A roadster.
For more information about the Eklund Hotel: http://hoteleklund.com/about-us/
Across the street from the Eklund Hotel is the Luna Theater. This beautifully restored theater (an example of Mission/Spanish Revival style) was built in 1915-16 as the Mission Theater, and was renamed to the Luna Theater in 1935. This historical building is still in use and we were given a private tour. After the tour, we saw the recently released children’s movie “Dora and the Lost City of Gold”.
Links to other tour days:
Tour Day 1 (Wed) – Arrival in Raton – Shuler Theater – Raton Museum – Bruno’s Pizza
Tour Day 2 (Thu) – The Station – Sugarite – Johnson Mesa – Folsom – Capulin – Return to Raton Loop – Oasis restaurant
Tour Day 4 (Sat) – Photo shoot – Santa Fe Trail – Clayton Lake – Dinosaur Tracks – Herzstein Museum – Tour Banquet – Singer & Songwriter Event, 2019
Link to Raton-Clayton Places Summary, September 2019 (a PDF of more detailed information compiled by Paul and Marilyn Duncan of the places visited on the tour)