Pedro de Peralta was Governor of New Mexico between 1610 and 1613 at a time when it was a province of New Spain. He formally founded the city of Santa Fe, New Mexico in 1610. In August 1613 he was arrested and jailed for almost a year by the Franciscan friar Isidro Ordóñez. Later, he was vindicated by the Mexican Inquisition and held a number of other senior posts in the Spanish imperial administration.

Estéban de Perea was a Spanish Franciscan friar who undertook missionary work in New Mexico, a province of New Spain, between 1610 and 1638. At times he was in conflict with the governors of the province. He has been called the "Father of the New Mexican Church".