Doña Ana County is situated in southern New Mexico within the northern reaches of the Chihuahan Desert. It's land area covers 3,804 square miles.  Its southern border being the Mexican state of Chihuahua, the east bordered by the White Sands Missile Range and the Tularosa Basin, on the west by the SW New Mexico plains and on the north the Jornada del Muerto. Terrain elevations range from the peak of the Organ Mountain at roughly 8711 feet to the Rio Grande River floor at Sunland Park at 3707 feet.  Figure 1 shows the major terrain features and roads within the county. In the 1990 census there were 135,510 people living in the county. The largest city within the county is Las Cruces (1990 pop. 62,126). Figure 2 shows a view of Las Cruces from the west mesa looking east. Figure 3 provides an aerial view of the Las Cruces urban area.  Notice the contrasting urban/desert interface on the east and west sides of town.  Other major cities within the county are Sunland Park (1990 pop. 8179), Anthony (1990 pop. 5160), Hatch (1990 pop. 1136), Santa Teresa and Chaparral (1990 pop. 2962).  It is anticipated that the population will grow to more than 300,000 people by 2015.  While much of county can be classified as rural, with agriculture as the primary land use, the county has vast undeveloped desert land.

Last updated February 22, 2001