The Santa Fe Trail was an important trade route through the American west in the early 1800’s. La Junta (“the junction”) grew up where the Santa Fe trail turned south to New Mexico and another trail continued west to Pueblo, Colorado.
La Junta later became a regional headquarters for the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway. As Route 50 passes through La Junta, a rail yard is on one side and the center of town is on the other.
