The story so far
from the U.S. CensusBetween the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 420 to 487 (+16%). Half of its homes were built before 1971.
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Sunshine yet — the old photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
Be one of the first
Start Sunshine’s collection
The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Sunshine’s history is told.
0 of 10 decades since 1900 have photos 📦Share a family photoSign in to add one+10By decade
Sunshine, decade by decade
Before
2000
2000
No old photos in the archives yetWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
📷 Add from your albumNational Register of Historic Places
Nothing in Sunshine is on the National Register yet
That’s true of most small towns. It doesn’t mean Sunshine has no history, only that no one has written up a nomination. The closest listed place is Luna County Courthouse and Park in Deming, 9 miles away.
Sunshine and the nearest listed places
Dashed line = Sunshine. Tap a dot.
How a place gets listed
1Talk to the stateEvery nomination goes through the State Historic Preservation Office. Owners, towns and historical societies can start one.
2Try a local or state list firstMany states keep their own register with a shorter form, a common first step for old barns, halls and schoolhouses.
3Write it upA nomination covers the history, photos and a map. Luna County Courthouse and Park’s page links to a real one.
Know an old place in Sunshine?A mill, a schoolhouse, a cellar hole, a church: add a photo of it to Sunshine’s story, or a memory of it.
📷 Add a photo of an old placeNational Park Service, National Register of Historic Places · photos from Wikimedia Commons
Then & now
When neighbors add old photos, retakes from the same spot appear here side by side.