Santa Fe National Historic Trail
Details: You can almost hear the whoops and cries of "All's set!" as trail hands hitched their oxen to freight wagons carrying cargo between western Missouri and Santa Fe, New Mexico. Follow the Santa Fe National Historic Trail through five states and you'll find adventure and evidence of past travelers who made this remarkable trip before you!
Due to the length of the Santa Fe National Historic Trail, be sure to consult local weather sources for the region you'll be visiting. Check out the forecast with the National Weather Service and search for the area you'd like to visit: weather.gov
Directions: You can visit many sites of the Santa Fe National Historic Trail over the 900-mile historic route that crosses five states.
100th Meridian Marker
The 100th degree of longitude long served as a boundary between nations: first between France and Spain; later as the boundary for the Louisiana Purchase between Spain and the U.S.; and finally between Mexico and the U.S. after 1821. Located in Dodge City, the meridian symbolizes the physical demarcation where the east ended and the west began.
Site Information
Location (Downtown Dodge City near the intersection of Central Ave. and Wyatt Earp Blvd.)
Safety Considerations
3 Trails Greenway, Hickman Mills School District Segment, Kansas City
This 2,000-foot trail segment, located on the property of the Hickman Mills School District, begins just northeast of the district’s administration building (at 9000 Old Santa Fe Road, near Eastern Avenue). No ruts or swales are visible, and the exact route along this corridor is not precisely known, but it passes to the north of the building and follows a gently meandering route that ends near the corner of 91st Street and Old Santa Fe Road.
Site Information
Location (The segment begins northeast of the district administration building at 9000 Old Santa Fe Road, Kansas City, MO)
The trail segment includes a developed walking trail, interpretive exhibits, and wagon silhouettes on Hickman Mills School District property. It also connects to a large, two-mile-long trail project.
Safety considerations
Albert Gallatin Boone’s Trading Post and Jim Bridger Store
Mountain men traversed the American west some years before the national trails came into existence, and in later years these individuals oftentimes settled and became prominent citizens in their chosen communities.
Mountain man Jim Bridger, who settled in Jackson County on a large farm north of New Santa Fe, also owned a mercantile store in Westport where all Santa Fe Trail traffic had been steadily passing since Westport was founded in 1834. Next door to Bridger’s, a grandson of famed mountain man Daniel Boone, Albert Gallatin Boone, had owned a trading post at one of Kansas City’s most historic street corners and in one of its most historic buildings.
Another Westport building was erected in 1850 by Cyprien Chouteau who sold it in 1866 to famed mountain man Jim Bridger where his son-in-law operated a store. Both buildings still stand, though heavily modified to accommodate modern operations.
The Ewing-Boone store at the corner of Westport Road and Pennsylvania was constructed in 1850-51 by William and George Ewing, licensed traders with the Shawnee Indians across the border in Kansas. They sold the mercantile to Daniel Boone’s grandson, Albert Gallatin Boone in 1854, the same year Kansas became a territory and the nearby Shawnee Reservation was terminated.
Site Information
Location (504 Westport Rd Kansas City, MO)
Safety Considerations
Alexander Majors House
Situated on the border between Missouri and Kansas, the Alexander Majors house was home to both the Majors family and one of his freighting companies called Russell, Majors, and Waddell.[1] The company was a venture with merchants William H. Russell and William B. Waddell who joined Majors in an attempt to gain a government contract to supply western forts.[2] Already an experienced Santa Fe Trail dealer, Majors had the knowledge and equipment, while Russell and Waddell had the capital, to secure the government contract. For a short time, the company had a “virtual monopoly of the army freighting business in the west and southwest.”[3]
The 300-acre farmstead was dissected by the westernmost US border, making part of the property outside US jurisdiction and, thus, untaxable. The company’s barns, mule sheds, grazing lands, wagon and blacksmith shops, and other business-related entities were located on the portion of property located in the Kansas Territory.[4] A caravan camp was used to load the heavy freight wagons which would travel the trails.[5]
The home was built in 1856, most likely using the labor of enslaved people.[6] The “T” shaped floorplan with recessed front porch makes it a unique iteration of the Greek revival style in Kansas City.[7] Today, it is one of the oldest buildings in Kansas City, as one of only 4 pre-Civil War buildings left standing.[8] Though the house remains, many of the other original structures are gone and the land has been divided into distinct plots. Among the lost structures were living quarters for the 16-17 people enslaved by the Majors’.[9]
In 1930 Louisa P. Johnston, Majors’s great grand-daughter, travelled to visit her ancestral home and found the house abandoned. She bought the house in 1932 and, for the next forty years, worked to preserve the property. In 1984 the Alexanders Majors House Museum was opened to the public for tours and events. In 2010 the house partnered with the John Wornall House and Museum to create one nonprofit dedicated to preserving both properties.
Site Information
Location (8201 State Line Road (east side of road near 85th Street), Kansas City)
Safety Considerations
[1] Marc Simmons, Following the Santa Fe Trail: A Guide for Modern Travelers (Santa Fe, NM: Ancient City Press, 1984), p. 61.
[2] Martha Kusiak, “Alexander Majors House,” National Register of Historic Places Inventory/Nomination Form. Jefferson City: Missouri State Park Board, 1970. Retrieved from National Archives Catalog: https://catalog.archives.gov/id/63819493#.XzbZ-YDvsb0.link
[3] Kusiak, “Alexander Majors House,” p. 9.
[4] “The Majors House,” Wornall Majors House Museums, accessed August 14, 2020.
[5] Simmons, Following the Santa Fe Trail, p. 62.
[6] “The Majors House.”
[7] Kusiak, “Alexander Majors House,” p. 11.
[8] “The Majors House.”
[9] “The Majors House.”
Alfred Bergere House (Georgia O’Keeffe Research Center)
One of two surviving Ft. Marcy officers’ quarters built around 1871, it became a 10-day vacation home for former President Ulysses S. Grant and his family in 1880. Bought in 1904 by Bergere, the England-born son of a wealthy Italian shipping magnate, the 7-room home got a full second floor and Pueblo Revival Style makeover in 1926. It stayed in the family until 1975. Only the central hallway’s cherry wood staircase and one fireplace remain from the old Santa Fe Trail days.
Site Information
Location (135 Grant Ave. Santa Fe, New Mexico; this is currently the site of the Georgia O’Keeffe Research Center.)
Safety Considerations
Santa Fe is the oldest capital city in the US, founded in 1610, and the highest in elevation at 7,000 ft. The city is the historic hub of the southwest, connecting three national historic trails: El Camino Real de Tierra Adentro, the Santa Fe Trail, and the Old Spanish Trail. This tour leads your from the busy plaza and other major tourist locations to lesser known sites along quiet, old Santa Fe streets.
