Viejo San Acacio (1853, 7,820 feet) was founded only after efforts in the 1840s to establish a town here on Culebra Creek failed because of resistance from the Ute Indians. Settlers were finally successful, according to local folklore, because their patron, San Acacio, a Roman soldier, appeared on horseback and frightened away the Utes. Townfolk built a chapel in thanksgiving. Its ruins linger east of the present church, between the graveyard and the irrigation ditch. The town has been called Viejo (old) San Acacio since the establishment in 1904 of new San Acacio.
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