WHEREAS, the first Hispanic settlement took place at San Juan de los Caballeros at San Juan Pueblo under Governor and Captain General don Juan de Onate; and

WHEREAS, many New Mexicans today trace their ancestry from that Spanish colony; and

WHEREAS, at least as late as 1607, a party led by Captain Juan Martinez de Montoya founded la Villa de Santa Fe, which became the permanent capital of New Mexico in 1610; and

WHEREAS, for four hundred years the people of New Mexico have survived together, Hispanics and Pueblo Indians living side by side in what is the oldest co-existence in the United States; and

WHEREAS, New Mexico has become a unique part of the United States for the last 150 years, and the same historical attitude of accommodation has prevailed,

NOW, THEREFORE, I, Gary E. Johnson, Governor of the State of New Mexico, do hereby proclaim the year of 1998 as "The Year of the Cuartocentenario" and direct the New Mexico Office of Cultural Affairs to coordinate and lead in statewide commemorative activities.