Santa Fe Trail Historical Center

Location:  From Larned take Hwy K-156 West 2 miles.

Nearest Town:  Larned

Hours:  9 to 5 daily

Contact:  Ph. 316/285-2054

A rusty mortar stands guard at the entrance to the Santa Fe Trail Center just west of Larned and along the route of the historic trail.  The center houses a museum and research library.  Originally housed in one of the buildings at Ft. Larned National Historic Site, it was moved to it's present location in the early 1970's when the National Park Service began to restore the buildings at the old fort.

If you're like I was, and don't know beans about the Santa Fe Trail, it's a great place to stop and fill this gap in your knowledge. 

In September of 1821 William Becknell left Arrow Rock, MO with five men and a pack mule train, headed west to trade with the Indians.  Near the site of present day Raton, NM, they met Mexican soldiers who told them of Mexico's victory in it's Revolutionary War with Spain.  Prior to their independence, it was a crime punishable by prison to trade with Mexico.  The newly independent Mexico welcomed trade with the United States.  With dollar signs flashing in his head, Bicknell made for the city of Santa Fe, reaching it by mid-November.  In May of 1822 Becknell again set forth from Missouri headed west towards Santa Fe.  This time with twenty men and three wagon loads of goods.  The $3,000 worth of merchandise turned a profit of 2000 percent!  By 1825 the US government had surveyed and marked the route and the busy years along the Santa Fe Trail were underway.  International trade along the trail ceased in 1846 with the Mexican-American War and Mexico ceding present day New Mexico to the US.  Travel continued along the trail, however, until the railroad extended to Santa Fe in 1880.

The museum houses wagons and other items from the days of the Santa Fe Trail and before.  It also has displays on the history and significance of the trail.

Also on the grounds of the center are several recreated pioneer structures, including this sod house.  It is interesting to step through the doorway and back into a time when pioneers lived in houses made of dirt.   The glass window would have been a luxury and most sod houses merely had openings which were covered in bad weather.

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