Before It Became History | William Becknell: Father of the Santa Fe Trail

In 1821, a debt-ridden Missouri trader named William Becknell blazed a 900-mile trail to Santa Fe and returned with a fortune in silver. Discover how one desperate gamble opened the American Southwest to trade and reshaped the western frontier. Before It Became History, a podcast series from the Sandra Day O’Connor Institute, explores the people and moments that shaped the American story. Each episode looks beyond the legend to examine the decisions, conflicts, and ideas that tested the promi...