Welcome to Des Moines ...
The village of Des Moines is located in Union County<1>.
The location of Des Moines has been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (ie- the GNIS).<2>
While we don't have a date for the founding of Des Moines, you might consider that their post office opened in 1906.
When the people of Des Moines refer to themselves (known as a demonym), they frequently use Des Moinesite<3>
From the Census Estimates for 2019, Des Moines has a population of 123 people<4> (see below for details).
Des Moines is 6,640 feet [2,024 m] above sea level.<5> In other words, the altitude of Des Moines is 1¼ mile [or ~2 km] above sea level.
Time Zone: Des Moines lies in the Mountain Time Zone (MST/MDT) and observes daylight saving time
Note: If you travel east from Des Moines, you will leave Mountain Time and cross into the Central Time Zone (CST/CDT).
Des Moines is within the (575) area code.
Population Details ...
Taken from the 2019 Census Estimates, Des Moines had an population of 123 people. This is a decrease of 13.99% since the 2010 Census (or a decrease of 30.51% since the 2000 Census).
At the time of the 2010 Census, Des Moines had a population of 143 people. This makes Des Moines the county's 2nd most populous community.
With a 2010 count of 143 people, the population of Des Moines decreased 19.21% from the 2000 Census (which had a count of 177 people).
More information can be found on the Census Page for Des Moines.
Communities Also Named Des Moines ...
Using our Gazetteer, we found that there are two New Mexico communities named Des Moines: This one is located in Union County and the other is located in Colfax County.
Beyond New Mexico, there are 4 communities that are also named Des Moines - they are located in California, Iowa and Washington.
For more information, see our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Des Moines.
Communities near Des Moines ...
We have created a list of 7 communities that are near Des Moines.
- Branson
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Branson
- Branson is located in Las Animas County (CO)
- Population from the 2020 Census: 72 people
- Former name for Branson:
- Wilson's Switch
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Branson <6>
- Folsom
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Folsom have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Folsom
- Folsom is located in Union County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 53 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Folsom <6>
- Grenville
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Grenville have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grenville
- Grenville is located in Union County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 29 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Grenville <6>
- Capulin
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Capulin
- Capulin is located in Union County
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Capulin <6>
- Kiowa ‑ Historic
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest) - Trinchera
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Trinchera
- Trinchera is located in Las Animas County (CO)
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Trinchera <6>
- Mount Dora
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Dora
- Mount Dora is located in Union County
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Mount Dora <6>
To Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
We have a couple of sections for those tracing their genealogy.
We created a list of cemeteries that are in the area around Des Moines. Our list includes the location of those cemeteries and we provide an overhead view. See our Cemetery List for Des Moines.
Using the information from an 1895 Atlas, we've created a list of communities that were in the area of Des Moines. Our list includes information such as whether the 1895 community had a post office or railroad service. See our List of 1890's Communities around Des Moines.
We also have a detailed list of newspapers that have been published in the area around Des Moines. See our Newspapers Page for Des Moines.
TripAdvisor Tourism Pages for Des Moines ...
Looking for more information about Des Moines? A wonderful source is the TripAdvisor website. We always start with the TripAdvisor Tourism page, where you can read an overview with links that will help you find lodging, restaurants and attractions.
In addition to the Tourism page for Des Moines, there are neighboring communities that also have Tourism pages. More information about those communities can be found on our TripAdvisor Page for Des Moines.
Adding Des Moines to Our Gazetteer ...
We originally found mention of Des Moines in both the FIPS-55 and the GNIS. For more information, see the FIPS and GNIS Codes sections on our Miscellaneous Page.
From our notes, the earliest published mention we've found for Des Moines was in the document titled List of Post Offices from Cameron Blevins and Richard Helbock.<7>
From that list, the Des Moines post office opened in 1906.
For more details, see References and Mentions for Des Moines.
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Des Moines. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for State of New Mexico: www.newmexico.gov/
Footnotes ...
| <1> | If you're interested in how the shape of New Mexico's counties, including Union, have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries. |
| <2> | The location has been supplied by the Geographic Names Information System - which is maintained by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). While these values should be definitive, we found that accuracy can vary and you should double-check the location if accuracy is required. |
| <3> | A demonym is the name for a resident of a community which is usually derived from (or is related to) the name of that community. In other words, it's how the residents of Des Moines refer to themselves. It's important to note that there aren't any rules for taking a village's name and turning it into a demonym. A demonym is informal and while the majority of Des Moines may use one name, keep in mind that others may use something different. |
| <4> | Population counts have been provided by the U.S. Census Bureau. For more detail, please visit our Census Page for Des Moines. |
| <5> | The elevation is an estimate for the area around Des Moines - it will be higher in some places and lower in others. |
| <6> | While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program. |
| <7> | A copy of their list with background information can be found at: https://cblevins.github.io/us-post-offices/data-biography/ |