Hubbell Trading Post is not a place that was frozen in time. It is a place that evolved over generations. Long before J.L. Hubbell arrived, Navajo families farmed and raised livestock here. Hubbell built a trading business that grew into a ranch and a gathering place and later generations carried it forward. Today, the National Park Service preserves the property while the trading post itself continues to operate much as it has for nearly 150 years.
Walking around the property, we found reminders of all those layers of history—weathered buildings, old farm machinery, livestock, the Hubbell home and, at the center of it all, the trading post. Together, they tell a story that is much richer than that of an old store.
A trading post that never stopped
Where the past is still part of everyday life
There are historic places where you can imagine what life was like long ago. Then there are places where the past never completely left. Hubbell Trading Post is one of those places.
From the outside, it looks much as it must have decades ago—a collection of weathered buildings surrounded by farmland, old machinery, and a few farm animals. But this isn’t a reconstruction. The trading post itself is still operating, just as it has since J.L. Hubbell established the business here in 1878.
We visited Hubbell after spending time exploring Canyon de Chelly, about 35 miles to the north. Both places are part of the Navajo Nation and seeing them together gave me an even greater appreciation for the history and culture of this corner of Arizona.
We wandered around the Hubbell property, taking in the barn, old farm equipment, scarecrow, and livestock. Together, these details give the place the feeling of a working ranch rather than a museum.
Inside, the trading post was dark and wonderfully old-fashioned. The floorboards creaked beneath our feet while slanted wooden shelves and counters displayed everything from groceries to Navajo art and handwoven rugs. For a moment, it felt like stepping into another time.
But we hadn’t. This was—and still is—a working trading post.
How it got here and how it evolved over nearly 150 years, is the story we came to discover.
Before Hubbell arrived
An important place long before it became a trading post
Long before J.L. Hubbell built his trading post here, this was a place where people lived, farmed, and raised livestock.
The area around present-day Ganado offered something precious in northeastern Arizona: dependable water. Natural springs made it possible for Navajo families to grow crops and maintain herds in an otherwise dry landscape. Over generations, a community developed around this reliable source of life.
Then, in the 1860s, that way of life was violently disrupted.
The U.S. Army forced thousands of Navajo people from their homeland and marched them to Bosque Redondo in New Mexico in what became known as the Long Walk. There they were confined for several years under harsh conditions.
The 1868 treaty allowed the Navajo to return to a portion of their homeland. But they returned to a place that had been badly damaged. Their livestock herds had been decimated and their fields destroyed. They faced the enormous task of rebuilding their homes, farms, and communities.
About a decade later, J.L. Hubbell arrived.
The trading post that would eventually bear his name was not the beginning of the story. It became another chapter in a place already shaped by generations of Navajo life, hardship, and renewal.
J.L. Hubbell arrives
Building more than a business
In 1878, J.L. Hubbell purchased a small trading post near Ganado and began building a business that would eventually become one of the best-known trading posts in the Southwest.
Unlike many traders of the time, Hubbell made this place his home. He brought his wife, Mary, and their children, built a ranch, and settled into life among the people who lived around the post. He learned the Navajo language and developed relationships that went beyond simple commerce.
That personal connection became an important part of the business. Hubbell was known for treating his Navajo customers fairly and the trading post became a place where people returned not only to trade but to visit and maintain relationships.
Over time, the small operation grew. Hubbell expanded the ranch and developed his own freighting business, first using oxen and later mules and horses to move goods between the trading post and distant markets.
The post was becoming something larger than the store Hubbell had purchased. It was evolving into a business, a ranch, and a gathering place—and each generation would add another layer to the story.
More than a trading post
The ranch behind the business
The trading post was only part of Hubbell’s operation. Surrounding it was a working ranch that provided the animals, feed, and facilities needed to keep the business moving.
The barn housed livestock while the surrounding fields produced hay. Later, when the railroad reached the region, Hubbell bought sheep and lambs from Navajo herders and held them at the ranch until they could be driven to the railroad.
Walking around the property today, the barn, old farm machinery, and fields can seem like little more than remnants of another era. But they were once essential to the operation. This was a working place, not simply a store.
My photos of the old machinery, farm buildings, and even the animals help reveal that side of Hubbell Trading Post—the part that existed beyond the counter of the trading post itself.
The trade that built a legacy
From everyday goods to Navajo craftsmanship
As the trading post became established, what changed hands became an important part of its story. Navajo families brought pottery, baskets, jewelry, and wool to trade and over time woven rugs became some of the post’s most important products.
Hubbell helped connect these handmade goods with markets beyond the reservation. The arrival of the Fred Harvey Company and growing interest in the Southwest brought more visitors while buyers in Eastern cities created an even larger market for rugs, blankets, and other crafts.
But weaving was about more than commerce. Navajo rugs carry patterns, colors, and symbols rooted in a long artistic tradition. At the trading post today, exhibits show how raw wool was cleaned and carded, spun into yarn, and dyed before becoming a finished rug.
We were fascinated by the natural dyes. Plants that look ordinary in the landscape can produce surprisingly different colors—from black to gold and shades in between.
The more we learned, the more we realized that these rugs represent far more than beautiful objects. They reflect skill, tradition, and a craft passed from one generation to the next.
History still at work
The story continued long after J.L. Hubbell
J.L. Hubbell died in 1930 but the business he built did not die with him. Three generations of his family continued operating the trading post, each adding another chapter to its story.
In 1967, the Hubbell family transferred the property to the National Park Service which took on responsibility for preserving the historic site. Yet preservation didn’t mean closing the doors and turning the trading post into a museum.
The trading post continues to operate today.
The mercantile still sells groceries and everyday items alongside Navajo art, jewelry, pottery, baskets, and handwoven rugs. Navajo weavers and artists continue to demonstrate their crafts, allowing visitors to see traditions that are still being practiced rather than simply displayed.
The property has changed but its basic character remains. People still come here to work, trade, create, and connect.
That may be the most remarkable part of Hubbell Trading Post. Nearly 150 years after J.L. Hubbell opened his doors, the story is still being written.
A place that stayed with us
Some history is meant to be experienced
What stayed with me about Hubbell Trading Post wasn’t simply its age. It was the feeling that I hadn’t just visited a historic site—I had stepped into a place with a story still unfolding.
As we wandered around the property, the old machinery, weathered buildings, animals, and farm fields helped me imagine the working ranch that once surrounded the trading post. Inside, the creaking floorboards and shelves filled with merchandise made it surprisingly easy to forget we were visiting a National Historic Site.
But what I found most meaningful was the sense of continuity. The Navajo people who rebuilt their lives here, the Hubbell family who made this their home, the generations who kept the trading post operating, and those who continue the tradition of Navajo weaving are all part of the same evolving story.
We came to see an old trading post. What I found was something much more interesting—a place where history isn’t simply preserved behind glass. It is still part of everyday life.
And that’s what I’ll remember about Hubbell Trading Post: after nearly 150 years, it still feels like a place with somewhere to go.
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Editor’s note
This article was originally published in September 2026. Information reflects what was accurate at the time of writing. Conditions, access, and amenities may change over time, so please verify current details before planning your trip.
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