Learn About the Rich History of El Cuervo
El Cuervo, formally known as Mauger Estate B&B, is one of New Mexico’s grandest old homes. Maude Talbot, the daughter of a local tavern owner and wholesale liquor distributor, ordered the residence to be constructed in 1897 at a cost of $1,600. Subsequently, Maude returned to her hometown in New York after selling the home to William E. Mauger and his wife Brittania.
The Maugers, a prominent Boston family, purchased the property in 1907 for $4,350. In 1912, they bought the lot to the west and added the two-story sleeping porch. It's said that W.E. Mauger had tuberculosis and it was thought the dry New Mexico weather would heal him. This is why they had the sleeping porch made to have grand windows that opened and allowed the air to flow freely through the room.
W.E. Mauger
Owned the Raabe & Mauger Hardware store on 1st Street. However, his primary business was buying raw wool from the Indians and shipping it back to Boston for resale. The Wool Room, now a gracious bedroom on the B&B’s second floor, was originally an office for the wool business records.
W.E. Mauger died in April of 1923 due to tuberculosis and his wife Brittania Mauger continued to live at the estate until 1932. Mrs. Mauger then moved to a smaller house on Maple Street where she died in 1970 at the age of 102. Many people have stayed at the B&B and claimed to have felt a strong female presence at the home. Some think that the spirit of Brittania stayed behind as she was the primary keeper of the home and her husband.