Camino Real de Tierra Adentro

United States   Migration    Trails and Roads    Camino Real de Tierra Adentro

Camino Real de Tierra Adentro (English: Royal Road of the Interior).

Historical Background
In 1598 Juan de Oñate outfitted and led to the north several hundred Spanish colonists from Zacatecas, Mexico to establish the New Spain province of New Mexico. They traveled to Chihuahua, El Paso, and then mostly followed the Rio Grande north to San Juan Pueblo (Tewa: Ohkay Owingeh) 25 miles (40 km) north of Santa Fe.

The trail route they pioneered came to be called the Camino Real de Tierra Adentro. It is the oldest and longest used (1598-1884) of all historical trails in what is now the United States. For more than a century it was also the longest length of trail in North America. The trail traditionally reached from Mexico City to Santa Fe. The northern part of the Trail was also known as the Chihuahua Trail between Santa Fe, New Mexico and Chihuahua, Mexico and was a heavily used trade route from the 1830s to 1884.

The wagon or carreta (large two-wheel ox cart) route in New Mexico was discontinued a few years after a branch of the Santa Fe Railroad linked Albuquerque, New Mexico to El Paso, Texas in 1882.

Trail Route
Like most trails there were many variations, but the following towns were usually visited when following it from north to south:


 * San Juan Pueblo
 * Santa Fe
 * Albuquerque
 * Socorro


 * Jornada del Muerto (a stretch of two dry camps away from the Rio Grande)


 * Las Cruces
 * Mesilla
 * El Paso
 * Juarez
 * Chihuahua
 * Zacatecas
 * Guanajuato
 * Mexico City

In 1821 the Santa Fe Trail opened between western Missouri in the United States and Santa Fe, New Mexico and the Camino Real. Further, in 1829-1830 the Old Spanish Trail opened as a link from Los Angeles, California to Santa Fe and the Camino Real.

Settlers
For a list of settlers who used the Camino Real de Tierra Adentro to come from old Mexico to New Mexico, see El Camino Real De Tierra Adentro: Five Waves of Settlers from 1598 - 1800.

Internet Sites

 * El Camino Real de Tierra Adentro Wikipedia article about the National Historic Trail.
 * El Camino Real International Heritage Center describes the Center, hours, and has trail photographs and Internet links.
 * El Camino Real de Tierra Adentro Trail Association news, trail images, and .pdf journal.