The unexcavated pueblo ruins at Abó date back to the 1300s, though there is evidence that Mogollon pit house builders had occupied the area beginning around 1150 AD. Located in a pass that opens to the Rio Grande Valley, this was a major trading center for the area.

Fray Francisco Fonte built a small church at Abó beginning in about 1622. Then in 1629, Francisco de Acevedo, who was assigned to the Salinas district by officials in Santa Fe, enlarged the Mission of San Gregorio de Abó to reflect its importance as the headquarters church of the Salinas district.This church, which was completed in 1659, employs buttresses on the 40-foot high walls. It is one of the few remaining examples of medieval architecture in the United States.

 

The late afternoon sun illuminates the ruins of Mission San Gregorio de Abó. Photo by Jim Hunter.