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Hi, I’m Brigitte, I’m Margaret, and I’m Drew and we’re your Youth In Park Rangers!
We’re going to be taking you to all of the national parks in the state of New Mexico.
Today we’re headed to:
Fort Union National Monument and the Santa Fe National Historic Trail
The Santa Fe Trail begins at the Missouri River and continues all the way to Santa Fe,
New Mexico.
Fort Union lies on the trail, having been one of the largest trading hubs in the Southwest.
The expansion of the railroad soon ended the era of the Santa Fe Trail.
The six-mule army wagon was part of the Santa Fe Trail.
It was crucial in linking commerce, supplies and even communication between all the forts
in the Southwest.
There is a self-guided trail on the monument, taking you throughout the third Fort Union.
It gives you a sense of how vast the fort was when it was thriving.
There were three different forts at Fort Union.
Behind me, at the base of the bluff are the remains of the First Fort Union.
The buildings, however, were poorly constructed so they eventually moved to the Second Fort
Union, and then finally to the Third.
The buildings you can see right now are the Fort Union Arsenal which was used to repair
damaged equipment for the fort.
Behind me are the ruins of the second fort. It was built to defend the Santa Fe Trail
from the threatened invasion of the Confederate Army.
Behind me, are the Commanding Officer’s Quarters here at the Third Fort Union.
This is the third and final Fort Union installment that was built in this valley and it was built
using the local masons from the surrounding area and was planned and constructed ahead
of time so it is the most durable of the three forts.
In addition to housing men, Fort Union served as a supply station.
Visitors get a chance to walk through the quartermaster’s depot, which served as a
principal supply base for the military in New Mexico.
Imagine the bustle and noise that used to inhabit these ruins as teamsters went about
their daily jobs.
Behind me is the wall of one of the five storehouses here at Fort Union.
This is where they stored all of the goods that came in on the Santa Fe Trail and that
were then distributed to the rest of the forts throughout the Southwest.
Behind me are the mechanics corrals.
Imagine more than one hundred years ago, this place being filled with the sounds of sawing
timber and clinking metal as tradesmen went about their work repairing broken wagons from
the Santa Fe Trail as well as maintaining all the other basic needs that this vast fort
experienced over its 40 year lifespan.
At the end of the main trail, visitors can walk by the adobe ruins of the hospital. It
was one of the premier medical centers in the west.
Care was given to soldiers and their families for free, and civilians could stay for 50cents
a day!
With broken down wagons, and bugles echoing through the ruins, visitors can gain a sense
of the western frontier.
Make sure to stop by Fort Union and experience it yourself!