LAS VEGAS, NEV.- The Nevada State Museum at Las Vegas is opening a new exhibit on the Old Spanish Trail, the approximately 700-mile network of trails that linked the Los Angeles area with the land that would become Nevada, Arizona, New Mexico, Utah, and Colorado through areas of high mountains, arid deserts, and deep canyons.

Thirty-five years before Nevada became a state, Mexican merchant Antonio Armijo led a caravan of 60 men and 100 mules to blaze a trail across Nevada. The Valley was named Las Vegas, “the meadows,” after its spring-watered grasses that would later put Las Vegas on the map. The Nevada State Museum sits on the property of the Las Vegas Springs Preserve. This is a key location of the trail, as it was frequently used by travelers as a place to rest and refuel with the water from the natural springs.

Called "the longest, crookedest, most arduous pack mule train in the history of America" by Colorado historian Leroy R. Hafen, the Old Spanish Trail is both one of the nation’s least known trails but one of the most important pack mule trading trails in this region.

“I wanted to shed light on a topic that many Nevadans may have missed since we tend to focus on contemporary culture in Las Vegas. Our history includes the Southern Paiute and other indigenous people and later the Spanish with Nevada part of the Spanish empire and later Mexico. The founding of the trail, Armijo and his team that named Las Vegas,” said Josef Diaz, Curator of History and Material Culture. “There has never been an exhibit devoted to this subject nor of this scale in Nevada. I was able to work with various institutions in the southwest that I have developed relationships with over the years to bring together artifacts that support this story,” he added.

Diaz’s background in southwest’s antiquities and history has benefitted the museum and this exhibit. Before joining the museum in October 2022, he held positions at the Museum of Spanish Colonial Art and New Mexico History Museum, both in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Using his professional connections this exhibit creates a well-rounded look at the Old Spanish Trail, telling its story via the collections from the New Mexico History Museum, Museum of Spanish Colonial Art, Museum of International Folk Art, Center for Southwest Studies at Fort Lewis College, Arizona State Museum at the University of Arizona, Museum of Northern Arizona, Clark County Museum and from the private collection of Mark Winter.

“I am delighted we are presenting a window into this history to fellow Nevadans. The Trail, or Trails more accurately, have puzzled historians for years. The written history of this trade passage between Santa Fe and Los Angeles remains incomplete and has not described all the routes taken, or people that traversed The Old Spanish Trail.” said Hollis J. Gillespie, Museum Director.

The Old Spanish Trail was primarily a horse and mule pack route linking the village of Santa Fe to the Pueblo of Los Angeles. The trail evolved from a network of indigenous trade routes and exploratory routes that crossed the modern states of New Mexico, Colorado, Utah, Arizona, Nevada, and California.

Many of the items that were moved along the trail system were wool, textiles, and piñon nuts, which were plentiful in New Mexico. These were traded for horses and mules, which were abundant in California. The exhibit will illustrate the important commerce along the route with items tracing the trail’s history through illustrated wall panels, maps, textiles, and artifacts.

The Friends of Nevada State Museum, the museum’s volunteer association raised funds to acquire a wool Rio Grande blanket dating back to 1860 to add to the collection. The blanket is made of Spanish Churro sheep wool dyed with indigo blue.
“Educating the public on the history of the trail is more important now more than ever,” said Hollis Gillespie, the Director of the Nevada State Museum in Las Vegas. “The trail is under threat from urban development, highways, reservoirs, and electrical lines. Our mission to preserve history is on display with this exhibit.”