After 12 years, Don Diego de Vargas was elected to lead the reconquest
of New Mexico, and upon arriving in Santa Fe, he began visiting all
pueblos to regain allegiance to Spain. Without bloodshed, Vargas secured
the submission of Acoma, Zuni, Hopi, and the newly-formed San Jose de
la Laguna, named by Governor of New Mexico, Don Pedro Rodriguez de
Cubero. Fray Antonio de Miranda was assigned to the new village, helping
the natives construct a church and convent in a prominent place. Over
the next 100 years, the Franciscan friars continued their evangelical
mission, and the races and cultures began to blend as populations
expanded.

In May 1848, New Mexico became part of the United States in what was
previously part of the Diocese of Durango. The Bishops of the United
States requested from the Pope that the Territory of New Mexico have a
Vicar Apostolic and that a diocese be established in Santa Fe. The Pope
agreed and Father John Baptist Lamy of Covington was named bishop and
was consecrated at Saint Peter Cathedral in Cincinnati. In 1875, the
Diocese of Santa Fe became an Archdioceses and Bishop Lamy became
Archbishop, a role that he fulfilled for 10 years before retiring to a
nearby private retreat.