Santa Fe

san'ta fa', the capital of New Mexico. It was founded by the Spaniards in 1605. It ranks next to St. Augustine as the oldest European settlement within the limits of the United States. It is situated in the north central part of New Mexico, twenty-one miles east of the Rio Grande. In 1630 the town contained 250 Spanish inhabitants. In 1680 the region contained about 2,500 Spanish colonists, including soldiers and priests. In that year there was a general uprising of the Pueblo Indians. Four hundred colonists were killed. About 1,000 people took refuge in the Santa Fe Palace. They made a successful sortie against the Indians, killed about 300 of them, and captured and hung 50 others. It was deemed wise, however, to abandon the settlement, and the colonists took up a long and painful overland journey for El Paso, Texas. Twelve years later the town was reoccupied by a colony of 800 settlers. The Indians giving further trouble, reprisals were made and seventy warriors were hung in the main square of the infant town. In 1841, the Texas endeavored to take Santa Fe, but were repulsed. In 1846 the town was occupied by a force of United States soldiers under command of General Kearny. At the conclusion of the Mexican War the region was ceded to the United States. Santa Fe was made the capital of the territory of New Mexico in 1851. In 1862 it was occupied by the Confederate forces for a month. The Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe Railroad entered the city in 1880.

From the time of its first settlement, Santa Fe has been an administrative town. It was made the seat of a Catholic archbishopric. The town was early a distributing center. It was reached by the great Santa Fe Trail. This famous route left the Missouri River at Independence and struck westward across the prairies for the upper valley of the Arkansas. It then followed this stream westward. Farther on, travelers were guided by Wagon Mound, a lone mountain visible for a great distance. Blankets, clothing, salt meats, tobacco, liquors, candles, oils, ammunition, firearms, harnesses, saddles, traps, cutlery, matches, and the thousand and one articles desired by a trapping, mining, and ranching population, were shipped from St. Louis up the Missouri to Independence. Here they were loaded on pack mules or into huge wagons drawn by strings of horses. For the better protection against Indians, the proprietors combined temporarily, electing one of their number commander for the trip. Convoy after convoy went creaking westward during the hauling season, bringing up after weeks of travel at Santa Fe. The central plaza and the surrounding prairie were a bustling scene. Goods were distributed from this point in every direction as far as Chihuahua, Mexico. In the year 1844, when the traffic over the Santa Fe Trail reached its height, it is estimated that no less than $750,000 worth of goods were hauled overland to Santa Fe. The construction of railways has left Santa Fe rather at one side. The wholesale business now favors Albuquerque.

The population of Santa Fe has fallen somewhat. In 1900 it was 5,603, a loss of 1,000 in ten years. The city is now maintained by government business, trade with the ranchers and miners of the surrounding district, and by tourists, great numbers of whom are attracted by the delightful climate. The city stands at an elevation of 6,998 feet. There are numerous large hotels. The most noted edifice is a large, rectangular, one-story, adobe government building, occuping the entire northern side of an open square known as the Plaza. A covered veranda, resting on pillars, runs the entire length of the building. This building was occupied by the Spaniards as government headquarters. General Kearny took up his quarters here. Lieutenant Pike, for whom Pike's Peak was named, was detained here. General Lew Wallace, at one time governor of the territory, finished writing Ben Hur in one of the rooms of this old "Palace." The territorial authorities of New Mexico left it for a new capitol building of brick and stone built in 1900 at a cost of $200,000. One old two-story adobe building is evidently of Indian origin. It is believed to antedate Spanish occupation. It is considered by many the oldest dwelling house in the United States. The Roman Catholic Cathedral is a modern sandstone structure. The earthworks of old Fort Marcy, erected by General Kearny during the Mexican War, are still to be seen.

See New Mexico; Adobe; Pueblo