Colonias are small, under-represented communities often characterized by poor socioeconomic conditions. There are 142 HUD-designated colonias in southern New Mexico. There is a great need for information on colonias: government agencies and community planners want to improve infrastructure and allocate resources to serve colonia populations. As part of the effort to compile information about colonias, the UNM Bureau of Business and Economic Research (BBER) developed a technique for tabulating U.S. Census Bureau data for colonia geography. This article explains the technique, demonstrated by an estimated population and household count for the Rancho Grande colonia in Catron County. Location coordinates for 109 colonias provided by New Mexico State University. Ortho-photography images and Census Bureau block boundaries obtained through the UNM Resource Geographic Information System (RGIS) Program clearinghouse. Illustrated with an ortho-photograph map
