200 years ago the Santa Fe Trail was established by William Becknell

Santa Fe Trail.

The Santa Fe Trail was one of the most significant factors in the exploration of the cause and effect of the Indian Wars in Kansas. It ran from Missouri to New Mexico, following the Arkansas River for a portion of that distance. The Santa Fe Trail was the oldest overland route across the Great Plains, connecting the Anglo and Spanish-American cultures, as well as crossing through that of Plains Indians. It was opened as a commercial route in 1821. Traders from the new state of Missouri, led by William Becknell, were the first to succeed in transporting commodities to Santa Fe after the Mexicans won their independence from Spain. Becknell was considered the “Founder of the Santa Fe Trail” (Streeter, 1963).

Many Indian tribes lived in the region of the trail, while others came into the region to hunt buffalo periodically. The significant tribes coming into contact with the route along the Arkansas River were the Pawnee, Arapaho, Cheyenne, Kiowa, Comanche, and Plains Apaches. Other tribes that were affected by the trail and were sometimes encountered by travelers included the Kansa, Osage, Jicarilla Apaches, and some bands of the Sioux. All of these tribes, even those who practiced some agriculture, depended on the buffalo for much their food, clothing and shelter. Horses were critical to these Indians, and stealing horses was considered an honorable deed in their culture. They were, however, seen as a threat by travelers on the trail, seeking horses and other property. Travelers, conversely, were seen as a threat by the Indians to their culture, especially after the 1840s when it was apparent that the invaders threatened the buffalo on which their way of life depended. Clashes were inevitable, and military protection of the Santa Fe route was required.

Early on the traders would outfit their wagon trains in Independence or Westport Missouri. From Independence to Santa Fe via the Cimarron Cutoff was approximately 770 miles, while the mountain route was nearly 825 miles. Council Grove on the Neosho River became a major campsite, where the caravans would organize for the remainder of the trip. From that point, the trail crossed several streams before joining the Arkansas River near present-day Great Bend. The trail followed the north bank of the river and crossed Walnut Creek, passed a famous landmark known as Pawnee Rock, and crossed Ash Creek before reaching the Pawnee Fork of the Arkansas, also known as Pawnee River (Oliva, 2001). A vital campsite developed at the Pawnee crossing near where Fort Larned was later established. There the trail split into two branches known as the Wet and Dry Routes.?These routes rejoined at the point where Fort Dodge was later to be founded. From the Arkansas River, there were several roads to the Cimarron River across 50 miles of desert.?Later the Mountain Branch followed the Arkansas River into present-day Colorado, passed Bent’s Fort (a famous trading post from 1833 to 1849) and proceeded over Raton Pass into New Mexico to join the other route near Fort Union which was founded in 1851.

Eventually, the railroad would dominate the trade and transportation routes, and the Santa Fe Trail fell into disuse. Most of the route became part of the federal and state highway system in the twentieth century.