Delve into the rich history of the early Babbitt trading posts - remote outposts of commerce at the intersection of Anglo and navajo culture - MNA Venture destination

Navajo Trading Post Tour

Leader: Jim Babbitt
Dates: July 11–13 (3 days / 2 nights)
Cost: $650 Members / $710 Nonmembers
Difficulty: Easy

Cost includes transportation, meals, and hotel (double-occupancy; add $175 for single lodging). (No Early Bird Discount for this trip.)

Trading posts–those remote outposts of commerce at the intersection of Anglo and Navajo culture–have a rich and interesting history. Beginning in the 1880s, hardy pioneers established small trading stores across the vast Navajo reservation, exchanging manufactured goods (kerosene lamps, hardware, canned food, etc.) for the basketry, jewelry, rugs, and wool of the Diné. The trading post system flourished for over a century in places like Blue Canyon, Cedar Ridge, and Canyon Diablo, names that evoke the spectacular and sometimes mysterious landscape of the Southwest.

The Babbitt brothers acquired their first trading post in 1891 and soon became the dominant trading company on the western Navajo reservation. At one time, the family enterprise operated more than twenty trading posts on the Navajo, Hopi, Paiute, and Apache reservations.

Our trip will delve into the history of some of the early Babbitt posts. We will visit Willow Springs, Tuba, and Red Lake, the sites of the first three Babbitt posts.

Along the journey we will talk about the relationship between trading posts and the development of tourism in the Southwest, about the filming of early Hollywood Western movies in the area, and visit the sites of historic Babbitt trading posts.

We will visit the Hubbell Trading Post, a National Historic Site and the best surviving example of a old-style trading post. On the way back to Flagstaff, we’ll discuss the role of the railroad in the rise of the trading post system. This trip will provide a in-depth understanding of an important facet of history on the Colorado Plateau.

Pre-Trip Information Packet (PDF Downloads)

» Medical/Waiver [31 KB]

Jim Babbitt has worked with his family's business enterprises for nearly thirty years and ran the Babbitt trading posts on the Navajo and Hopi reservations in the 1980s. Read more…

“This is my third trip [with] Ventures. Well-organized leaders set just the right tone and pace.” —J.P.

“Ventures takes you where you have never been, to places you barely or never knew existed. After the experience you ask yourself why you didn’t go sooner and wonder how soon you can go back.” —R.W.