Discover History
The Santa Fe National Forest was established in 1915, when President Woodrow Wilson signed Executive Order 2160, merging the Jemez and Pecos National Forests. New Mexico, the “Land of Enchantment,” is a world of its own; a place where the natural world dominates both the landscape and way of life. Tucked in the Rio Grande Valley, between the snowcapped peaks of the Jemez Mountains and the Sangre de Cristo Mountains, lies the city of Santa Fe. Here, the Nation’s oldest state capital shares its name with the Santa Fe National Forest that surrounds it.
Historical Context
The Santa Fe National Forest contains historic properties that demonstrate human occupation and use for approximately the past 12,000 years. Native Americans (American Indians) with Pueblo and Athabaskan ethnic affiliation and groups ancestral to these ethnic affiliations have occupied and used the plan area during this entire time. Euro Americans and other peoples from the Old World have occupied and used the plan area for approximately the past 400 years. The USDA Forest Service has managed the plan area for slightly more than 100 years. Native American, Hispanic, and Anglo-American traditional communities continue to use the plan area for economic, social, and religious purposes.