Santa Fe was founded in 1610 to be the capital of Nuevo México. When Mexico became independent from Spain in 1821, Nuevo México became part of Mexico. In 1848, after the Mexican-American War, it was ceded to the United States and in 1851 it became New Mexico's capital.

Places of interest
• The historic district of Barrio De Analco consists of 7 buildings that represent one of the oldest clusters of working-class residences in North America. The oldest of the buildings dates from 1620 and has been converted into a museum.
• De Vargas Street House was constructed in the 17th century, making it one of the oldest surviving buildings in the United States.
• Don Gaspar district contains many historic buildings from the early 20th century.
• La Cieneguilla Petroglyphs consist of ancient rock art that was made over a period from the 13th to 17th centuries. located above the Sante Fe River. The site contains thousands of petroglyphs.
• The New Mexico Governor's Mansion is located at 1 Mansion Drive. The building has served as the New Mexico Governor's Mansion since 1954.
• The New Mexico State Capitol was built from 1964 to 1966.
• Palace of the Governors dates from 1610 and it remained New Mexico's seat of government until 1901.
• Santa Fe historic district contains Santa Fe Plaza, the Palace of the Governors and the Donaciano Vigil House, amongst others.
• Santa Fe Railyard arts district contains Santa Fe Depot (Rail Runner station), SITE Santa Fe gallery and performance space, Santa Fe Farmers' Market, El Museo Cultural de Santa Fe, the 13-acre Railyard park.

Religious buildings
• The Catholic Cathedral Basilica of Saint Francis of Assisi is commonly known as Saint Francis Cathedral. It was originally built between 1869 and 1886 on the site of an older church. It was destroyed during a revolt in 1680 and later rebuilt.
• The Loretto Chapel is a former Roman Catholic church. It is now privately owned and it has been converted into museum and a wedding chapel.
• San Miguel Mission is located in the Barrio de Analco. It was originally built in 1610, but it was later destroyed and rebuilt in 1710. In both 1887 and 1955 it was restored and amended.
• The Santuario de Guadalupe is the oldest church in the United States. It was built at the end of the 18th century and it was dedicated to Our Lady of Guadalupe.

Museums
Most of Santa Fe's museums are located near the downtown Plaza. There are more than 250 art galleries and a large amount of museums in Santa Fe. The most popular of which are listed here.

• The Chuck Jones Gallery.
• El Museo Cultural de Santa Fe (Santa Fe cultural museum) is located in the Santa Fe Railyard arts district.
• Georgia O'Keeffe Museum is dedicated to the artistic legacy of Georgia O'Keeffe.
• Meow Wolf is an art collective.
• Museum of Contemporary Native Arts has collections of contemporary intertribal Native American art.
• Museum of Indian Arts and Culture exhibits Native American art. It is located in Museum Hill.
• Museum of International Folk Art opened in 1953. It has displays on folk art from around the world. The museum is located in Museum Hill.
• The Museum of Spanish Colonial Art has exhibitions of tradition arts from the Spanish-colonial era to contemporary times.
• New Mexico History Museum exhibits the history of New Mexico from ancient Native American cultures to the present. It is located behind the Palace of the Governors.
• New Mexico Museum of Art houses a collection of more than 20,000 paintings, photographs, sculptures, prints and drawings of modern and contemporary Southwestern art.
• SITE Santa Fe is a contemporary art space that was founded in 1995 and features rotating exhibitions.
• The Wheelwright Museum of the American Indian was founded in 1937 and it is devoted to Native American art and history. It is located in Museum Hill.
• Several other museums are located in the area of Museum Hill.

Three major annual art events are organized in Santa Fe:

• The Santa Fe International Folk Art Market
• The Traditional Spanish Colonial Market
• The Indian Market

Santa Fe is located at the foothills of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains, about 2,260 km east of Washington D.C.

Santa Fe ©Ifood Ijourney

Cathedral Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi ©Nick Castelli

Santa Fe ©Wendy Shervington

Santa Fe ©Devon Beard