Established in 1598 by Spanish missionary settlers in an abandoned Tewa People village, Espanola, NM became one of the first capitals in America. Originally named La Vega de Los Vigiles, which meant “the Vigils Meadow,” Spanish and Native People relied on the meadow and the Rio Grande River to survive. Visitors can still see earlier Native People homes in the area today. The Puye Cliff Dwellings are a great architectural example of these homes built by the Pueblo People, displaying their unique abilities to thrive inside of the desert climates.

Present-day Espanola formed in the 1880s as the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad began entering the region. The legendary “Chili Line” Railroad known for the multiple types of chili peppers it carried brought an influx of new jobs and people. Soon, the meadow transformed from a quaint village into a railroad town. Emerging from this transformation, the new town renamed itself Espanola. Legend has it the town’s name came from a beautiful Spanish woman who worked at a local restaurant that many of the railroad workers ate at. Other legends say the name came as an informal recognition of the many Spanish beauties that moved to the area via the railroad. Some even claim the town became so Spanish-like that they fondly referred to the town as New Spain. The community officially adopted the new name, Espanola, in 1900.

However, the railroad boom did not last long in Espanola, and many of the residents returned to their farms to survive.

The town began to find new life again during the Cold War era as the Los Alamos National Laboratory employed nearly ten percent of Espanola residents. Although many of the older historic buildings have been torn down, few remain and now serve as museums for local Native People history as well as the history of the Spanish and Anglo presence in Espanola.

The Plaza de Española,- Frank Bond House Museum 1900s, and the Mission Museum, replica of a Spanish church originally built in San Gabriel in 1598.