Pecos National Historical Park

Address:Pecos, New Mexico
Tel: (505) 757-6414

Come visit the site of an ancient culture and a Civil War battlefield at the Pecos National Historical Park near Santa Fe, New Mexico. The park is composed of one unit at the site of ruins from the Pecos Pueblo and another at the site of the Battle of Glorieta Pass. Today, both sections of the Pecos National Historical Park offer tours.

The site that would become part of the Pecos National Historical Park was originally inhabited by the Pecos Pueblo people in the 14th century. That section of the Pecos National Historical Park also contains a Spanish mission, the Mission Nuestra Señora de los Ángeles de Porciúncula de los Pecos, built near the Pecos Pueblo in the early 17th century. In March 1862, the Battle of Glorieta Pass, dubbed the "Gettysburg of the West," was fought in another spot protected by the Pecos National Historical Park in an attempt by the Union to stop the Confederate invasion of the West. In 1965, the site was designated as the Pecos National Monument, and re-designated as the Pecos National Historical Park in 1990.

The visitor center at the Pecos National Historical Park offers exhibits, book sales, and a ten-minute introductory film. There is a 1.25-mile self-guided trail through the Pecos Pueblo and Spanish mission section. Guided tours of both sections of the Pecos National Historical Park are available Pecos National Historical intermittently throughout the years. There are no eateries at the park itself, but visitors will find a variety of restaurants in nearby Santa Fe or Pecos, New Mexico.

To get to the Pecos National Historical Park, take I-25 north to exit 299, then travel two miles south on Highway 63.