Clayton and Santa Fe Trail-- Cimarron Cutoff

<h5>Side 1</h5>Trade caravans and homesteaders traveling the Cimarron Cutoff of the Santa Fe Trail passed near here. Clayton was founded in 1887 and named for the son of cattleman and ex-Senator Stephen W. Dorsey, one of its developers. It became a major livestock shipping center for herds from the Pecos Valley and the Texas Panhandle. Population–2968 Elevation–4969 ft. <h5>Side 2</h5>The Santa Fe Trail was the major trade route between New Mexico and Missouri from 1821 until the arrival of the railroad in 1880. The Cimarron cutoff, a major branch of the trail, passed through t this portion of Northeast New Mexico. Some of the best preserved segments of the trail route are located at the nearby Kiowa National Grasslands along the Santa Fe National Historic Trail.