Workers started a church on the east side. Families built their houses nearby. Today, Santa Fe is the oldest capital city in the United States. The Governors Palace still stands. Now it is a museum.
People still take walks on the plaza.
They also continue to hold their fiestas there, just as the Spaniards once did. The period after the founding of Santa Fe is called the Great Missionary Era. More than 30 padres built missions at the Indian pueblos around New Mexico. While the missions grew, new Spanish settlers continued to arrive. By 1630, there were 250 Spaniards in Santa Fe.