Why did both the Union and the Confederacy want control of New Mexico during the Civil War?

Both sides saw New Mexico as strategically valuable because it offered access to mineral wealth, important trade routes, and a possible route west to California. The Confederacy hoped to expand westward toward California and its resources, while the Union sought to prevent that expansion and keep the region under federal control. Thus, the best answer is “to control access to gold, trade routes, and a path to California.”

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