The Navajo Nation’s Oldest Trading Post Where Business Hasn’t Stopped Since 1878

Hubbell Trading Post, Arizona

n 1878, a young trader named John Lorenzo Hubbell bought a small trading post in Arizona for reasons that made perfect sense at the time.

The Navajo had just returned from forced exile, their economy was shattered, and they needed goods to survive.

Here’s how it became the oldest operating trading post on the Navajo Nation still selling rugs and coffee today.

A Trader During Navajo Recovery

John Lorenzo Hubbell established this trading center in 1878 in Ganado, Arizona. It was exactly ten years after 8,000 Navajo people returned from forced exile at Bosque Redondo in 1868.

The period known as “The Long Walk” forced Navajo people to march over 300 miles from their homeland to an internment camp in New Mexico.

When they returned to their ancestral lands, the Navajo faced severe economic hardship. Trading centers provided a lifeline.

The Man Behind The Trading Post

Born November 27, 1853 in Pajarito, New Mexico, John Lorenzo Hubbell came from mixed heritage. His father, James Lawrence Hubbell from Connecticut, married Julianita Gutierrez, whose family held Spanish land grants dating back to 1739.

Hubbell spoke English, Spanish, and Navajo fluently. The Navajo gave him two names: first “Nak’eznilih” meaning “Double Glasses” due to his spectacles, and later “Naakaii Saani” or “Old Mexican.”

Before settling in Ganado, Hubbell worked as a Spanish interpreter for the U.S. military and was familiar with Navajo language and culture.

Building A Trading Empire

By the early 1900s, Hubbell’s business empire grew to include over 30 trading posts, with peak growth between 1896 and 1912. His commercial network stretched across Arizona, New Mexico, and into other southwestern states.

Hubbell built wholesale warehouses in railroad towns including Gallup, New Mexico and Winslow, Arizona. These facilities helped him move goods and connect remote Navajo communities to larger markets.

Hubbell also created mail order catalogs to sell Native American crafts all over the US.

The Trading Post Buildings

The main trading post building, built in 1883, features walls of local sandstone. This sturdy structure has stood for nearly 140 years of constant use while keeping its historical character.

In 1897, Hubbell added a trading barn that combined local sandstone walls with roofs styled after ancient Anasazi buildings.

Roman and Dorothy Hubbell, John Lorenzo’s son and daughter-in-law, added a guest hogan in the early 1930s.

The Trading Post Operations

Hubbell Trading Post worked as more than just a store. For many Navajo people, it served as a bank where they could pawn valuable silver and turquoise jewelry when they needed cash.

Keeping the trading post stocked took considerable effort. Freight wagons hauled supplies 56 miles from Gallup, New Mexico, a journey taking between two and four days in good weather. The same wagons returned carrying wool and other trade goods.

The Hubbell Family At Ganado

John Lorenzo Hubbell married Lina Rubi on July 27, 1891, in St. Johns, Arizona. The couple already had three children together: Adella born in 1880, Barbara in 1881, and Lorenzo Jr. in 1883. Their fourth child, Roman, arrived shortly after their marriage.

Unlike many frontier traders who left their families back east, the entire Hubbell family lived at the trading post, deeply connecting with the local community.

After John Lorenzo’s death in 1930, his sons Lorenzo Jr. and Roman continued running the family business.

When Roman died in 1957, his widow Dorothy Hubbell took over managing the trading post. She ran the business for another decade until 1967, making her the last family member to operate Hubbell Trading Post before it moved to the National Park Service.

The Navajo Rug Revolution

In 1886-1887, Hubbell began shaping what would become known as the ‘Ganado Red’ rug style. These striking textiles feature a large central design surrounded by complex geometric borders, often using traditional Navajo patterns.

To guide weavers toward the styles he found most marketable, Hubbell ordered watercolor paintings of rug designs. He displayed these paintings in the trading post as visual guides for Navajo weavers bringing their work for trade.

Silverwork And Native Crafts

Seeing potential in Navajo silverwork, Hubbell brought Mexican silversmiths to Ganado to teach their techniques.

By 1902, Hubbell’s first mail order catalog showed distinctive items like Navajo concho belts and turquoise bracelets.

A key business relationship with the Fred Harvey Company helped bring Navajo crafts to a national audience. The Harvey Company’s hotels and restaurants along railroad routes introduced travelers to southwestern Native American art.

A Host To Notable Visitors

The trading post regularly hosted scientists, artists, and researchers seeking to learn about Navajo culture.

Throughout his career, Hubbell met every U.S. president from Grover Cleveland to Warren G. Harding. In 1912, President Theodore Roosevelt stayed at the Hubbell Trading Post for a week after attending the Hopi Snake Dances.

Transition To A National Treasure

Hubbell Trading Post received National Historic Landmark status in 1960.

On August 28, 1965, the trading post officially became a National Historic Site.

The agreement included one crucial condition: that it continue operating as a working trading post rather than becoming just a museum.

Today, the Western National Parks Association continues Hubbell’s legacy by operating the trading post as a living business.

Visiting Hubbell Trading Post

Hubbell Trading Post National Historic Site is at milepost 446.3 on Arizona state route 264.

General admission to the site is free. If you’d like to explore the Hubbell family home, guided tours cost $5, with free admission for those 16 and under.
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