Arrow Rock Ferry Landing
Beginning around 1816, migrants travelling west crossed the Missouri River at this spot. The site marks the western end of the Arrow Rock ferry, with another landing on the other side of the river. The ferry played a significant role in shepherding traffic westward, including traffic on the Santa Fe Trail. They continued using this ferry until 1828 (when it was no longer used for significant, long-distance Santa Fe Trail travel) and for many years thereafter. A cabin housing the ferry master formerly existed here, and the former trail ascended the hill (along a present-day road trace), after which it continued west across the prairie.
Arrow Rock Bluff
For generations, Arrow Rock Bluff was a significant landmark on the Missouri River for American Indians, explorers, and early westward travelers. The limestone bluff first appeared on a 1732 French map as pierre a fleche, which means the “rock of arrows.” As a landmark on the river, it guided westward travel by water and wagon for trade and settlement.
“Our company crossed the Missouri near the Arrow Rock Ferry on the first day of September 1821…”
-William Becknell
The Arrow Rock is part of the Santa Fe Trail story. When William Becknell’s party crossed the river here in 1821 heading west to trade, a new era in American history began. For some, the trail brought wealth and opportunity. For others, the trail caused loss of life, land, culture, and resources.
Today, the river no longer flows in front of the bluff.
Site Information
Location (Northern extension of 2nd Street, Arrow Rock., Arrow Rock, MO, 65347)
The Arrow Rock Ferry Landing was put on the list of the National Register of Historic Places on May 1, 2013, and Rich Lawson, who owns the property with his wife, Debbie, is looking to add more richness to Arrow Rock's history.
Safety Considerations
Arrow Rock State Historic Site Visitor Center
The Arrow Rock State Historic Site visitors’ center opened in 1991 and features nearly 9,000 square feet of exhibit space. The center interprets the history of Arrow Rock and the central Missouri region historically known as “Boone’s Lick Country.” You can watch a 20-minute video “Arrow Rock: Frontier Town of the Boone’s Lick” an introduction and overview of the community. Historical and state park related souvenirs and clothing items are available at the visitor center gift shop.
Site Information
Location (The visitor center is a block-and-a-half south of Main Street. The parking lot entry road is located on Highway 41, one-quarter mile south of Arrow Rock. Site offices are located in the visitor center.)
Exhibits are chronologically arranged and features artifacts pertaining to local history:
- Native American Presence — focusing on the Osage and Missouris tribes.
- Waterway West — the Louisiana Purchase and the Lewis and Clark Expedition, 1803 to 1806
- War of 1812, Settlement and Conflict in the Boone’s Lick — the clash between white settlers and American Indians from 1808 to 1815
- Settling the Boone’s Lick, Town Building on the Missouri Frontier — town founding and the massive migration from the upper South to the area between 1815 and 1830
- Agriculture — agricultural techniques and innovations and the use of slaves on hemp and tobacco plantations, circa 1816 to 1861
- Rivers and Roads, Moving Passengers and Produce in the Boone’s Lick — Missouri River commerce and forms of overland transportation
- Westward the Star of Empire, the Boone’s Lick and the Santa Fe Trade — the beginning of trade with Mexico through the war with Mexico, 1821 to 1848
- George Caleb Bingham — the life and artwork of Missouri’s most famous artist and Arrow Rock’s most famous resident. Several original portraits and prints are featured
- Troubled Times, the Civil War — 1861 to 1865
- Slavery, Racism, Violence: Justice and the Constitution — the black experience in the Boone’s Lick from 1865 to 1955
- Arrow Rock, Preserving a Monument of the Boone’s Lick — early efforts to preserve and interpret the town beginning in 1912 and through to the present
Safety Considerations
Autograph Rock
Cold Springs Creek is a tributary of the Cimarron River which provided much needed water in the semi-arid plains of what is now called the Oklahoma panhandle. Because of the year-round water access and protection provided by high cliffs, Cold Spring Creek became a popular camping place for people in the area. Archeological evidence suggests that the site was used by indigenous communities, and later by Santa Fe Trail and other travelers.
The sandstone bluffs at the site became a place where people passing through carved their names. Signatures on the walls came from soldiers, teamsters, gold seekers, and others traveling the Santa Fe Trail. Because of the signatures, Cold Springs Creek became known as Autograph Rock. The name F.B. Delgado, who was an owner of a mule and ox train that freighted the trail, is signed more frequently than any other name at Autograph Rock.
Site Information
Location (Approximately seven miles west and seven miles north of Boise City, Boise City, OK, 73933)
Safety Considerations
Barnes Enclosure and Cave Spring Interpretive Center
This Barnes Enclosure and Cave Spring were made famous by overland travelers who mentioned it in their letters and diaries. Cave Spring, on the National Register of Historic Places, was a noted midday rest area for travelers heading west. Imagine that much of the Jackson County countryside, even in the early trail days, was owned by private landowners who had substantial estates.
At least two 1846 first-hand accounts mention the Barnes Enclosure-Cave Spring. Susan Shelby Magoffin, one of the first women to travel along the Santa Fe Trail to Mexico, wrote in her diary of “traveling with her husband, Captain Magoffin, a trader, and spending the night in the Barnes home. Also, in a letter to his sister, William Glasgow, a Santa Fe trader, stayed overnight with the Barnes in 1846. A few days later a Susan Magoffin and her maid also stayed overnight with the Barnes Family. Magoffin’s diary also mentions meeting these brothers on the trail.
Site Information
Location (8701 E Gregory Blvd., Kansas City, MO)
Safety Considerations
Barton County Historical Society Museum
The Barton County Historical Society Museum consists of exhibits (including the Santa Fe Trail Interpretive Site), a research library, and an administrative area. Behind the building is a historical village consisting of a church, 1-room school house, windmill, post office building, railroad depot, barn, residences, and other structures.
From Plum Buttes to the Walnut Creek Crossing to Pawnee Rock, the area that is now Barton County played a major role in the history of the Santa Fe Trail. Collections and displays maintained by the Historical Society tell the story of this region from the American Indians of the Paleo Period through the development of the trail, the trading posts and Fort Zarah, to European settlement.
Site Information
Location (85 US-281, Great Bend, KS 67530)
Safety Considerations
Bent's New Fort and Fort Wise/Lyon
Bent's New Fort connects the story of Bent's Old Fort and William Bent's family to the Sand Creek Massacre. The New Fort represented an attempt to continue trading with Plains Tribes following the end of the Mexican War. The operation was shortlived, and William Bent sold the structure to the United States Army, which located a military garrison there under a new name. Both of these forts played a role in the development of the Santa Fe Trail, the destinies of the Plains Indians, and the future of Colorado.
Bent’s New Fort (1853-1869)
William Bent abandoned his old fort (present-day Bent’s Old Fort National Historic Site) in 1849. Lacking satisfactory offers to purchase it, Bent is believed to have burnt much of the fort to keep it from falling into the hands of the Army or his competition. To continue his trade with the Plains Tribes, Bent built a new fort of stone in 1853. Based on Cheyenne recommendations, he located this new fort overlooking the Arkansas River at Big Timbers, near present-day Lamar.
