It’s kind of a funny name but “La Tune” is the real name of a real, federal prison that has stood in the upper valley, near Anthony, for almost a century.
The feds are shutting down a number of prisons across the USA and La Tuna, in Anthony, west of El Paso, will be one of them. Originally opened in 1932 as a “self sustaining, agricultural” federal prison, La Tuna will be closed due to, (mostly) maintenance and staffing issues.
La Tuna was named for the nickname of a cactus, (the nopal cactus), that grows abundantly in the area. It was an “agricultural” prison for medium security inmates who tended the fields, growing fruits, veggies and tending a few head of cattle for dairy products for the inmates…