After a number of years of trying to figure out what to name our home and ranch we finally decided on Angle of Repose . . . from Wallace Stegner’s Pulitzer Prize winning novel of the same name.
An engineering term, the Angle of Repose represents the steepest angle of a surface at which a mass of loose or fragmented material will remain standing in a pile on a surface, rather than sliding or crumbling away; the angle will vary according to the composition of the material.
Since this has always been one of my favorite books and David is an engineer we were surprised that it took a bit time for us to realize that we are in fact in our angle of repose.
In 1910 E.A. (Al) Clemens decided he needed a place nearer town than his Esteline Ranch (now Monica Flats Forest Service land). July 7, 1910 he paid the back taxes ($39.92) on Joseph Bowers 160 acre homestead, south of Magdalena, New Mexico, and west of Kelly. By September he had gone through the legal maneuvers of obtaining a clear title and he started building.
Clemens built not so much a home, as a fortress. lacardio Armijo, who had a place on up the canyon helped with the construction. The stone was most likely cut locally as there were some excellent stonecutters in the area. Before the winter set in the walls were rising and the corner stone with A.L. 1910 was in place.
The house is a center hall design with the living room and bedrooms on one side; the kitchen pantry and maids room on the other. The wide center hall was a walk-through and the house was entered from either side. Screened grilles over every door allowed for ventilation throughout the house.
The heavy front door, and probably the doors off the hall, were reportedly brought from Clemen's home town of Hannibal, MO. Every door has several locks and can be locked from both sides. The kitchen door has 5 locks.
The attention to detail and the skill of the builders shows in the bay window. An added touch is the mounting stone under the window. The eastern pine floors are bordered and the 12 foot ceilings have boxed beams. There are small windowed niches in the bedroom that are similar to those in European castles. Also in the bedroom wall is a hollow space that Clemens probably used as a wall safe.
There is the infamous "back porch" which Clemens had torn off and replaced three times before he was satisfied. He required that it be perfect whether he was alighting from the buggy, dismounting from his horse or walking. A heroic task for any carpenter.
Under this porch is the doorway to the basement and the tunnels. A few steps down and there is a cellar for storage; through this into a large space with tunnels branching out in several directions. What the original purpose of these 4 ft. high tunnels was, is open for speculation. Over the years they have had many uses including serving as a super Spook House at a Halloween party Nova and Fred Johnson attended in the late 1920s.
Over the years Al Clemens added to his acreage around his stone house and named his holdings Clenaln. Clemens lived at Clenaln until his death in 1924.
He was buried "east of the house under an apple tree."
From 1924 to 1927 the house was in a limbo created by lawyers banks that were in receivership, i.e. the Depression; W.B. Bunton finally acquired title. The Bunton family held the ranch until 1955 when they sold to Donald and March Hutchison. in 1964 it was again sold; to G. R. Seely for $63,900, a long way from Al Clemens orginal investment of $31.92.
The house passed through several other hands before being acquired by Punch and Inez Harris. The Harris' made their fascinating stone fortress into a distinctive home.
– (reprinted, with permission, from a 1982 issue of the Magdalena Mountain Mail)
History of The Doors
It's our understanding that when Clemens was still living at his Esteline Ranch he was held captive by desperados for 3 or 4 days before he was able to escape. Because of this experience Clemens became quite cautious. With the exception of the small second bedroom and the living room every room has a exit to the outside. From the small bedroom & bath there is a trap door that drops to the underground tunnels. Until the 1950s there was a tunnel that led over 100 yards away from the house for escape. Each of the interior doors has numerous locks that can still be hand-turned to lock.Back
The Gravesite
Since we moved here we looked, unsuccessfully, for Clemens grave. When the grandson of the Bunton's paid us a visit he took us to the gravesite of Al Clemens. It is actually approximately 300 yards south and west of the main house. . . we had noticed a small pile of rocks and an old 1920s coffee mug without a handle although for some reason never associated this with the gravesite. Evidently Mrs. Bunton would put flowers in the old mug each week. We were also told that Mr. Clemens was buried in the same spot as his faithful collie, name unknown.
Unfortunately the gravesite had been abandoned over the years and we have added a brass plate to commemorate his life and the house he built. Back
An ownership history of our home
1910-1924 Edward Allen Clemens
1 - The grandson of W.B. Bunton, Bill Bunton, spent many summers here and stopped by to visit his childhood vacation spot in 2001.
2 - The Hutchinsons were one of many families killed over the years on Sadillo Hill in a car accident.
3 - Whilst at a bead show at Santa Fe, New Mexico and talking with another artist, Alice Warder Seeley, David and I discovered that she had been to our home as the then wife of one of the Seeley sons.
Since we moved here in 1994 six people have visited who previously lived here or had family contact with this remarkable home. Many on their last journey before leaving this plane of existence. Some were brought by family friends, all had a story to tell and left us with a feeling of being so very fortunate to be living here . . . and tears in our eyes.Back to top of page