Watch this American Pioneering History video entitled The Santa Fe Trail to study this 19th century transportation route through central North America that connected Franklin, Missouri with Santa Fe, New Mexico which served as a vital highway until the introduction of the railroad to Santa Fe in 1880.
Learn about the development of the Santa Fe trail, the first to cross the Great Plains, and how it marked the beginning of a new era in westward expansions. Discover how wagon trains developed, and forts were built along the trail, in an effort to protect the traders from raiding Indians.