This document is a fragment of a letter in which Juan de Oñate informed the viceroy Gaspar de Zuñiga of the process of colonizing New Mexico. During the second half of the sixteenth century, the authorities of New Spain looked to expand its domains into the far north. Several individuals at the time sought to obtain the right to colonize New Mexico. In 1595 the Spanish crown granted this privilege to Juan de Oñate, who was a descendant of early conquistadors and the member of a wealthy family in Zacatecas. With this privilege, Oñate obtained land grants and fiscal exemptions, as well as the title of governor of New Mexico. Oñate began the expedition in February of 1598 with 400 men and their families. On May 4, Oñate formally took possession of New Mexico. He explored several Indigenous settlements that were peacefully subdued by the Spanish authorities. Oñate, however, also faced opposition; fifteen of his men were killed in Acoma. Oñate’s response was brutal, destroying the Native population. During the enterprise, Oñate traveled across regions that are now New Mexico, Arizona, and West Texas. He reached the Pacific Ocean looking for routes of communication. Oñate described various groups of Native Americans, such as the Apache, and the natural resources and economic advantages of the territory he explored. This document depicts some of the oldest European and Spanish colonization efforts in the present-day American Southwest.