Santa Fe, Taos & the High Desert
The oldest capital in North America still runs on turquoise, red chile, and ceremony.
Santa Fe sits at 7,000 feet in the foothills of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains, the highest capital city in the United States. Its placement made it a crossroads for centuries: a place of Tewa settlement, a capital of New Spain, and a trading hub for a continent.
Indigenous Tanoan peoples lived in the area around the Plaza as early as 900 AD. Juan de Oñate led the first Spanish colonization efforts in 1598, establishing Santa Fe de Nuevo México as a province. Governor Pedro de Peralta founded the city itself in 1607, naming it La Villa Real de la Santa Fé de San Francisco de Asís, and by 1610 it was the provincial capital, making it the oldest state capital in the U.S.
The Spanish era was marked by conflict, including the 1680 Pueblo Revolt that drove the Spanish out for 12 years. Don Diego de Vargas reconquered the territory in 1692, but later governors worked to establish peace and trade. After Mexican independence in 1821, Santa Fe became the capital of the Mexican territory. The Santa Fe Trail opened in the 1820s, connecting the city to the American frontier and making it a vital trading and transportation hub. After the Mexican-American War, the U.S. acquired New Mexico in 1848, and Santa Fe became the territorial capital.
When the main railroad line bypassed Santa Fe in the late 19th century, the city experienced economic decline. Civic leaders responded by promoting tourism, and artists and writers began arriving, drawn to the landscape, the climate, and the area's cultural depth. This influx reshaped the city, leading to the development of the "Santa Fe Style" in architecture—a Pueblo Revival look inspired by local adobe homes and churches, which became official building code after 1912.
This blend of Indigenous, Spanish, and American influences made Santa Fe the cultural capital of the Southwest. It hosts over 250 art galleries and numerous museums, including the Georgia O'Keeffe Museum and the contemporary art collective Meow Wolf. Its annual International Folk Art Market and Indian Market bring art and craft from around the world to a city that built its reputation on what it made.