The 1848 Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo ended the Mexican-American War and established Mesilla as a Mexican holding. Cura Ramon Ortiz settled families here from El Paso del Norte and pre-territorial New Mexico. Border disputes just north of town continued until soldiers raised the U.S. flag on this plaza on November 16, 1854, marking the signing of the Gadsden Purchase, the last major territorial acquisition within the contiguous United States. The “M” and “54” painted on the nearby bandstand commemorate the event.