The new fort had several advantages over the old fort, including its stone construction, simple rectangular design, and lack of adobe. Bent no longer needed to hire labor to apply adobe every season, and the durable nature of stone added to its protection. With trade no longer profitable and the construction of Fort Wise nearby in 1860, Bent leased his stone fort to the Army, which used it as a post quartermaster & commissary and Indian Agency office.
Fort Wise (1860)
Fort Wise was made possible through the 1851 Fort Laramie Treaty, which offered Plains Indians annuities and recognition of their land in exchange for allowing uncontested passage along the western trails and the establishment of forts. Named in honor of Virginia Governor Henry A. Wise, Fort Wise served to protect travelers and transportation along the Santa Fe Trail between Fort Larned in Kansas and Pueblo, Colorado.
The Army situated the fort on lands adjacent to the Arkansas River in 1860, just west of Bent’s New Fort. Fort Wise lacked a protective wall or barricade, instead locating numerous barracks and offices in a square around a central parade ground. With the outbreak of the Civil War in 1861, Governor Wise led Virginia’s secession from the United States. The U.S. Army renamed the military post Fort Lyon in mid-1862 to honor of General Nathaniel Lyon, the first United States general killed in the Civil War.
Fort Lyon (1860-1867)
Fort Lyon encompassed both the former Fort Wise and Bent’s New Fort, as both offered advantages to the Army. As a way station along the Santa Fe Trail, Fort Lyon served as a base for U.S. Army patrols and a rest stop for travelers. In 1864, Colonel Chivington used the fort and its troops for the attack on Sand Creek. He uttered his infamous outburst, “Damn any man who is in sympathy with Indians!” inside the quartermaster office of Bent’s New Fort.
Detachments of the 1st and 3rd Regiments Cavalry, Colorado (U.S.) Volunteers led by Colonel John Chivington marched overnight from Fort Lyon to reach a village of peaceful Cheyenne and Arapaho at Sand Creek at dawn on November 29, 1864. The 40 mile ride took about 10 hours and allowed the volunteers to attack the village with complete surprise. The attack resulted in the death of approximately 230 men, women and children.
Fort Lyon’s low position near the Arkansas River rendered it vulnerable to flooding and disease. A large flood in 1867 undercut many of the buildings. In June 1867, the U.S. Army leased land near Las Animas, Colorado, and transferred the post there, making the new military post the second to bear the name Fort Lyon. By William Bent’s death in 1869, the fort near Lamar lay abandoned and neglected, its stones later scavenged for use in local buildings.
The Site of Bent’s New Fort today
Because of its significance to trade along the Santa Fe Trail and its role in the Sand Creek Massacre, the National Park Service worked with the landowner and other partners to open the site of Bent’s New Fort to the public in 2013. This public-private partnership provides access to the site, where visitors can walk a short trail, read interpretive wayside exhibits, and gaze across the scenic Arkansas River Valley.
Driving Directions
To reach Bent’s New Fort Site, take U.S. 50 to County Road 35, approximately 10 miles west of Lamar or 25 miles east of Las Animas. Turn south on County Road 35 for one mile to County Road JJ (T Junction). Turn east (left) and drive ¼ mile, turning south (right) onto County Road 35.25 for ¼ mile to the Bent’s New Fort parking area. A walking trail and interpretive exhibits are available; however, no public facilities exist at the site.
Bent's Old Fort National Historic Site
For much of its 16-year operation between 1833-1849, Bent’s Fort was the only major permanent white settlement on the Santa Fe Trail between Missouri and the Mexican settlements. William and Charles Bent, along with Ceran St. Vrain, built the original adobe fort in 1833 for trade with local Native American tribes and trappers for buffalo robes. Situated along the northern bank of the Arkansas river in what is now southeastern Colorado, the fort quickly became the center of the expanding holdings of Bent, St. Vrain & Company. Soon, it was also an important stop on the Santa Fe Trail’s mountain route and a center for commercial, social, military, and cultural exchange.
The fort brought together trappers from the southern Rocky Mountains, Anglo-American travelers from Missouri and the east, Hispanic traders from Mexico, and Native Americans, primarily from the Cheyenne, Arapaho, Comanche, and Kiowa Tribes. In addition to trading prospects, the fort also provided weary travelers, such as those following the Santa Fe Trail, with a place to get needed supplies and rest. During the war with Mexico in 1846, the fort became a staging area for Colonel Stephen Watts Kearny's "Army of the West." Disasters and disease caused the fort's abandonment in 1849.
Although the original fort no longer stands, at Bent’s Old Fort National Historic Site the fort has been reconstructed and is open to the public. The site preserves the resources associated with the Bent–St. Vrain trading empire and provides visitors with the opportunity to explore the trading post’s complex history.
After your visit, if you are heading West, you have the unique opportunity to stop at Comanche National Grassland and retrace a piece of the Santa Fe Trail at the Sierra Vista Interpretive Site. While you are here, visit Iron Spring, an important water stop for Santa Fe Trail travelers. East of Bent’s Old Fort National Historic Site, you can visit historic Lamar and Boggsville Historic Site.
Site Information
Location (35110 State Highway 194 E. La Junta, CO 81050)
Safety Considerations
Bingham-Waggoner Estate
Missouri’s famous painter and statesman, George Caleb Bingham, purchased the Lewis homestead and lived in this home during the Civil War where he painted, perhaps, his most famous masterpiece, “Martial Law,” or, “Order No. 11,” depicting the Union Army’s militarization of this area and depopulation of four counties along the Missouri-Kansas border in 1863.
Trail ruts or swales, preserved on this site, are visible reminders of the hundreds of thousands of overland travelers who passed by on the Santa Fe, and later Oregon and California trails. Here surviving swales align with modern roads.
With the constant roll of time, travelers saw this modest home expand around its original nucleus into a mansion that is open to the public today as a house museum with guided tours.
Site Information
Location (313 W Pacific Ave Independence, MO)
Safety Considerations
Black Jack Ruts
As you follow the path at Black Jack Ruts, you will discover the physical marks left on the land by thousands of heavy trade wagons. Parallel swales left by wagon caravans are as wide as 15 feet. You also have the rare opportunity to experience a native tallgrass prairie where the grasses can grow as high as seven feet. While you explore, you will see and feel the beauty of the prairie and understand more about the challenges of traveling it safely. Exhibits and an audio tour will help you read the landscape of the Santa Fe Trail.
Site Information
Location (accessed at the roadside park located at 2011 N. 200 Rd. Trailhead to the ruts is located next to Black Jack Cabin within the roadside park; N 38.76735, W 095.128843)
This roadside park also includes a large historical marker describing the Battle of Black Jack which occurred ½ mile to the south. The town of Black Jack was located ½ mile to the east.
