Fort Union National Monument

Fort Union National Monument in northwestern New Mexico was one of the largest and busiest U.S. Army posts. First a monument in 1954, the 721-acre site is on the Santa Fe Trail, a 19th-century travel route from Independence, Missouri, to Santa Fe, New Mexico. The three-fort complex included officers' quarters, workshops, storehouses, a commander's home, a prison, a commissary, and 35-bed hospital. Today, only some adobe ruins and a few chimneys remain, plus an extensive network of wagon ruts from the actual trail. The many American Indians that inhabited the surrounding area included the Apache, Comanche, Kiowa, and Ute.