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Building of the Palace of Governors began in 1610 and underwent several changes over the following decades. For centuries, the adobe structure served as the seat of the government in New Mexico. It is officially the oldest public-occupied building in the entire United States.
Those familiar with the book Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ will be interested to know that the author, Lew Wallace, wrote the final chapters of the book in the Palace of Governors while he was serving as territorial governor in the late 1870's. The book served as the basis of the epic movie, Ben-Hur.
Originally, the Palace of the Governors was the seat of government for the Spanish colony of Nuevo Mexico. At one time, that included the present-day states of New Mexico, Arizona, Utah, Texas, Colorado, Nevada, and California.
Today, the Palace of Governors is a history museum for the state of New Mexico. It contains exhibits featuring 400 years of history and some in-tact period rooms from the Palace of Governors history.
The Palace of Governors is overseen by the New Mexico Department of Cultural Affairs, which was established in 1078 in order to "preserve the culture integrity" of the state.
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