Black Jack Ruts Audio Tour Stop 1
This is stop number one on the Black Jack Ruts Audio Tour.
More information about Black Jack Ruts
Black Jack Ruts Audio Tour Stop 2
This is stop number two on the Black Jack Ruts Audio Tour.
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Black Jack Ruts Audio Tour Stop 3
This is stop number three on the Black Jack Ruts Audio Tour.
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Black Jack Ruts Audio Tour Stop 4
This is stop number three on the Black Jack Ruts Audio Tour.
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Black Jack Ruts Audio Tour Stop 5
This is stop number five on the Black Jack Ruts Audio Tour.
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Black Jack Ruts Audio Tour Stop 6
This is stop number six on the Black Jack Ruts Audio Tour.
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Blue Mills
Though not standing today, the mill once located at this intersection may have served traders involved in international commerce and travelers heading to or returning from the west. The filling station of the 19th century was the grist mill where needed commodities of flour and cornmeal could be procured and would sustain travelers over an 800-2,000 mile journey as they walked along the westward Santa Fe, Oregon and California trails as well as nearby forts and local residents. The road, “of great utility to the neighborhood as well as the surrounding County,” was dedicated by the county legislators as a “public highway” in November 1843, and led directly to Independence Square.
Site Information
Location (3101 Lentz Rd., Independence MO)
Safety Considerations
Boggsville Historic Site
Boggsville, located on the Purgatoire River, was first used as a campsite by the Plains Indians. With the fur trade vanishing, many former mountain men found work raising livestock. Through his wife’s government land grant connections, Thomas Boggs started his ranch near the river on a branch of the Santa Fe Trail. It became known as Boggsville after he and his wife, Rumalda Luna Bent Boggs, built their first home. John Wesley Prowers moved to the Boggs’s ranch in 1867 along with frontiersman Kit Carson and his family. A year later, with Carson in poor health, his wife, Josefa, died from childbirth complications. Kit died several weeks later at nearby Fort Lyon. Thomas Boggs was the executor of Carson's will.
Site Information
Location (two miles south of Las Animas on Colorado Highway 101)
Available Facilities: Today, Boggsville is a renovation project in progress. Seeing the site now, which has just a few buildings and old foundations, it is hard to imagine that here is where the cattle and sheep industries first boomed in Colorado. A lot of the early history of Colorado started here. Slowly, some of the buildings are being restored and more are going to be rebuilt.
Exhibits: A bronze state historical marker is located along Colorado Highway 101, and there are several interpretive markers along an area hiking path.
Safety Considerations
Boone’s Lick State Historic Site
In the heart of what is now called Howard County, Missouri, three natural salt springs merged into Salt Creek. Because of the presence of salt in the water, animals often licked the ground nearby where salt had risen to the surface. Thus, the area was called a “salt lick,” later to be named Boone’s Lick after the two men who settled and opened a salt works there.
Salt was an incredibly important resource, and thus, Boone’s Lick was important for Native Americans, and later, Euro-American settlers in the central Missouri River area. In 1806, brothers Nathan and Daniel Morgan Boone (sons of famous frontiersman Daniel Boone) began using the salt lick to extract salt which they sold in St. Louis. The brothers built a sizeable operation using a boiling method.
The route to the salt lick was originally a Native American trace but had been cut and widened to accommodate increasing traffic. The road, which became known as Boone’s Lick Road, led from the St. Louis area to Franklin, MO (south of Boone’s Lick). The terminus of Boone’s Lick Road became the start of the Santa Fe Trail in 1821, creating a continuous path between St. Charles and Santa Fe.
The area near Boone’s Lick became known as “Boone’s Lick Country” and was a major site for Westward emigration in the 1800’s. The area was fertile, not only with salt, but with timber, water, and wild game. Today, the area is part of Boone’s Lick State Historic Site which includes 52 acres of wooded area and the remains of the original salt works.
Site Information
Location (Adjacent to Missouri State Highway 187 (County Road 328), between Lisbon and Petersburg (and east of Arrow Rock) in Howard County, Boonesboro, MO)
Boone’s Lick is a heavily wooded area featuring three salt springs and a salt creek. Some remnants of the salt works are visible, including wooden posts rising from Salt Creek and one large spherical cast iron kettle originally used to boil saltwater.
Safety Considerations
Boot Hill Museum
The exciting and unique story of early Dodge City is told daily along Front Street at Boot Hill Museum. The area’s rich history dates back to the Native Americans who thrived off the land and the buffalo. The establishment of the Santa Fe Trail brought settlers to the area and introduced the potential of what is known as the Great American Desert. The arrival of the U. S. Army prompted the building of Fort Dodge and soon to follow was the establishment of a rough and rowdy cattle town known as Dodge City. Law and order was soon recognized and Dodge City became a civilized frontier town and a center of commerce on the prairie.
Site Information
Location (500 West Wyatt Earp Boulevard Dodge City, KS)
Boot Hill Museum is located on the original site of Boot Hill Cemetery and highlights the glory days of the Queen of the Cow towns with creative, lively, interactive displays and activities the entire family will enjoy. Entry Fee.
Safety Considerations
Buffalo Bill's Well (Beach Ranch Well)
The well was originally dug to serve the Beach Ranch at Cow Creek crossing, providing water for livestock as well as for travelers on the Santa Fe Trail. Sometime after 1860, William Mathewson - who was the original Buffalo Bill - purchased the ranch of Asahel and Abijah Beach, also called the Cow Creek Ranch, and operated it until 1866. Mathewson was known as Buffalo Bill because he helped supply buffalo meat to starving settlers in Kansas Territory during the severe drought of 1859-60. (In later years, the better-known Buffalo Bill, William F. Cody, worked for Masterson.)
Site Information
Location (Four miles west of Lyons, on U.S. Highway 56 to Father Padilla's Cross, then turn left (south) for one mile on a gravel road. At this point, two gravel roads intersect, and the well is in the northwest quadrant of that intersection, very near the road.)
Available Facilities: This hand dug well can be visited today. The well was nearly wiped out a number of years ago when a road improvement project was under way. It was saved by the timely action of several local historians.
Exhibits: A Daughters of the American Revolution marker is located just north of the well.
Safety Considerations
Caches Monument
Near the Caches Monument, a blizzard stopped Santa Fe– bound traders in 1822. They dug holes, buried, and stored (cached) their goods until they returned from Taos six months later. The holes remained until recent times and became the landmark known as the “Caches” on the trail. The monument commemorates their campsite and nearby Ft Atkinson and Ft Mann. Near the Caches was also the original western terminus of the Wet/Dry Routes of the Santa Fe Trail.
