Des Moines New Mexico Map
Explore Des Moines, New Mexico, with this interactive street and satellite map.
This page also offers TOPO MAPS — the official USGS topographic sheets — plus USGS aerial imagery, a labelled USNG grid overlay, a distance and bearing tool, and a GPS grid-reference readout. See How to Use This Map below.
Interactive Map of Des Moines, New Mexico
How to Use This Des Moines, New Mexico Map
This interactive map shows the street layout and satellite imagery for Des Moines, New Mexico. Use the Map and Satellite buttons above to switch between street map and aerial imagery views. Use the + and − buttons to zoom in or out, or scroll your mouse wheel while holding the Control key to zoom. On a touchscreen, use a two-finger pinch gesture. Drag the map to pan to any area of New Mexico or beyond.
Click ⛶ Fullscreen to expand the map to fill your screen. To return to the normal page view, press the Escape key, click the ✕ Exit Fullscreen button that appears above the map, or on a mobile device tap the back button (Android) or the close icon (iOS).
TOPO MAPS — NEW. Click the green 🔍 Search Maps button below the map to open a second map with a Base map row offering three choices. OSM is the standard OpenStreetMap street map. Topo shows the official USGS topographic maps from The National Map — contours, hydrography, land cover and shaded relief, the same mapping used for hiking, hunting and back-country navigation in the Adirondacks, the Catskills and the Finger Lakes. Imagery shows USGS aerial photography, mostly 1-metre NAIP. The search box finds any US town, county or landmark by name, so you are not limited to Des Moines.
Reading the map like a paper quad. Click Grid to overlay the U.S. National Grid (USNG), labelled along the edges exactly as a printed topographic sheet is — at normal zoom the squares are one kilometre across, so you can read a six-figure grid reference by eye and judge distance directly off the map. Click Measure, then tap two points, to get the distance between them together with the grid bearing in degrees and mils, the true bearing, and the magnetic bearing to set on a compass.
Click 📍 My position to take a single GPS reading from your device. It marks where you are and reports your position as a USNG grid reference as well as plain latitude and longitude — USNG being the format FEMA and US search and rescue teams work from — with a Copy position button so you can paste it straight into a text message. It takes one reading and stops, rather than tracking continuously, to conserve your battery. Note that map tiles need cell coverage, but a GPS reading does not — your coordinates stay correct even where the map itself cannot load.
| City | Des Moines |
| State | New Mexico (NM) |
| County | Union County |
| Country | United States of America |
| Timezone | Mountain Time (America/Denver) |
| Latitude | 36.761136 |
| Longitude | -103.83413 |
| Population | 117 |
| Density | 51.9 /km² |
| Incorporated | Yes |
| ZIP Code | 88418 |
| Area Code | 575 |
| County Seat | Clayton |
| School District | Des Moines Municipal Schools |
About Des Moines, New Mexico
Des Moines is a locality in Union County, New Mexico, United States. It is a small community with a population of 117. The population density is 51.9 people per km². Des Moines is located at 36.7611°N, 103.8341°W. It observes the Mountain Time (America/Denver) timezone. Des Moines is an incorporated locality. ZIP code: 88418.Des Moines occupies a vast, high-altitude expanse where the horizon stretches thin and clear against the pale, morning sky. It lies 111.9 miles northeast of Las Vegas, NM (from Las Vegas, NM: bearing 43°T), and is situated 34.9 miles east-southeast of Raton. The North Branch Corrumpa Creek carves a quiet, persistent path through the terrain, its course marked by the subtle shifting of grasses and the occasional gathering of cottonwoods along the banks. To the south, the presence of Pinabete Canyon creates a deep, shadowed fold in the earth, while the distant, serrated silhouette of Wire Hill marks the boundary of the plains. As the sun begins its descent, the light catches the volcanic soil, turning the landscape into a bruised palette of ochre and violet that seems to hold the heat of the day long after the shadows have lengthened.
Des Moines maintains a steady, quiet pace shaped by the legacy of the railroad and the enduring rhythms of ranching that define the local economy. The legacy of geologic upheaval remains a constant neighbor, with the dramatic presence of Capulin Volcano National Monument standing as a silent reminder of the forces that shaped this region. Travelers often pass through on their way to see the sheer drop of Folsom Falls or to find the stillness of Weatherly Lake, yet the character of Des Moines remains rooted in its own solitary history. Life here proceeds without fanfare, anchored by the cycles of the seasons and the simple, honest work of those who tend the land under the expansive, unblinking dome of the high plains.
Nearby Outdoor Places
- Capulin Volcano National Monument (National Monument) — 7.0 mi, 280° W · 791 acres
- Folsom Museum (Museum) — 7.4 mi, 322° NW
- Comanche National Grassland (National Grassland) — 30.1 mi, 022° N · 444k acres
- Sugarite Canyon State Park (State Park) — 32.0 mi, 293° NW
- Kiowa National Grassland (National Grassland) — 32.2 mi, 100° E · 137k acres
- South Finial (Public Artwork) — 34.9 mi, 286° W
- New Mexico / Colorado state line (Monument) — 39.5 mi, 294° NW
- Herzstein Memorial Museum Historic Site (Attraction) — 41.9 mi, 120° SE
- Maxwell National Wildlife Refuge (National Wildlife Refuge) — 42.0 mi, 254° W · 5,926 acres
- Hogback (Historic Ruins) — 44.9 mi, 343° N
- Santa Fe Trail Cimarron Route (Monument) — 46.2 mi, 093° E
- Brown Sheep Camp (Historic Ruins) — 46.9 mi, 341° N
- Louden-Henritze Archaeology Museum (Museum) — 47.0 mi, 307° NW
- Black Mesa (Monument) — 47.7 mi, 075° E
- San Isabel National Forest (National Forest) — 71.9 mi, 305° NW · 1.1M acres
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About This Des Moines Map Page
This page provides an embedded street and satellite map of Des Moines, New Mexico. Coordinates: 36.761136, -103.83413. Live weather conditions are sourced directly from the National Weather Service. Real-time local and world news feeds keep the page current.
Detailed location data for Des Moines includes the ZIP code (88418), telephone area code (575), county seat of Union County (Clayton), and school district assignment (Des Moines Municipal Schools).
Search Maps opens a second, independent map. It searches OpenStreetMap for any US town, county or landmark by name; offers USGS topographic maps and USGS aerial imagery as base layers; overlays a labelled U.S. National Grid (USNG) so the map can be read like a printed topographic quad; measures distance and grid, true and magnetic bearings between any two points; and takes a single GPS fix reporting your position as a USNG grid reference and as latitude and longitude. Map tiles require cell coverage, but a GPS position does not, so the coordinates remain correct even where the map cannot load.
Location data is drawn from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) and cross-verified against 2020 US Census records by coordinate proximity. Population figures are sourced from the 2020 US Census.
| Page generated | September 2026 |
| Location data | SimpleMaps US Cities Database; coordinates matched to USGS GNIS definitive data |
| Map layers | Google Maps; © OpenStreetMap contributors; USGS The National Map topographic and aerial imagery (public domain); magnetic declination from NOAA NCEI (World Magnetic Model) |
| Wikipedia validation | Article content matched to USGS GNIS coordinates via Wikipedia geosearch API. |
