It gained the nickname "Hub City" after the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway completed a line through it in 1907.

[4] The city is geographically near the center of New Mexico, and is a significant transportation hub that includes access to rails, Interstate Highway 25, and air at Valencia County's only public airport.

The genízaros, Native Americans with origins as slaves and servants of colonists, were important in the frontier defense of New Mexico.

Their settlement in Belén was established to protect the southern border of the colony from Apache raiders.

By the 1790s, Belén had established a city center known as Plaza Vieja, or Old Town, and had grown from a paraje, or precinct, to a partido, or district, with a population of 1,695.

[8] In 1880, the Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe Railway reached Belén during the construction of a rail line to El Paso.

In 1884, the United States General Land Office, through the authority of President Ulysses S. Grant, established the Town of Belén.

By the turn of the century, local merchant John Becker had designed a commercial and residential plan for the town.

[5] Prior to the Belén Cutoff, trains used the steep Raton Pass on the Colorado and New Mexico border.

Facilities at Belén included a large roundhouse and a classification yard, also serving branches southward to El Paso and northward through Albuquerque to Colorado.

In 1927, Belén native and movie stunt pilot Arthur C. Goebel took up the challenge by James D. Dole, the Hawaii pineapple magnate, to race with other pilots to be the first to fly nonstop from the mainland United States to the Hawaii territory, in what is known as the Dole Air Race.

Goebel landed first in Hawaii after a nonstop 26 hours, 17 minutes, and 33 seconds, receiving the top prize of $25,000.

[10] The world's first atomic bomb, in unassembled pieces, traveled through Belén in July 1945 en route to the Trinity site at what is now White Sands Missile Range.

Located in downtown Belén in 1945 was Roy's Cafe, a restaurant where military and science personnel would dine since it had the necessary security clearance.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 4.7 square miles (12 km2) of land.

This climate type occurs primarily on the periphery of the true deserts in low-latitude semiarid steppe regions.

Belén's central business district and downtown is located along Becker and Dalies avenues, stretching from the BNSF rail yard to Main Street.

Downtown Belen features structures dating back to the early 20th century when the railroad came to town.

It is a two-story building that opened in 1907, one year before the completion of the Belén Cutoff, to provide room and board to railroaders and others passing through.

[12] The original Belén rail depot is adjacent to the Harvey House grounds, owned by BNSF and used as office space for the railroad.

Originally designed as a Swiss chalet, the Scholle building has more than eight miles of rail built into its walls.

The Oñate Theater, located on Dalies Avenue, was built in the early 20th century, showing many major marquee films.

This New Mexico matanza tradition, hosted by the Hispano Chamber of Valencia County, involves slaughtering and cooking 45 pigs, then serving the free food, such as chicharrones, to more than 10,000 patrons.

[18] The fiestas, or parties, draw thousands of people from across the state and country to Belen for religious observance, and to celebrate with a carnival.

Follow the Star is an annual celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ and pays homage to the Christian heritage of Belen (Spanish for Bethlehem), held each December.

Along the path the Christmas story is told with live characters and music by sponsoring churches.

It is the site of Belen's annual ham radio operator event, as well as a fishing derby that takes place at the acequia, or irrigation canal, that runs through the park.

It primarily serves general aviation, including business activity from jet and multi-engine aircraft.

The BNSF Rail Yard in Belen serves as a major division point for the Southern Transcon.

People born in Belén: People now living in Belén: Atrisco Heritage Academy HS, Kirtland Air Force Base, and National Museum of Nuclear Science & History are adjacent to but outside of the city limits.Rio Grande HS and Sandia Peak Tramway are near but not in the city limits.