Sometimes the best way to appreciate our hometown is to experience it as a tourist would. The City Different’s four major summer festivals—Native, folk, Hispanic, and literary—offer unique opportunities to explore the centuries of history and culture that shape Santa Fe and the surrounding region. This piece highlights both the city’s rich Hispanic traditions and its deep cultural heritage, inviting readers to discover the stories and landmarks that give Santa Fe its distinctive character.
“Any land will flow with milk and honey if it is worked with honest hands.” —Rudolfo Anaya
Santa Fe’s Hispanic Side
Santa Fe was founded as a Spanish colony in 1610, making it the oldest capital city in the United States. It served as the capital of Nuevo México. The colonization was often violent, causing suffering and displacement of Native peoples. Over time, however, a tenuous coexistence developed, along with the blending of cultures and ways of life. Settlers introduced farming and domestic animals, and ranching, mining, and trade became key economic activities. The distinctive look of Hispanic New Mexican art reflects creative innovation in the face of scarce resources. In 1821, New Mexico came under Mexican rule after its independence from Spain. It became a U.S. territory in 1850 and achieved statehood in 1912.
Spanish Market
In 1926, the Spanish Colonial Arts Society organized the first Spanish Market to promote local traditional Hispanic arts. Since that time, the juried show has grown to be the largest show and sale of Hispanic art of its kind in the US, featuring more than 200 artists from New Mexico and southern Colorado, working in 19 art categories that represent the region’s established traditional arts and crafts. Taking place in the same weekend in July is Contemporary Hispanic Market, featuring Hispanic artists working in various media outside the more traditional boundaries of Spanish Market.
Nuevo Mexicano Heritage Arts Museum
The Spanish Colonial Arts Society opened the Nuevo Mexicano Heritage Arts Museum (formerly the Spanish Colonial Museum) in 2002. The museum preserves and displays regional Hispanic traditional arts. It occupies the former residence of the director of the nearby Laboratory of Anthropology. In addition to traditional arts, the museum hosts exhibitions exploring new materials and perspectives on Colonial art. Its gift shop features Hispanic art by regional artists.
New Mexico History Museum
The New Mexico History Museum and the Palace of the Governors are part of the state’s Department of Cultural Affairs. The Palace of the Governors, built in 1610, served as the administrative building for the Spanish colony, then the Mexican province, and later the U.S. territorial capital. In 2009, the New Mexico History Museum opened nearby. Together, the buildings tell New Mexico’s story through permanent and special exhibitions.
El Rancho de las Golondrinas
El Rancho de las Golondrinas is a living-history museum on 200 acres in La Ciénega Valley, just south of Santa Fe. It preserves northern New Mexico’s Hispano heritage. Events run from June to October and showcase fiber arts, textiles, lavender, wine festivals, and historic lifestyles. In 2020, the museum celebrated 50 years with 50 events. Its gift shop offers books on New Mexico history, traditional Hispanic arts, and unique gifts.
Hotel Chimayó
Hotel Chimayó, near the Plaza, honors the Hispanic heritage of Chimayó village. The lobby displays traditional santero artwork, and most rooms have wood-burning fireplaces. Estevan Restaurante serves locally sourced New Mexican cuisine, while the Low ’n Slow bar celebrates local lowrider culture.
Road Trip—High Road to Taos
El Santuario de Chimayó
El Santuario de Chimayó, in the village of Chimayó, 30 miles northeast of Santa Fe, is a National Historic Landmark. An active house of worship as well as an important pilgrimage site, it is full of traditional Spanish Colonial art, from the reredos to the Stations of the Cross, from the crucifix to the santos. A long room to the side of the nave bears witness to many miracles, with ex votos (votive offerings), crutches, letters, and other memorabilia left as tokens of thanks for healing events. In another small room is a round pit, the source of “holy dirt” said to have healing powers. In the plaza outside the front of the church, several galleries and shops feature traditional Hispanic arts and crafts, along with religious items.
Rancho de Chimayó
Opened in 1965, Rancho de Chimayó serves recipes perfected over generations. Recognized as a Culinary Treasure by New Mexico and awarded the James Beard Foundation America’s Classics Award in 2016, the restaurant offers traditional northern New Mexican foods. The venue, a restored Jaramillo family home, features a cozy double fireplace and a terraced patio.
Travel the High Road to Taos (State Road 76) to see remnants of New Spain. Villages along the route reflect earlier centuries. Notable stops include Nuestra Señora del Sagrado Rosario in Truchas (built 1784), San Jose de Gracia in Trampas (1760–1776), and San Francisco de Asís Catholic Mission (1772–1816). Trampas and Ranchos de Taos churches are National Historic Landmarks. These active Catholic communities highlight adobe architecture, though entry may be limited.
Reading List for Learning More
Conexiones: Connections in Spanish Colonial Art, Carmela Padilla
Spanish New Mexico: The Spanish Colonial Arts Society Collection, 2 volumes, edited by Donna Pierce and Marta Weigle
A Land so Remote, Larry Frank
To the End of the Earth, Stanley M. Hordes
Story by Mara Harris
Photography Courtesy of Spanish Colonial Arts Society
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