Columbus is an incorporated village in Luna County, New Mexico, United States, about 3 miles (5 km) north of the Mexican border.

In 1902, the village was moved 3 miles (5 km) north when the El Paso and Southwestern Railroad built its Columbus station.

[5] About 1905, it was a very small town with a population of about 100, two of those early settlers being Colonel Andrew O. Bailey and Louis Heller.

By 1915, the town had 700 residents, the Columbus State Bank was built, four hotels were constructed, and several stores and a Baptist church were also established.

[6] On March 9, 1916, on the orders of Mexican revolutionary leader Pancho Villa, Colonel Francisco Beltrán, Colonel Candelario Cervantes, General Nicolás Fernández, General Pablo López, and others led 500 men in an attack against the town, which was garrisoned by a detachment of the 13th Cavalry Regiment.

[7] Villa's army burned a part of the town and killed seven or eight soldiers and 10 residents before retreating back into Mexico.

United States President Woodrow Wilson responded to the Columbus raid by sending 10,000 troops under Brigadier General John J. Pershing to Mexico to pursue Villa.

[8] The Pershing expedition brought prosperity and international attention to Columbus and a realization that war had come to the border of the United States.

The army decided to close their camp, and the El Paso and Southwestern Railroad stopped service in Columbus.

[10] In July 2011, Columbus dissolved its police force after a gun-smuggling scandal that involved its village officials and others.

[12] Columbus is in southern Luna County about 3 miles (5 km) north of the border between the United States and Mexico.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the village of Columbus has a total area of 4.7 square miles (12.1 km2), all land.

Columbus features in the 2008 film The Shepherd: Border Patrol starring Jean-Claude Van Damme.