Santa Fe Historical Tour with City Historian

Only historical tour of its kind by a true local and bona fide historian. Ana Pacheco's family settled in Santa Fe in 1692 and she was the City Historian of Santa Fe (2015 - 2017). Pacheco is the author of eight books: Legendary Locals of Santa Fe, The History of Spirituality in Santa Fe, Pueblos of New Mexico, Early New Mexico Death Rituals, Los Comidas Cookbook, Saints & Seasons, Early Santa Fe, J. Paul Taylor: The Man from Mesilla.
Information on the tour includes: Santa Fe Opera, Route 66, 109 E. Palace & the Manhattan Project, Pueblos of New Mexico History, Loretto Chapel, San Miguel Mission, Canyon Road & Santa Fe as an Art Mecca, Sunmount Sanatorium, Santuario de Guadalupe, Masonic Scottish Rite Temple, Spirituality in Santa Fe & Cross of the Martyrs, Japanese Internment Camp, History of the Civil War in New Mexico. Billy the Kid's story begins in Santa Fe.

Meeting Point

The Cathedral Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi

131 Cathedral Pl, Santa Fe, NM 87501, USA

In front of the Basilica Cathedral of St. Francis of Assisi

What's included:

• Tour Guide

What to expect:

Duration: 2 hours, 15 minutes

The Cathedral Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi

131 Cathedral Pl, , Santa Fe, 87501-2026, New Mexico

La Conquistadora the oldest Madonna in the United States. The Santa Fe Plaza, Loretto Chapel, the San Miguel Mission church, the oldest in the country. History of Art and Architecture in Santa Fe. An overview of four hundred years of Native American, Spanish, Mexican and American history in Santa Fe, the oldest capitol city in the United States

10 minutes

109 East Palace

Santa Fe, New Mexico

The military checkpoint for the Manhattan Project during WWII.

5 minutes

Palace of the Governors

105 W Palace Ave, Santa Fe, 87501-2014, New Mexico

Oldest government building in the U.S. plus the History of New Mexico's 19 Indian Pueblos.

10 minutes

New Mexico State Capitol (Roundhouse)

Paseo de Peralta and Old Santa Fe Trail, Santa Fe, 87501-4326, New Mexico

History of the only U.S. government building designed as a Native American symbol.

Pass by without stopping

Loretto Chapel

207 Old Santa Fe Trail, Inn and Spa at Loretto, Santa Fe, 87501, New Mexico

Loretto Chapel was built in 1878 by Archbishop Lamy to accompany the Sisters of Light Loretto Academy. The Gothic-Revival chapel was inspired by Saint Chapelle in Paris, which was built by architect Antoine Mouly, who did the restoration of chapel that was patterned for King Louis IX in Paris. Legend has it that the 360-degree staircase built in the chapel between 1877 and 1881 had no visible means of support. Today, it is known as the Miraculous Staircase that St. Joseph the Carpenter had built. The Chapel was closed in 1968 and deconsecrated by the Catholic Church and is now run a privately owned museum.

10 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included

Burro Alley

W. San Francisco Street (next To Lensic Theater), Between W. San Francisco Street And W. Palace Avenue, Santa Fe, 87501, New Mexico

Burro Alley is a small street connecting Palace Avenue and San Francisco Street. During the 19th and early 20th centuries, vendors who sold salt from the Galisteo Salt Basin and firewood from surrounding mountains would tie up their burros there to rest. While the animals recuperated, the vendors would frequent the local saloons and brothels. The gambling hall that was run by María Gertrudis Barceló, known as Doña Tules, was at the corner near Palace Avenue.

5 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included