Pancho Villa State Park
Columbus, NM (575) 531-2711
The park is located on the grounds of former Camp Furlong from where Gen. John J. “Black Jack” Pershing launched 10,000 troops on an 11-months, 500-mile pursuit of Villa into Mexico. The Exhibit Hall tells the story that begins with the 1910 Mexican Revolution and ends with Pershing’s command of the Allied Forces when the U.S. entered World War I. The Exhibit Hall contains a full-size replica Curtiss JN-3 “Jenny” airplane used by the 1st Aero Squadron; a 1916 Dodge touring car, the type used by Pershing for a field office; historic artifacts; military weapons and ribbons. An armored tank stands as a sentinel outside the facility. Several buildings date from the time of Villa’s raid and are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. These include the 1902 former U.S. Customs House, two adobe structures dating from the Camp Furlong-era and Camp Furlong Recreation Hall. Pancho Villa State Park is located in the village of Columbus, 35 miles south of Deming via NM Hwy. 11. From El Paso, take NM Hwy 9 65 miles west.