From here, you can easily visit the 100th Meridian Marker, Fort Dodge, Mulberry Creek Crossing, Boot Hill Museum, Fort Larned National Historic Site, Dodge City, and more.
Site Information
Location (The Caches Marker is located along US 50 about 1.3 miles west of the US 50 By-pass junction on a dirt road.)
Caches Monument is a large white monument on the side of a dirt road close to a highway. The monument is located within a rural environment with fields and farmlands.
Safety Considerations
Camp Grierson / Station Little Arkansas
Throughout the summer of 1864, the probability of conflicts between American Indians and travelers of the Santa Fe Trail increased dramatically west of the Little Arkansas. Troops were assigned to the Little Arkansas and the Stone Corral area in April 1865. It was called Station Little Arkansas. Company G, Third Wisconsin Cavalry, were the first troops to be stationed at the Stone Corral. By early May, 93 men were stationed at the post, most of them from the 2nd U. S. Volunteer Infantry. In June 1865, the 13th Missouri Cavalry was present. There were 185 enlisted men and five officers from the 13th Missouri Cavalry and the 2nd U. S. Volunteer Infantry. In June, 1865, four men were killed by American Indians near Station Little Arkansas. A cholera epidemic also claimed eight men at Station Little Arkansas. All were buried near the south end of the breastworks in the Cottonwood Grove Cemetery at Station Little Arkansas. Later the bodies were exhumed and moved to the Fort Leavenworth Cemetery in 1888 or 1889.
Peace talks and signing of peace treaties with the American Indians occurred in the fall of 1865. It appears troops were withdrawn from the Little Arkansas post late in 1865. This peaceful situation did not last long as soldiers were again stationed at the Stone Corral site in 1867. At this time the camp was called Camp Grierson, to honor Colonel Benjamin Grierson of the 10th Cavalry. In 1867, the camp was occupied from May to November by Company C of black troops of the 10th Cavalry. This company of some seventy troops constructed dugouts for protection from the American Indians and the weather in the riverbanks of the Little Arkansas. They erected breastworks above the dugouts for protection, which are still visible today.
During the summer of 2005, a stone was found in a nearby foundation of a fire damaged house that was inscribed with the name of Andrew Welsch of Co. E, 13th MO Cavalry. This unit was at Station Little Arkansas in 1865.
Site Information
Location (P Ave., between 30th Rd. and Plum Ave. (31st Rd.), South of Windom, KS)
Safety Considerations
Cimarron
The Santa Fe Trail consisted of two main branches: the original route called the Mountain Branch, which passed through Cimarron, and the Cimarron Cutoff, named for the town near Dodge City, Kansas.
The route of the Mountain Branch follows present-day Interstate 25 over Raton Pass (along the railroad tracks) and parallels Hwy 64 to Cimarron, crossing in front of the Cimarron Chamber of Commerce and Visitor Center and across the Cimarron River to Old Town.
The two branches met at Fort Union, 90 miles south of Cimarron and the main fort offering protection for travelers along the Trail. Traces of the Santa Fe Trail can still be seen nearby.
Site Information
Location (Cimarron, New Mexico)
Santa Fe Trail Walking Trail
Along Highway 21 between Cimarron and Philmont is a walking/running trail that follows the Santa Fe Trail. There is some elevation change. Approximately 4 miles one way. Philmont Scout Ranch staff constructed the trail along New Mexico Highway 21 for community use by ranch staff, visitors, and area residents.
Safety Considerations
Cimarron Crossing Park
The Santa Fe Trail passed by where Cimarron Crossing Park is now, bringing people and goods along the trading route. Just to the south, the Arkansas River formed the border with Mexico. Traders and travelers required accommodations, supplies, and protection. The Ranch at Cimarron Crossing was established in 1866 by William and Frank Hartwell and several other investors to meet those needs. Later, it was operated by Robert Wright, one of the founders of Dodge City, and A.J. Anthony. At full force there were 12 armed men at the Cimarron Crossing station.
The ranch sat in the midst of a vast open plain, covered only with cactus on the higher ground and with grass in the river bottoms as high as a man on horseback. Buffalo could be seen in any direction, and for an hour at a time the river might be heard roaring in the night from the crossing of great herds. Wolves could be heard from darkness until dawn.
Many Native Americans, such as the Cheyenne, viewed settlements such as the ranch as intrusions onto their homelands. Tension between settlers, traders, and the military increased, including an attack on a wagon train crossing here in June 1867. In 1868, the ranch was abandoned due to the continuous threat of attack from Native Americans.
Site Information
Location (Cimarron Crossing Park is located on the south side of Cimarron, KS, along the banks of the Arkansas River.)
The Cimarron City Park is one of the most beautiful parks in Southwest Kansas. Located on the banks of the Arkansas River, the park plays host to a variety of community functions. The park also has two baseball/softball diamonds and a Tee-ball field. A new walking track has been added around the park that is a half-mile in length.
"Building Materials: The closest timber for building was 20 miles away. Much of the ranch was turf, including the roof. The roof was laid first of poles, then a layer of buffalo hides and gunny sacks and upon this an eight inch course of dirt or sod.
The Ranch Complex: Every part of the building was not only secure against fire and weather, but also proof against bullets. It included: the kaavl (corral) was 100 steps square, the main building was 40 by 16 feet and joined a two-story round tower, the corner of the kaavl was a stage driver's lobby and similar tower, the remainder of this enclosure furnished stables for mules, enough water in barrels to withstand a siege, walls that were two feet thick."
Safety Considerations
Cimarron Heritage Center
The Cimarron Heritage Center interprets the history of Cimarron County. The museum features historical information about the Santa Fe Trail, dinosaurs, military, and the Dust bowl. The campus includes a range of historical buildings including a Bruce Goff-designed home, restored Santa Fe Depot, one-room schoolhouse, homestead dugout, well house, windmill, blacksmith shop, and wash house. The Cimarron Heritage Center is also responsible for providing access to Autograph Rock, a historic Santa Fe Trail campground that features ruts and a cliff wall full of traveler signatures.
Site Information
Location (1300 N Cimarron Ave, Boise City, OK 73933)
Safety Considerations
Cimarron National Grassland
Attention: Survey - This survey is for past visitors to Cimarron National Grassland.
"The research is focusing on what people did while there, what resources they used while there, and what they would potentially like to see in the future. I am a graduate student at Kansas State University and this research is going towards my thesis which I hope to have published by May. All information gathered will also be going to Cimarron National Grassland managers and all surveys are completely anonymous and confidential.
If people want to take the survey and want to get in contact with me they can email me at kbremser@ksu.edu"
Between 1821 and 1846, the Santa Fe National Historic Trail was the major trade and travel route between Old Franklin, Missouri and Santa Fe, New Mexico. The Cimarron National Grassland contains 23 miles of the Santa Fe Trail - the largest section on public land. This 19-mile trail, between Murphy and Conestoga Trailheads, parallels the original Santa Fe National Historical Trail and allows visitors to experience what life may have been like for early trail travellers. Limestone posts help mark the original trail and interpretive signs explain its history.
