Solomon Luna
{{Short description|American rancher and banker}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=November 2024}}
{{Infobox person
| image = Solomon Luna.jpg
| caption =
| birth_name =
| birth_date = {{Birth date|1858|10|18}}
| birth_place = Los Lunas, New Mexico, U.S.
| death_date = {{Death date and age|1912|8|29|1858|10|18}}
| death_place = Bernalillo County, New Mexico, U.S.
| resting_place = Mount Calvary Cemetery (Albuquerque, New Mexico), U.S.
| resting_place_coordinates =
| other_names =
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| education =
| alma mater = Saint Louis University
| employer =
| occupation = Rancher, banker
| title =
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| party = Republican Party
| boards =
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| children = 1
| relatives =
| signature = Signature of Solomon Luna (1858–1912).png
}}
Solomon Luna (October 18, 1858 – August 29, 1912) was an American rancher and banker. He became one of the largest sheep owners in New Mexico. By the time of his death, "he was one of the wealthiest and most respected men in New Mexico."
Early life
Luna was born on October 18, 1858, in Los Lunas, New Mexico.{{cite web|title=Solomon Luna|url=http://newmexicohistory.org/centennial/Delegates/Bio-Luna-Solomon.html|website=Office of the State Historian|publisher=New Mexico Commission of Public Records, State Records Center and Archives|access-date=January 3, 2016}} His father was Antonio Luna and his mother, Isabella.
Luna graduated from Saint Louis University.
Career
Luna was a rancher in New Mexico.{{cite book|last1=Sánchez|first1=Joseph P.|last2=Spude|first2=Robert L.|last3=Gómez|first3=Art|title=New Mexico: A History|date=2013|publisher=University of Oklahoma Press|location=Norman, Oklahoma|pages=159–160|isbn=9780806151137|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=basAAQAAQBAJ&q=%22William+B.+Slaughter%22+%22new+mexico%22&pg=PA159|access-date=January 3, 2016}} In the 1880s, he sued William B. Slaughter and his brother John Bunyan Slaughter over rangeland they had claimed; Luna won the lawsuit. Meanwhile, he "became the largest sheep owner in New Mexico."
Luna was the treasurer and tax collector of Valencia County from 1894 onwards. Luna was a delegate at the 1910 state constitutional convention.{{Cite thesis|last=Martinez|first=Stephen C.|title=Civic Ideals in New Mexico: The Sacred Quest for Citizenship|date=2006|publisher=New Mexico Humanities|url=https://nmhumanities.org/NMwomen2020/SecondarySources/Suffrage%20Stephen%20C.%20Martinez,%20Ph.D.,%20Dissertation,%20Civic%20Ideals%20in%20NM,%20quest%20for%20citizenship.pdf}} In 1911, when the New Mexico Territory became the state of New Mexico, Luna was elected in this same capacity. Additionally, Luna served as the president of Bank of Commerce in Albuquerque, New Mexico, from 1904 onwards.
Personal life
Luna was married to Adelina Oero and had no children. His nephew, Maximiliano Luna, served in the Spanish–American War and the Philippine–American War. His son predeceased him. Luna was the uncle of suffragist Nina Otero-Warren.
Luna was a member of the Knights of Columbus and the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks.
Death and legacy
Luna died by drowning in a sheep vat on his ranch in Bernalillo County, New Mexico, on August 29, 1912, aged 53.{{cite news|title=Sol. Luna Is Found Dead On Ranch. Republican Leader of New Mexico Is Found Drowned in Sheep Vat. Could Have Been A U.S. Senator |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/el-paso-herald-sol-luna-is-found-dead-o/158581078/ |newspaper=El Paso Herald |location=El Paso, Texas |date=August 30, 1912 |page=1 |via=Newspapers.com|access-date=2024-11-06}} {{Open access}} He was buried at the Mount Calvary Cemetery in Albuquerque, New Mexico. By the time of his death, "he was one of the wealthiest and most respected men in New Mexico." Los Lunas High School, a high school in his hometown of Los Lunas, was named in his honor. In 1963, he was inducted into the Hall of Great Westerners of the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum.{{cite web |title=Hall of Great Westerners |url=https://nationalcowboymuseum.org/hall-of-great-westerners/ |website=National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum |access-date=November 22, 2019}} The settlement of Luna, New Mexico is named for him.{{Cite web |title=New Mexico place names : a geographical dictionary {{!}} WorldCat.org |url=https://search.worldcat.org/title/420847 |access-date=2025-04-03 |website=search.worldcat.org |language=en}}
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- {{Find a Grave|16156767}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Luna, Solomon}}
Category:People from Los Lunas, New Mexico
Category:People from Bernalillo County, New Mexico
Category:Saint Louis University alumni
Category:Ranchers from New Mexico