Socorro - Hardcoverby Baldwin G. Burr (Author) The town of Socorro got its name from the "succor" travelers found at the northern end of a 90 mile long desert trail known as the Jornada del Muerto, the "Journey of the Dead Man," in central New Mexico. The village of Socorro, located at the site of the ancient 1600s Piro Pueblo, was first settled sometime around 1816 as an agricultural community. The discovery of silver at Socorro Peak and the Magdalena Mountains and the