• freight wagons on the Santa Fe Trail

    Santa Fe

    National Historic Trail CO,KS,MO,NM,OK

Sapling Grove

Sapling Grove along the Santa Fe Trail lives in history as the first "camp of commerce." These exhibits in Overland Park, Kansas tell the tales of emigrants, Indians, missionaries, traders, trappers, and federal troops that passed by and utilized Sapling Grove campground.

 

These exhibits can be viewed using Adobe Acrobat Reader. To download this free program, click here. If you have a slow Internet connection, it may take a few minutes to access the files.

 
Wood, Water, Grass

 

Wood, Water, Grass 
For three decades, the legacy of Sapling Grove grew — that is until Kansas Territory was opened to settlement. (1.26 MB pdf)

 
Trappers and Traders

 

Traders and Trappers
What did this trail of commerce have to offer those who passed by? (1.11 MB pdf)

 
Emigrants and Missionaries

 

Emigrants and Missionaries  
While traveling west, where did folks rendezvous to seek land and a new life? (1.04 MB pdf)

Did You Know?

A barbed wire fence and windmill are near the Point of Rocks formation on the Santa Fe National Historic Trail in New Mexico

In 1821, the eastern terminus of the historic Santa Fe Trail was Franklin, Missouri; by 1832, Independence, Missouri; and by 1845, at Westport Landing, now Kansas City, Missouri. Textiles and hardware were traded west; silver and mules were traded east.