Lew Wallace in New Mexico

One of the great myths: Lew Wallace spent most of his time as New Mexico territorial governor writing his epic novel Ben-Hur.  And as a result, violence ran rampant during his less than three years in Santa Fe.

But the book was ¾ finished when he headed west, and he finished writing it late at night and during free time. Ben-Hur didn’t impact his job.

And while there was still violence in New Mexico, the Lincoln County War basically ended with the big showdown called the Battle of Lincoln in mid-July 1878, more than two months before Wallace arrived.