NM History Museum: Connecting the past, present, and future
The Honoring Tradition & Innovation: 100 Years of Santa Fe’s Indian Market, 1922-2022 exhibition gallery. Photo by Tira Howard.

Our state’s history is complex. It’s worth a closer look. It’s ever-changing. 

The stories are here. New Mexico History Museum tells them through exhibitions, scholarship, exceptional collections, community building, and diverse perspectives. 

A division of the New Mexico Department of Cultural Affairs, the museum’s campus in downtown Santa Fe reflects a multifaceted history interpreted within its walls and our state’s potential futures. In the halls of the Palace of the Governors, and the state-of-the-art Pete V. Domenici Building, visitors will find deeply considered exhibitions about the railroads, santos and Southwest jewelry, and a sweeping look through 500 years of New Mexico history. 

Palace of the Governors Portal. Photo by Blair Clark, NMDCA. The New Mexico History Museum is located at the Palace of the Governors. Here, Indigenous artists are selling their creations.
Palace of the Governors Portal. Photo by Blair Clark, NMDCA.

Palace of the Governors
at New Mexico History Museum

Palace of the Governors is a beloved icon, complex symbol, and anchor for the New Mexico History Museum. From the early 1600s, the Palace was the seat of government for Colonial Spain, then for Mexico, and finally for the United States. The modest, one-story adobe structure is the nation’s oldest, continuously occupied public building. It was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1960 and recognized in 2015 as a National Treasure by the National Trust for Historic Preservation.

After its designation as the Museum of New Mexico in 1909, Palace of the Governors inspired the Spanish-Pueblo Revival style, which continues to be core to Santa Fe’s modern architectural aesthetic. Today, visitors can still walk the halls of the original Palace. The Palace Seen and Unseen: A Convergence of History and Archaeology is a glimpse into the structure’s architecture and history. Silver and Stones: Collaborations in Southwest Jewelry and The Santos of New Mexico are just two long-term exhibitions that can also be found within the Palace, exploring different layers of New Mexico History Museum’s extensive collections of Southwest art and jewelry. 

What to see and do at the History Museum

New Mexico History Museum is a significant cultural center, featuring several permanent and rotating exhibition spaces, an auditorium, Palace of the Governors, the Palace Press, the Fray Angélico Chávez History Library, Palace of the Governors Photo Archives, and the Native American Artisans Portal Program. The museum serves a broad constituency of visitors—community members, tourists, school groups, and academics alike. And our exhibitions feature a variety of objects, multimedia installations, and interactive resources that bring history to life. 

Visit the museum to experience stories of the American west, from the early lives of Indigenous peoples to Spanish settlers, Mexican Independence, Santa Fe Trail merchants, the railroad, cowboys, outlaws, and scientists. 

Education is for everyone

Education is essential to the museum’s mission. Every visitor benefits from learning about New Mexico’s past. The museum also has initiatives tailored to school age children and regularly hosts school groups. We also feature regular lectures featuring artists and subjects from our exhibitions, hands-on educational programming, and more.

Visitors at the New Mexico History Museum. Photo by Kitty Leaken.
Visitors at the New Mexico History Museum. Photo by Kitty Leaken.

New Mexico History Museum
is a window into our shared past

New Mexico history is not a single, universally accepted story or an interwoven tale of three cultures. It’s a tapestry of narratives drawn from experiences of many people through time and throughout the entire state. Your knowledge as well as your emotional connection come through reflections on objects, images, and documents from past times — not only from those who used the objects but those who collected them. You learn from our past the many ways of being human, the dynamics of change, and the nature of society, leading to more informed citizenship, a more ethical society, and a greater quality of life.

For more information about admission and how to plan your visit, go to nmhistorymuseum.org. 

If you’d like to explore more of New Mexico’s history and culture, be sure to read this story! Find out about a New Mexico CulturePass here.

 

Story by Bud Russo • Photographs courtesy New Mexico History Museum

Top image: The Honoring Tradition & Innovation: 100 Years of Santa Fe’s Indian Market, 1922 – 2022 exhibition gallery. Photo by Tira Howard.

 

Story sponsored by the NEW MEXICO DEPARTMENT OF CULTURAL AFFAIRS

NM Department of Cultural Affairs logo.

This article was posted by Jesse Williams

Please Share!

About Santa Fe
Loretto Santa Fe New Mexico

Santa Fe has a timeless, earthy soul – a chic place that hasn’t forgotten its long and storied past. Founded in 1610, Santa Fe is the oldest state capital in the US, synonymous with contemporary elegance thanks to its architecture, colorful art markets, gourmet restaurants, extraordinary museums, upscale accommodations, the world-class Santa Fe Opera, and 310 days of sunshine. Sitting at the foot of the Sangre de Cristo range at an altitude of over 7000 ft., it’s an exceptional base … Read More

Traditional Spanish Market Keeps History Alive in Santa Fe

The Traditional Spanish Market reflects part of Santa Fe’s fascinating multicultural history and draws tens of thousands of visitors from across the country and beyond. Scheduled to take place on the historic Santa Fe Plaza on July 27 and 28, 2024, the market is an opportunity to delve into Spanish colonial history and explore arts and crafts created centuries ago and today. Artists who participate in this market are quite literally keeping history and culture alive through their works. Founded … Read More

New Mexico Cavedigger | Ra Paulette
santa fe cave

Jeffrey Karoff was enjoying pancakes at a community fundraiser in 2000 when a neighbor said something that sounded absurd: A local artist was digging a cave for him. Intrigued, Karoff and his wife paid a visit. Where they might have expected a jagged hole in the Northern New Mexico dirt, they instead marveled at soaring walls buffed to an alabaster finish. Bas-relief sculptures carried them between the arches separating rooms. Skylights lured sunshine onto long-buried earth. Eventually, furniture, bookshelves, and … Read More

Featured Businesses