Santa Fe, New Mexico
Santa Fe was colonized in 1598 as "New Spain", and is the oldest "capitol city" in the U.S. Presently the 4th largest city in New Mexico, it is the state capitol.
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Cathedral
The St. Francis Cathedral was constructred in 1873-1878 by French architect Mouly. Now called the Loretto Chapel, after the order of sisters who came to Santa Fe in 1852, it is preserved as a museum. The famous spiral staircase to the choir loft was constructed sometime between 1877-1881.
Loretto Staircase
The Loretto staircase was built between 1877-1881, by an unknown workman, now called St. Joseph the carpenter. It took approximately 6 months to build, has two 360 degrees turns, stands 20 feet tall, and with no visible means of support. The rise of the 33 stairs are exactly the same, and are constructed out of an unknown, and assumed extinct species of wood, held together with square wooden pegs.
