Diamond Reminiscences: 75 Years Of NMGS Fall Field Conferences
— Bonnie Frey, Barry Kues, Jennifer Lindline, Kelsey McNamara, Matt Zimmerer, Jim Fassett, Shari Kelly, Rick Kelly, Mary E. Dowse, John Shomaker, John Hawley, and Bill (William E.) King

The first NMGS field conference was held on November 3 to November 5, 1950, and surveyed the northern San Juan Basin of New Mexico and Colorado. The 95 participants received a guidebook (cost $5) of 152 pages, including road logs (for a total of 304 miles and 17 stops) and 24 articles. Since then, NMGS has conducted Fall Field Conferences with accompanying guidebooks each year (except for 2020 because of the COVID pandemic), a span of 75 years. No other state geological society or survey has a record of field conferences that even approaches this. These conferences have explored every part of New Mexico, and their guidebooks, taken together, represent an indispensable record of all aspects of the state’s geology, ranging from summary and overview papers to much original research, as well as roadside guides to the geological features along most of New Mexico’s highways and a considerable number of back roads.