Site Information
Location (This 108,175-acre grassland covers portions of Morton and Stevens counties in southwestern Kansas.)
Available Facilities and Exhibits: Several outdoor exhibits are along specific trail-related points of interest on the grassland. A 19-mile interpretive trail that parallels the historical trail is available.
Safety Considerations
Comanche National Grassland
This vast grassland covers more than 440,000 discontinuous acres in southeastern Colorado. It is composed of a large Carrizo Unit near Springfield, along with a smaller Timpas Unit southwest of La Junta. The grassland's headquarters are located at 27204 Highway 287 in Springfield and at Pike and at San Isabel National Forest located in Pueblo.
Several Santa Fe Trail routes coursed through these grasslands, including the Mountain Route, the Granada-Ft. Union Wagon Road, and the Aubry Cutoff.
Site Information
Location (27204 Highway 287 Springfield)
Exhibits
Several interpretive waysides, which collectively illustrate various aspects of the Santa Fe Trail's history, have been installed on the grassland.
Safety Considerations
Conn Store, Council Grove
Built in 1858 by local merchant Malcolm Conn, the Conn Store was one of the two most important trading posts in Council Grove during the Santa Fe Trail days. It shared the business provided by trail travelers, the Kansa (Kaw) Indians, and later, by local settlers.
For traders on the Santa Fe Trail after 1858, the Conn Store was a welcome sight. At the store, traders heading east from Santa Fe to “the States” could purchase a meal or sleep in a bed for the first time after crossing 625 miles of prairie. For those heading southwest, Council Grove was one of the last major stops for supplies and amenities before travelers trekked to New Mexico.
This store was one of the most important trading posts in Council Grove during the heyday of the Santa Fe Trail, the Kaw Reservation, and the early settlement of Morris County. The Conn Store has been added on to and remodeled over the years. The outline of the original store is defined by the light-colored stone on the building's west side. The building is no longer standing but you can learn more from the exhibit at the site.
Site Information
Location (131 W Main St. Council Grove, Kansas 66846)
Safety Considerations
Coronado Cross Park
Near here, eastbound trail travelers made a choice between two routes. The Wet Route, also known as the river route, water road, or lower road, followed the north bank of the Arkansas River and provided a sure source of water. The Dry Route, also called the ridge or ridge road, followed an upland course that was shorter in miles than the Wet Route, but could lack water
The Dry Route and the Wet Route merged to the east of Fort Dodge. Westbound travelers next had to decide whether to continue along the north side of the Arkansas River to take the Mountain Route or to cross the river and take the Cimarron Route. Mulberry Creek Crossing was the first option, although crossings farther west were often preferred.
Coronado Cross Park is named for Francisco Vasquez de Coronado.
Site Information
Location (Coronado Cross Park is located about a mile and a half east of Fort Dodge at 11666 US-400 Dodge City, KS 67801.)
At Coronado Cross Park you will see a towering concrete cross and a view of unplowed prairie across to the Arkansas River.
Safety Considerations
Coronado Quivira Museum
The Coronado Quivira Museum contains Santa Fe Trail artifacts as well as Spanish Colonial and ancient indigenous artifacts from sites located in Rice County Kansas.
Years before the Santa Fe Trail passed through this land, the Quivira (Wichita) people lived here. The Quivira were farmers who built and lived in grass huts in the area. They created trails that would later become parts of the Santa Fe Trail as they travelled west to trade corn and other crops with nearby tribes.
Almost three hundred years before the initial journey on what would become the Santa Fe Trail, a Spanish conquistador and his men traveled along the trails created by tribes for hunting and trading. Fransicso Vasquez de Coronado travelled here in search of the legendary “Seven Cities of Gold.” His quest led him from Mexico into what we know call Kansas. Though he did not find the Cities of Gold, he did encounter the Quivira.
Years later, American traders from Missouri followed nearly the same route as Coronado to trade with the people of the newly formed country of Mexico. By the time the route became the Santa Fe Trail, the Quivira had moved south, but American traders encountered other indigenous people as they travelled the trail.
The Coronado-Quivira Museum has many items from the three cultures—Quivira, Spanish, and American. You will see a model of a grass lodge in which the Quivira lived. You will also see chain mail and other artifacts believed to have belonged to Coronado or his men. There are also Santa Fe Trail exhibits.
Site Information
Location (105 W Lyon St, Lyons, KS 67554)
Safety Considerations
Cottonwood Crossing
Cottonwood Crossing is one of the more famous and difficult stream crossings on the Santa Fe Trail, and usually was noted in period diaries. This was considered the “jumping off point” for proceeding westward, out onto the prairie. This is the location of Moore’s Ranche which served variously as a mail station, US Post Office (1860-1866), general store, and hotel.
An extra day was usually spent at the crossing to repair wagons and other equipment in preparation for continuing westward. The stream channel was relatively deep. It had steep banks that required excavating “cut-downs” or ramps for the wagons, and double or triple teams were needed to pull the wagons up the ramps (one team could consist of as many as 6 yoke, i.e. 12 oxen). If possible, the stream was crossed immediately upon arrival so the crossing could be completed before a rain storm might cause the creek to rise and delay crossing, perhaps for days.
Sometime prior to 1857, George Smith established a road ranche (equivalent to today’s convenience store) just south of the crossing; it was labeled as a “hotel” on the 1857 General Land Office survey plat. In 1858 he sold his ranche to brothers Abraham Atlantic and Ira Moore, and Smith moved east to establish Lost Spring Station. The ranch at Cottonwood Crossing became known as Moore’s Ranch and was in existence throughout the Santa Fe Trail Era.
Site Information
Location (From Durham, KS, take 5th St west out of town and then continue westward on the paved road (which becomes 285th St) approx. 1.3 miles.)
Council Grove, Kansas
Council Grove was founded in the late 1840s because of the mile-wide grove of hardwood timber in the area. The city is named for Council Oak, under which a council of U.S. commissioners and the chiefs of the Great and Little Osage ostensibly negotiated a treaty in 1825. This treaty gave Americans and Hispanic people free passage along the Santa Fe Trail through Osage territory in exchange for an $8000 payment to the Osage. The tree itself was destroyed by a storm several years ago, but the stump remains under a protective canopy.
For a brief period of time, Council Grove served as the last opportunity for Santa Fe Trail travelers headed West to pick up supplies for their journey. Travelers could pick up goods at the Last Chance Store, the oldest commercial building in Council Grove. The building still stands today and is open to the public.
Site Information
Location (The city of Council Grove is nestled in the Flint Hills of Eastern Kansas along Highway 56 and serves as the county seat for Morris County.)
