Last updated: June 15, 2026
Place
Amache National Historic Site, the Santa Fe Trail
NPS Photo
Quick Facts
Location:
County Rd 23 5/10, Granada, Colorado
Significance:
Along the route of Santa Fe NHT is Amache, also known as the Granada Relocation Center, near Granada. It was one of ten incarceration sites established by the War Relocation Authority during World War II to unjustly incarcerate Japanese Americans. The Amache Museum is located in Granada.
Designation:
National Historic Site; Historic site on the Santa Fe NHT.
Amenities
2 listed
Historical/Interpretive Information/Exhibits, Parking - Auto
Amache National Historic Site, formerly the Granada War Relocation Center, is situated along one of the original corridors of the Santa Fe Trail, directly off U.S. Highway 385/50—which closely follows the historic route. Before its transformation into an internment camp during World War II, the surrounding area of Granada served as a significant 19th-century stopping point for traders, Native American groups, and westward-bound travelers on the Santa Fe Trail. Although its primary identity today is tied to the wartime experiences of Japanese Americans, Amache’s location on the National Historic Trail ensures its layered legacy is preserved.
The site integrates its role in mass incarceration within the broader narrative of American westward migration. Visitors driving along the Santa Fe Trail corridor encounter Amache’s interpretive panels and museum, offering a profound juxtaposition: a place where the deep history of 19th-century migration meets the injustice of mid‑20th-century exclusion.
This area of the Santa Fe Trail attests to the dark side of US western expansion, most notably the 1864 massacre of hundreds of Cheyenne and Arapaho at nearby Sand Creek. This region also played a role in the story of Caddo Indian displacement during the Civil War. Even into the 20th century, human rights offenses continued with the Japanese American incarceration during World War II.
Amache, also known as the Granada Relocation Center, near Granada, Colorado was one of ten incarceration sites established by the War Relocation Authority during World War II to unjustly incarcerate Japanese Americans. Over 10,000 people, most American citizens, were incarcerated at Amache from 1942 to 1945.
After its closure in 1945, the buildings from the Granada Relocation Center were removed or demolished and the agricultural land was reverted to private farming and ranching. Today, only the historical concrete foundations remain of most buildings. Only three buildings were left at the site: the brick memorial at the cemetery, a concrete water reservoir, and a concrete block well house. The historical roadbeds are also largely intact.
Site Information
Location (County Rd 23 5/10, Granada, Colorado.)