The Santa Fe Trail continued into Hamilton County, Kansas, passing near the present-day towns of Kendall, Syracuse, and Coolidge before entering Colorado.

Old Fort Aubrey was once situated about four miles southeast of Syracuse. It was established in 1865 to protect pioneers from Indian raids. The fort was active for only nine months before being abandoned. Today, the fort’s remains consist only of three clusters of dugout depressions.

The Aubry Crossing of the Arkansas River, approximately three miles downstream from the site of Fort Aubry, was used more than the Upper Crossing near Lakin, Kansas, rivaling the traffic at the Middle Crossings for about ten years.

The route was first opened in 1850 and became an essential path from the Arkansas River to the Oklahoma Panhandle because water supplies were more reliable along this route than along the La Jornada portion of the Cimarron Route. The importance of this route led to the establishment of two military posts in 1865, Fort Aubry and Camp Nichols, in the Oklahoma Panhandle. Though the Aubry Crossing has long since disappeared, wagon ruts can still be seen in the area, and a spring still exists near the old fort site.

The trail left the county and state near the present town of Coolidge. It continued up the Arkansas River to Santa Fe, turning southwest via Trinidad, Colorado, and Raton Pass, New Mexico.

 

©Kathy Alexander/Legends of America, updated December 2025.

Also See:

Kansas Santa Fe Trail Photo Gallery

Kansas Main Page

Santa Fe Trail Across Kansas

Santa Fe Trail – Pathway to the Southwest

See Sources.