There are many other Santa Fe Trail sites in Council Grove you can visit – Neosho Crossin, Hays House, Kaw Mission State Historic Site, Hermit’s Cave, the Post Office Oak, and more!
Safety Considerations
Council Oak in Council Grove
The Council Oak received its name from a council that was ostensibly held under this tree on August 10, 1825. This council, which was attended by three U.S. commissioners and the chiefs of the Great and Little Osage Indians, resulted in a treaty that - in return for an $800 payment - gave Americans and Hispanics free passage along the Santa Fe Trail through Osage territory. This meeting was also the namesake of Council Grove, a trailside community that was founded in the late 1840s, because of the mile-wide grove of hardwood timber in the area.
A protective canopy east of the Neosho River bridge protects the stump of the Council Oak. Before it blew down in a windstorm in 1958, the oak was approximately 70 feet high and measured 16 feet around.
Site Information
Location (U.S. Highway 56 (E. Main Street), near N. 4th Street)
Safety Considerations
Cow Creek Crossing - Buffalo Bill's Well
Cow Creek Crossing was adjacent to the south side of the present bridge one mile south of the Father Padilla Cross. There was a toll bridge about 150 yards upstream during the 1860s. About 150 yards above the post, the creek was spanned by a bridge 8 feet wide and 30 feet long. Dr. Asahel Beach and his son, Abijah, established a supply ranche (trading post) here in the 1850s. This area was also known as Beach Valley.
William Mathewson -- the original "Buffalo Bill" -- was at Cow Creek (Beach Valley) ranch from its beginning days up to 1862. In 1860, he hunted buffalo to supply meat to settlers of Eastern Kansas whose cattle herds had been reduced by droughts in 1859 and 1860. Mathewson along with two other men, survived an disputewith American Indians which lasted three days, July 20, 21, and 22, 1864. Five hundred American Indians attempted to advance, but Mathewson, along with the other men, kept them at bay.
One month later, in August 1864, William Mathewson married Elizabeth Inman, a native of Yorkshire, England. It is said that Mathewson did not bring his bride to Cow Creek ranch until she had become expert with rifle and revolver. By all accounts she was a courageous woman, operating the ranche while Mathewson was away serving as guide for Maj. Gen. James G. Blunt's expedition against the Plains Indians.
Perhaps the best-known surviving feature of the Cow Creek Crossing area is Buffalo Bill's hand-dug well. The well, with a Daughters of the American Revolution marker to the north of it, is still there.
Site Information
Location (3 miles west of Lyons, Kansas on Highway 56 and 1 mile south on 12th Avenue)
Safety Considerations
Read more: Cow Creek Crossing (Beach Valley) brochure by the Santa Fe Trail Association
DAR Marker near Dodge House Hotel
The DAR marker near the Dodge House Hotel is one of a series of markers the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) put up in the early 20th century to mark the Santa Fe Trail. The Kansas Daughters began the work in 1902 to ensure the preservation of the Santa Fe Trail and its important place in American History. By 1906, they had enough money for 86 markers made of red granite boulders. From here, they worked with the communities along the Trail to place and dedicate the markers. Soon, the DAR chapters of Missouri, Colorado, and New Mexico followed suit. Had it not been for the hard work and dedication of the women of the DAR, the Santa Fe Trail might have been lost to history.
Site Information
Location (The DAR marker is located near the Dodge House Hotel at 2408 W Wyatt Earp Blvd, Dodge City, KS 67801.)
A red granite boulder that reads "Santa Fe Trail 1822 - 1872 Marked by the Daughters of the American Revolution and the Sate of Kansas 1906."
Safety Considerations
Davis Segment & Ruts
Thousands of travelers created these ruts, deepening them just a bit with each passing. Now they provide a testament to the importance of the overland route between Kansas and Santa Fe.
Site Information
Location (This half-mile-long stretch of trail ruts is located on a private ranch and is not accessible to the visiting public. The nearest public access is County Road 16, 1.5 miles away. Well-defined trail ruts near the Davis Segment/Ruts can be seen directly from County Road 16.)
Safety Considerations
Dodge City Convention and Visitors Bureau
The Dodge City Convention and Visitors Bureau (CVB) is located right along the Santa Fe Trail. Here, you can discover all the fun things to do and see in Dodge City as well as information about the town's connection to the Santa Fe Trail. Just outside of the CVB, you can hop on a Historic Trolley Tour for a trip back to the 1870’s. Visit the original locations of the Longbranch Saloon, Gospel Hill, the “deadline”, Front Street and so much more. Tour Fort Dodge, follow the path of the Santa Fe Trail and learn a few colorful stories along the way. Across the street from the CVB you can visit the Boot Hill Museum to learn about the glory days of the Queen of the Cow towns. West of the town, you can see the marks left by Santa Fe Trail wagons at the Boot Hill Museum Ruts.
Site Information
Location (Downtown Dodge City, across the street from the Boot Hill Museum. 400 W Wyatt Earp Blvd, Dodge City, KS 67801)
Safety Considerations
Dodge City Old City Hall Monuments
In 1872, two cowboys who were camped on a hillside west of Dodge City had a gunfight. One was killed; the murderer fled. The dead man, friendless and unknown, was wrapped in a blanket by the townsmen and buried where he fell with his boots on. So began Boot Hill. For six years Dodge City had no official cemetery. Persons dying who had friends, enough money, or sufficient standing in the community were buried at Fort Dodge. Others, penniless or unknown were buried where it was convenient to dig a hole.
Boot Hill, now a part of Dodge City, is the most famous burial ground in all Western lore, even though it was only used until 1878. Two schools were built atop Boot Hill before the Spanish-style City Hall was erected in 1929, which still stands today.
In front of this historic place stands a cowboy statue. It was created by Dr. O.H. Simpson, a pioneer dentist. Joe Sughrue, and early day lawman, was the model. The marker on the base of the statue commemorates the frontier days of the cattle drives: “On the ashes of my campfire this city is built.”
Site Information
Location (The Old City Hall Monuments are located at 501 W. Spruce St. Leaving the convention or visitors bureau, turn left onto 3rd avenue. At the 3rd Street stoplight turn left onto Spruce Street, turning left again on 4th street. You will see a yellow brick building with monuments in the front yard.)
Safety Considerations
Doña Tules’s Gambling Hall Site (Bokum Building)
Born in Sonora, Mexico, Doña Maria Gertrudes Barcelo operated her lavishly decorated saloon and gambling hall here from 1832-36 until her death. Reputedly the best monte dealer in Santa Fe, the red-haired, cigar-smoking “Doña Tules” soon grew wealthy. Scorned by many of the city’s residents, the business woman shrewdly welcomed the U.S. by funding its 1846 wartime expedition to Chihuahua, Mexico.
Note the street sign, Burro Alley. The street's narrow width hints at its historic past. It is said that wood for the people of Santa Fe was delivered to this street on the backs of burros.
