Cimarron Cutoff of the Santa Fe Trail; By Richard Flint and Shirley Cushing Flint Between 1821 and 1880 the Santa Fe Trail linked the supply and transportation centers of Kansas and Missouri to consumer markets in Mexico and New Mexico. Along the approximately 800-mile wagon road between western Missouri and Santa Fe, wagon trains forded streams, endured weather extremes, fought and traded with Native Americans of the Plains, and sought the easiest way to their destination. William Becknell (“father of the Santa Fe Trail”) realized after his first trip from Franklin, Missouri to Santa Fe, that he could probably find … Continue reading Cimarron Cutoff of the Santa Fe Trail