Luna Mansion, Los Lunas, NM (History, Part 2)

Josefita Otero dies on October 19th, 1951. But dies in San Diego CA.

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Josefita Manderfield (1874-1951) was the daughter of William and Josefa Salazar Manderfield. Manderfield’s father was the founder of the Santa Fe New Mexican. She was married to George Washington Armijo, who was a Rough Rider and later a delegate to the NM Constitutional Convention. Manderfield and Armijo had one child, Theodore Roosevelt Manderfield Armijo.

The couple soon divorced as rumors of Armijo physically abusing Manderfield surfaced. Following her divorce from Armijo, Manderfield married Eduardo (Lalo) M. Otero, son of Emanuel Otero and Eloisa Luna, and a nephew of Solomon Luna. Otero’s father, Emanuel, was later killed in the Manzano/Estancia area over a land dispute in 1883. His widow, Eloisa, later married Alfred M. Bergere and moved to Santa Fe. Josefita Manderfield’s new husband, Eduardo Otero insisted on adopting Manderfield’s son, Teddy. The couple also had a child of their own, Nina Otero Warren.

After his uncle Solomon Luna’s death in 1912, Manderfield’s husband Eduardo inherited the family mansion. Manderfield added columns to the front of the mansion and painted murals throughout. Manderfield and Otero entertained dignitaries such as the President of Mexico and President Theodore Roosevelt. Roosevelt was known to often hunt in the Gila on the Otero land holdings, and also became the godfather to Manderfield’s son, Teddy. Teddy was the last of the family to reside in the mansion. Manderfield, or “Pepe” as she was known, was also referred to as the “Mistress of the Mansion”, and is the photographer for a majority of the photos found in this collection

Oldest newspaper article appears in October 30th, 1975. The mansion has been bought from the previous private owner and is now under restoration.

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In 1976, the Mansion is sold again.

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References:
Center for Southwest Research, General Library, University of New Mexico.

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