Founded in 1740 as Belen on the west bank of the Rio Grande by Captain Don Diego Torres and his brother-in-law, Antonio Salazar, the community relied on subsistence farming and ranching until the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad arrived in 1881. The Belen Cut-Off, built in 1908 to reduce rail grades through the Rocky Mountains and ease rail transit from Chicago to California, placed Belen on the main transcontinental route linking the Eastern United States to the West, established it as New Mexico's rail hub, and brought commerce and prosperity to Valencia County and the region. Its rail yard contained miles of track, a roundhouse, an ice plant, and the depot. After New Mexico attained statehood, Belen became a Village in 1918, a Town in 1940, and the current City of Belen was incorporated in 1966. Each year on Thanksgiving weekend, the community celebrates its culture and history with an electric light parade and by illuminating the city with thousands of lights.