A Correct Map of the Old Santa Fe Trail Across Kansas --by L. Stephen (Steve) Schmidt.

Lost Spring, Marion County, Kansas – A Historical Perspective by L. Stephen (Steve) Schmidt When Steve Schmidt, President of the Cottonwood Crossing Chapter of the Santa Fe Trail Association, was asked to prepare a synopsis of the history of Lost Spring for a printed tour guide, it quickly became apparent that some local legends about the Lost Spring were not confirmed by the historical record. In addition, some of the historically significant aspects of the Lost Spring were not common knowledge. Presented here are the recently revised results of three years of research on the history of Lost Spring and vicinity, focusing on the Santa Fe Trail. This research will help the reader to understand the location of the Lost Spring, the Lost Spring Station, and the town of Lost Springs. Included are maps that illustrate the location of the Santa Fe Trail and its branches in the vicinity of Lost Spring, as well as the location of the Lost Spring and Lost Spring Station. An extensive list of references is provided.

 

An Old Santa Fe Trail Map Recovered by Margaret Sears.
Published in Wagon Tracks, Volume 30, Number 4, August 2016, pgs. 22-27. Click maps for larger view.

 

 

 
         



 

 

 

Sibley Expeditions in Northeastern New Mexico, 1825 and 1826, by L. Stephen (Steve) Schmidt, September 2024

(All rights reserved; permission is granted to the Santa Fe Trail Association for publication on its web-site)
An overview of the 1825 and 1826 Sibley Expeditions in Northeastern New Mexico was presented on pages 12 through 18 of the August 2024 issue of Wagon Tracks.  That article presented annotated period maps of the Expeditions and described the Expeditions’ historical significance.   That article can be viewed at: Wagon Tracks - Santa Fe Trail Association. Google Earth maps and a spreadsheet tabulation of the Expeditions are herein presented as noted near the end of the August 2024 article.
 
    *Introduction and Maps
    *Tabulations

 

The Survey and Maps of the Sibley Expedition, 1825, 1826 & 1827
The purpose of this report is to present the results of a study performed under a Scholarly Research Grant provided by the Santa Fe Trail Association to L. Stephen (Steve) Schmidt in 2011. Assisting Steve with his research was Richard E. (Rich) Hayden. The objective of the study was to plot the "Sibley Survey" on base maps contained in the National Park Service's Santa Fe National Historic Trail, Comprehensive Management and Use Plan, Map Supplement (May 1990). The Sibley Survey was the result of a bill authorizing a road to be surveyed and marked from Missouri to the Mexican settlements (Santa Fe) that was signed into law by President John Quincy Adams on March 3, 1825. Of the three Commissioners appointed to oversee the task, George C. Sibley emerged as the leader and the driving force behind the survey which became known as the Sibley Expedition. The Sibley Expedition began its survey near Ft. Osage, Missouri July 17, 1825.

 

National Park Service Research