QUAY

county, eastern New Mexico, U.S., bordered on the east by Texas. It lies in the Great Plains, on the Llano Estacado, or Staked Plain. Isolated mesas and Tucumcari Mountain (4,956 feet ) rise over its semiarid, yucca-covered terrain, which is carved by many arroyos and canyons. The Canadian River flows eastward through Quay county, receiving the waters of Ute Creek at Ute Reservoir, site of Ute Lake State Park. Apache Indians hunted buffalo in the region when Spanish exploration of New Mexico began in the 16th century. By the early 18th century, the Comanches had arrived. After the Mexican War, traders, mostly Mexican, called Comancheros encouraged the Comanches to raid ranches for cattle, which they bought from the Indians for resale. Nevertheless, Anglo-American settlement increased in the late 19th century, and Quay county was established in 1903. Irrigation made Quay county a productive agricultural area in which cattle, wheat, and sorghum are raised; tourism is also important to the economy. Tucumcari is the county seat. Area 2,875 square miles (7,447 square km). Pop. (1990) 10,823.