Fort Union National Monument

Adobe ruins of a large 1800s army post on the prairie along the old Santa Fe Trail in northern New Mexico.

PO Box 127, Watrous, NM 87753 · Watrous, NM

About Fort Union National Monument

This National Park Service site preserves the crumbling adobe walls of a major military post that operated from 1851 to 1891. Set in open grassland in the Mora Valley, the monument also includes a visitor center from 1960, an early Mission 66 project designed by architect Cecil Doty. Visitors can see the remains of the wagon repair area, learn how the post shaped life across the Southwest, and explore the wide landscape the Santa Fe Trail crossed. Guided tours, talks, and seasonal events are offered for all ages.

#history
#military
#adobe ruins
#Santa Fe Trail
#prairie

What's around here?

The closest stops to Fort Union National Monument, ordered by straight-line distance. A few more like it, plus some different kinds of fun so you can build a full day.

Sports & Outdoors
Coyote Creek State Park
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Mountain state park near Taos with a stream, oak-spruce-pine forest, and fly fishing.
8.6 mi awaySwitch it up: Sports & Outdoors
Sports & Outdoors
Morphy Lake State Park
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A high mountain state park around a small lake, known for trout fishing, canoeing, and camping near wilderness country.
22 mi awaySwitch it up: Sports & Outdoors
Museums
National Scouting Museum
No admission fee
Museum on Scouting history at Philmont Scout Ranch in northern New Mexico, with free public admission.
38 mi awaySwitch it up: Museums
Sightseeing
Angel Fire Vietnam Veterans Memorial
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A Vietnam veterans memorial near Angel Fire, built around a chapel and now run by New Mexico's Department of Veterans' Services.
40 mi awayMore like this
Sightseeing
Iconic
Taos Pueblo
$25–$50
Walk among multi-story adobe homes on a guided tour of a pueblo that has been lived in for more than 1,000 years.
Transit: reachable by public transit
47 mi awayMore like this
Sightseeing
History Buff
El Santuario de Chimayo
No admission fee
Visit an 1816 adobe pilgrimage church, see its folk-art decorations, and stop at the small room of holy dirt.
Transit: reachable by public transit
52 mi awayMore like this