History
The Kit Carson House stands on Kit Carson Avenue in central Taos, a short walk east of the plaza. The oldest section of the building dates to 1825, when it was raised as a typical four-room adobe residence by local masons working in the vernacular tradition of the upper Rio Grande. Christopher Houston Carson purchased the house in 1843 as a wedding gift for his bride Josefa Jaramillo, and the couple expanded the structure over the following decades.
The house is built of load-bearing sun-dried mud brick on stone footings, with walls roughly two feet thick finished originally in mud plaster. The plan follows the New Mexican linear room file, organized around a small interior placita, with deep-set window openings, low peeled-viga ceilings, a flat roof drained by canales, and hand-adzed wooden lintels. Successive nineteenth-century alterations introduced milled woodwork in the Territorial idiom, but the underlying earthen fabric remains intact. Drawings and photographs of the building were recorded by the Historic American Buildings Survey under HABS NM-28-TAO-2.
Carson, the frontiersman, scout, and Union officer during the New Mexico Campaign, used the house as his domestic base between extended absences in the field. He and Josefa raised seven children in the building, and both died in 1868 shortly after returning to Taos from Colorado.
The Kit Carson House was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1966 under reference 66000948 and designated a National Historic Landmark the same year. It is operated today as a historic house museum by the Kit Carson Memorial Foundation and is open to the public. The property is one of the principal anchors of the Taos adobe district, alongside the Blumenschein House on Ledoux Street and the Couse-Sharp studios on the same block.
Common questions
What is the Kit Carson House?
The Kit Carson House is a historic house museum in Taos, New Mexico, dedicated to the life of frontiersman Kit Carson (1809-1868). Built in 1825 as an example of Spanish Colonial architecture, it served as Carson's home from 1843 until his death and is now owned by the local Masonic fraternity.
When was the Kit Carson House built?
The Kit Carson House was built in 1825. Kit Carson made it his home in 1843 and lived in the house until his death in 1868.
Where is the Kit Carson House located?
The Kit Carson House is located at 113 Kit Carson Road in central Taos, New Mexico. It sits along the street named in the frontiersman's honor in the historic core of Taos.
Can you visit the Kit Carson House?
Yes, the Kit Carson House operates as a museum dedicated to Kit Carson's life. The property is owned by the local Masonic fraternity, which administers it as a historic house museum. Visit details should be confirmed directly with the operating organization.
What architectural style is the Kit Carson House?
The Kit Carson House is an example of Spanish Colonial architecture, the adobe building tradition brought to New Mexico under Spanish rule and continued through the Mexican period. The 1825 construction date places it within the late Mexican-era adobe building tradition of Taos.
Why is the Kit Carson House historically significant?
The Kit Carson House was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1963 and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places under reference number 66000948. Its significance derives from its long association with Kit Carson, a central figure of the 19th-century American West.
