Agua Nueva Hacienda

The Agua Nueva Ranch is a working ranch. It has been a traditional cattle ranch for about 300 years. People have lived their entire lives here. A river runs through the ranch and a series of old aqueducts used long ago to distribute water is still in place. Now, new, more reliable wells bring water to the cattle, goats, and large pecan orchards.

Sr. Jaime Creel is the owner of this ranch and has taken considerable effort to preserve its historical aspects. It is a living museum, full of what was the best of a hacienda 200 years ago. The hacienda has an attached chapel whose decorative stone was quarried not far away.

The Agua Nueva Ranch lies in a remote area of Chihuahua about 150 miles south of El Paso, Texas. The nearest paved road is 10 miles away.

Looking out of the old entrance to the hacienda...this entrance is not used any more due to a change in the route of the road to Esperanza. Many people passed here on their horses.

View of the front of the Hacienda from the west gate

Front of building with main entrance in center

View looking down the front of the building

Hand-carved log flower planter on front of building

Daniel Rodriguez (left) and Eugene Mueller (right), the miner, at the front entrance of the building. Daniel and his father manage the ranch business.

Interior courtyard

View from the other side of the courtyard

Patio on the inside courtyard with hand-carved horsehead chairs around the table. Above the door is a mount of a large javelina that was killed on the ranch.

Interior meeting room

Interior room

Chapel (right) attached to the main house

Chapel entrance

Interior of chapel with decorative stone used on arches
These stone pieces were quarried near by. They were actually chiseled out of solid rock in the curved shape that you see here. There are still unfinished pieces remaining in place in the quarry.