Site Information
Location (142 W. Palace Ave., Santa Fe, NM)
The site is occupied by commercial businesses, but the public can view the building and walk down Burro Alley.
Safety Considerations
Santa Fe is the oldest capital city in the US, founded in 1610, and the highest in elevation at 7,000 ft. The city is the historic hub of the southwest, connecting three national historic trails:
El Camino Real de Tierra Adentro, the
Santa Fe Trail, and the
Old Spanish Trail. This tour leads your from the busy plaza and other major tourist locations to lesser known sites along quiet, old Santa Fe streets.
Doña Tules’s Home Site (Santa Fe County Courthouse)
Doña "Tules" Barcelo, who was reputedly the best monte dealer in Santa Fe, lived here in a one-story, flat-roofed, courtyard home. It was conveniently located just across the street from her saloon and gambling hall. Born around 1800-1811, she died here in 1852. The Pueblo Revival Style courthouse replaced it in 1940.
Site Information
Location (102 Grant Ave., Santa Fe, New Mexico.)
This is currently the site of the Santa Fe County Courthouse. The building can be viewed from the outside, but should only be visited for official business.
Safety Considerations
Santa Fe is the oldest capital city in the US, founded in 1610, and the highest in elevation at 7,000 ft. The city is the historic hub of the southwest, connecting three national historic trails: El Camino Real de Tierra Adentro, the Santa Fe Trail, and the Old Spanish Trail. This tour leads your from the busy plaza and other major tourist locations to lesser known sites along quiet, old Santa Fe streets.
Edgar Hewett House (Museum of NM Foundation Office)
This surviving Fort Marcy officers’ quarters, once the Quartermaster’s home, was remodeled in the Pueblo Revival Style in 1916. Fort Marcy was built in 1846 and was the first in New Mexico Territory (and is the only fort left in the United States from the Mexican American War).
It became the lifetime home of the Edgar Lee Hewett, the Director of the Museum of New Mexico (in 1909) and School of American Research (1917). Hewett died in 1946 and his wife in 1960. After President Teddy Roosevelt gave downtown Ft. Marcy’s 17 acres to the city in 1904, the other 5 officers’ quarters (and military post buildings) were eventually razed.
Site Information
Location (116 Lincoln Ave., Santa Fe, New Mexico)
This is currently the site of the Museum of New Mexico Foundation office.
Safety Considerations
Santa Fe is the oldest capital city in the US, founded in 1610, and the highest in elevation at 7,000 ft. The city is the historic hub of the southwest, connecting three national historic trails: El Camino Real de Tierra Adentro, the Santa Fe Trail, and the Old Spanish Trail. This tour leads your from the busy plaza and other major tourist locations to lesser known sites along quiet, old Santa Fe streets.
Eliza Sloan Boarding House & Ft. Marcy HQ Building Sites (New Mexico Museum of Art)
In her published memoirs (1954; Land Of Enchantment), Santa Fe Trail traveler Marian Russell recalled her widowed mother, Eliza, operating a $45 a month boarding house here in 1852-54. Circa 1871 it was replaced by the 16-room Ft. Marcy HQ Building. The New Mexico Museum of Art, home today to Santa Fe artist Gerald Cassidy’s 1930 oil painting, End Of The Trail (1850; aka Santa Fe Plaza) replaced the old building in 1917.
Site Information
Location (107 W Palace Ave, Santa Fe, New Mexico)
Safety Considerations
Santa Fe is the oldest capital city in the US, founded in 1610, and the highest in elevation at 7,000 ft. The city is the historic hub of the southwest, connecting three national historic trails: El Camino Real de Tierra Adentro, the Santa Fe Trail, and the Old Spanish Trail. This tour leads your from the busy plaza and other major tourist locations to lesser known sites along quiet, old Santa Fe streets.
Ellsberg & Amberg Store Site (1st National Bank)
Westport, Missouri merchants Gustavus Elsberg and Jacob Amberg crossed the Santa Fe Trail in 1856, and opened the two-story Ellsberg & Amberg Building here in 1864. They parted ways in 1869, but their 26-room building lasted until 1917. When Santa Fe Trail land baron Lucien Maxwell founded this bank in 1870 and sold it in 1871 to Santa Fe law partners, Thomas Catron and Stephen Elkins, it was housed in the James Johnson Building, across the Plaza. In 1954, a former 1921-24 movie theater here was transformed into the Pueblo Revival Style bank building you see today.
Site Information
Location (62 Lincoln Ave., Santa Fe, New Mexico)
Safety Considerations
Santa Fe is the oldest capital city in the US, founded in 1610, and the highest in elevation at 7,000 ft. The city is the historic hub of the southwest, connecting three national historic trails: El Camino Real de Tierra Adentro, the Santa Fe Trail, and the Old Spanish Trail. This tour leads your from the busy plaza and other major tourist locations to lesser known sites along quiet, old Santa Fe streets.
Exchange Hotel Site (La Fonda)
William and Mary Dodson Donoho, who crossed the Santa Fe Trail from Missouri, operated an inn here known as Los Estados Unidos (spanish for United States) House in 1833-37. By 1847 it had become the Santa Fe House. By 1848 it was the U.S. Hotel, offering liquor and gaming. It became the Exchange Hotel in 1851. The one-story, flat-roofed, Territorial Style adobe hotel began losing clients after 1880, as more modern hotels arose. It was razed in 1919. The La Fonda inn opened in 1922. The Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway bought it in 1925 and leased it to Fred Harvey. In 1927 it underwent its first expansion, got its Pueblo Revival look, and was a Harvey House until 1968.
Site Information
Location (100 E San Francisco St., Santa Fe, New Mexico)
Safety Considerations
Santa Fe is the oldest capital city in the US, founded in 1610, and the highest in elevation at 7,000 ft. The city is the historic hub of the southwest, connecting three national historic trails: El Camino Real de Tierra Adentro, the Santa Fe Trail, and the Old Spanish Trail. This tour leads your from the busy plaza and other major tourist locations to lesser known sites along quiet, old Santa Fe streets.
Felipe Delgado House
A commercial building since 1980, this restored two-story adobe house, crowned by an Italian Style portico (entry porch) to its second floor front balcony, was built circa 1890 for Santa Fe Trail trader Delgado, who bought the land in 1877. The home stayed in his family until 1970.
Site Information
Location (124 W. Palace Ave., Santa Fe, New Mexico)
Safety Considerations
Santa Fe is the oldest capital city in the US, founded in 1610, and the highest in elevation at 7,000 ft. The city is the historic hub of the southwest, connecting three national historic trails: El Camino Real de Tierra Adentro, the Santa Fe Trail, and the Old Spanish Trail. This tour leads your from the busy plaza and other major tourist locations to lesser known sites along quiet, old Santa Fe streets.