CIBOLA

county, western New Mexico, U.S., bordered on the west by Arizona. It is a scenic desert area with rolling terrain marked by mesas and sandstone rocks, in the Colorado Plateau. West of the Continental Divide is an area of plateaus and canyons; the Zuni Mountains, the Ramah (Navajo) Indian Reservation (including El Morro National Monument), and part of the Zuni (Pueblo) Indian Reservation (including the Hwikuh ruins) are in western Cibola county. The San Mateo Mountains, including 11,301-foot- (3,436-metre-) high Mount Taylor, an extinct volcano, lie in the northeast. The Rio San Jose crosses the northeast, and much of the county's mountainous area is in the Cibola National Forest. The Acoma (Pueblo), Laguna (Pueblo), and Caoncito (Navajo) Indian reservations cover most of the eastern third of the county. Beginning in the pre-Columbian era, travelers left drawings and, later, signatures on Inscription Rock at El Morro National Monument (q.v.), a mesa where Pueblo Indians lived from about 1275 to the early 14th century. The Hwikuh pueblo was one of the purported cities of gold that Francisco Vzques de Coronado conquered for Spain in 1540. Cibola county was part of Valencia county until 1981, when it was established separately with Grants as its seat. In the late 20th century Cibola county was an important producer of uranium, but a decline in demand led to the closing of its mines by 1990, and its population declined more than 20 percent between 1980 and 1990. Since then, new state prison facilities and light manufacturing have appeared, bolstering the economy. Area 4,539 square miles (11,757 square km). Pop. (1990) 23,794.