The Opening and Closing of the Santa Fe Trail 1821-1880, PART 1
Oldest House in Santa Fe, New Mexico
The Mexican Revolution ended in 1821 and brought about many changes in foreign policy. Up to then Spain didn’t allow her colonies to trade with the U.S. American traders venturing into Santa Fe were thrown in jail, sometimes for years. Both sides needed something the other possessed. Santa Fe located far from Mexico City, more of an afterthought to Spanish authorities, desperately need manufactured goods while the Americans needed hard currency. Mexico had an abundance of silver. When Mexican soldiers encountered Indian trader William Becknell near the Arkansas River in November 1821 they invited him to bring his trade goods to Santa Fe where he would find a welcome market. The Becknell Party entered Santa Fe on November 16
True West Magazine
What event marked the end of the Old West?
That’s hard to say precisely because the Old West covered hundreds of square miles. Stagecoaches were still hauling passengers in remote parts of Arizona into the 1920s. The Arizona Rangers were still breaking up gangs of rustlers in the early 1900 as were the Texas and New Mexico Rangers. There are areas in the west including parts of the Dakotas, Montana, Wyoming, Nevada, Utah, Colorado, Idaho, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Oklahoma and even California, Oregon and Washington that are still “Western.” I’ve been there and seen ’em.
True West Magazine
Women on the Oregon Trail
For the most part, the women did not want to leave home. They only went because their husbands or fathers insisted.
And on the journey, they cooked over campfires instead of in brick ovens. They made their meals with limited provisions and what they could glean along the trail. They washed with river water almost as muddy as the clothes, unless it was left to sit and settle. Their family members suffered illnesses such as cholera or yellow fever or pneumonia. Or they were injured in wagon or gun accidents. Or they drowned or were snake-bit or suffered some other calamity.
True West Magazine
How did saloons in the old west out in the middle of nowhere serve beer? It must be refrigerated and does not travel well.
In warmer climes the beer was never ice cold, usually served at 55 to 65 degrees. Though the beer had a head, it wasn’t sudsy as it is today. Patrons had to knock back the beer in a hurry before it got too warm or flat.
It wasn’t until the 1880’s that Adolphus Busch introduced artificial refrigeration and pasteurization to the U.S. brewing process, launching Budweiser as a national brand. Before then, folks in the Old West didn’t expect their beer to be cold, accustomed to the European tradition of beer served at room temperature.