Juan Cruz Lujan Character Analysis in The Worst Hard Time

– A sheep rancher who had the oldest home in Cimarron County, “up north in Carrumpa Valley.” Lujan was born in Mexico in 1858 and ran away from home while still a little boy to work as an ox team driver on the Santa Fe Trail and Cimarron Cutoff. Juan married Virginia Valdez, a member of the wealthy Baca family, which managed sheep all over New Mexico. The couple built a chapel on their ranch in No Man’s Land, which became a meeting place for Catholics and Mexicans in Cimarron County. They had nine children, though five of them died after they were born or when they were in their infancy.

Juan Cruz Lujan Character Timeline in The Worst Hard Time

The timeline below shows where the character Juan Cruz Lujan appears in The Worst Hard Time. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.

Westward Expansion and the Settlement of the Southern Plains Theme Icon

...They had more history in the Panhandle than any whites in Boise City. Juan Cruz Lujan and his brother, Francisco, had a sheep ranch in Carrumpa Valley that was the oldest... (full context)

Environmental Devastation and the Dust Bowl Theme Icon

Bill Baker asked Lujan if there was ever a time when the town had been so dry. Lujan was... (full context)

Economic Hardship and Lessons of the Great Depression Theme Icon

Though Lujan had lived in No Man’s Land longer than any Anglo, he and other people of... (full context)