Indian Cultures of the American Southwest

Introduction

The Indian cultures of the Southwest, from its erliest Paleo-Indian hunter and gatherer inhabitants to prehistoric and present day groups, have contributed greatly to the colorful history of the Southwest.

Ancient Inhabitants Since its earliest habitation by man, more than 37,000 years ago, the Southwest has been home to a diverse and unique blend of cultures. The dry climate of the Southwest has done much preserve relics of earlier cultures, attracting scholars from around the world.

The Hohokam The first Southwestern culture to use irri- gation, the Hohokam lived in the southern and central regions of Arizona for more than a millennia.

The Mogollon

The Mogollon were hunters, gathers and farmers. They were among the first South- west Indian cultures to make pottery for food and water storage and are noted for the exquisite quality of their Mimbres Bold Face and Mimbres Classic Black-on-white designs.

The Sinagua

The eruption of the volcano at Sunset Crater, in A.D.1064, forever altered the Sinagua culture. The region around Flag- staff, Arizona and the San Francisco Peaks was home to the northern Sinagua, while the area around the Verde Valley was home to the southern Sinagua.

The Salado Inhabiting the Tonto Basin in central Arizona for the relatively short period between A.D. 1150 and around A.D. 1450, the Salado culture was named for the Salt River (Rio Salado in Spanish) that was central to their way of life. Considered a minor culture by archeo- logists, the Salado culture's origins are still being debated. The Anazasi Many extremely well preserved Anazasi sites can be found in the Four Corners region of Arizona, New Mecixo, Colorado and Utah. Largest of the three main prehistoric Indian cultures of the South- west, the Anazasi left their mark with well preserved pueblos and elaborate cliff dwellings.

The NAVAJO Anthopologists believe that the Navajos arrived in the Southwest between A.D. 1000 and 1600, most likely around 1450. After centuries of conflict with both Spanish and the Americans, the Navajos in 1868 were finally concentrated on the 25,000-square-mile reservation in the Southwest's Four Corner area. The Navajo entered Canyon de Chelly (pronounced "d'SHAY") about A.D. 1700 after the Anazasi settled there from A.D. 1 to 1300 and constructed cliff houses. At the end of this period the Anazasi myteriously vanished from these canyons. Then Hopi farmers sometimes used this canyons during the growing season. Then around 1700 the Navajos arrived and used it as a base for raiding nearby Indian and Spanish settlements.

The Native Americans The Indian tribes of the Southwest are related in part to the prehistoric Pueblo cultures, Plains Indians, and the Athabascan nomadic tribes that migrated to the Southwest from Canadian regions.

SALADO

Lower Ruins, occupied by Salado Indians from 1300-1400 A.D., Tonto NM, Arizona

Tonto National Monument, HCO2, Box 4602,
Roosevelt, AZ 85545 Telephone: 520-467-2241

Background information
The well-preserved cliff dwellings at Tonto National Monument were occupied during the 13th and 14th centuries bySalado Indians who farmed in the Salt River Valley.

Visitor Activities
Hiking, museum, slide shows, picnicking, photo- graphy and interpretive talks. Facilities include a Visitor Center, restrooms, exhibits, a slide program and information. The Monument is open daily from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.,
except Dec. 25.

Camping
Overnight acommodations are available 7 miles east at Roosevelt Lodge and 2 miles west at roosevelt Marina with RV spaces, a general store and food.

Roosevelt Arizona

Peak Visitation March

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SINAGUA

Wupatki Pueblo with the Amphitheater in the foreground, Wupatki NM, Arizona

Superintendent, Wupatki National Monument, 2717 N. Steves Blvd.,Suite #3, Flagstaff, AZ 86004
Telephone: 602-556-7040, Monument; 602-556-7134, Headquarters

Background information
When Pueblo Indians moved to the Wupatki basin in the early 12th century, they found the native materials ideal for construction of freestanding masonry dwellings.Made from slabs of sandstone, limestone and basalt with a clay-based mortar, these dwellings were inhabited until 1225 AD.

Visitor Activities
Interpretive talks and exhibits, hiking, walking, auto tours, photography and self-guiding trails to the Nalakihu-Citadel, Wupatki, Wukoki and Lomaki pueblos, as well as Doney Mountain, an extinct volcanic cinder cone.

Camping
Lodging is available in Flagstaff, 37 miles; and in Grey Mountain, 22 miles. A U.S. Forest Service campground across from the Sunset Crater Visitor Center is available on a first-come, first-served basis from late May until mid-October.

Flagstaff Arizona

Peak Visitation July

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NAVAJO

Navajo Drawings on the walls of Canyon del Muerto depict the arrival of the Spanish conquistadors, Canyon de Chelly NM, Arizona

Spider Rock, Canyon de Chelly NM, Arizona

Spider Rock plays an important role in the legends of Navajo history. According to legend, in the beginning there were only two beings; Spider Woman and Tawa. Spider Woman was the goddess of the earth and Tawa was the god of the skies. Navajo children were taught that if they did not behave, Spider Woman would take them to the top of Spider Rock and throw them off.

Superintendent, Canyon de Chelly National Monument, PO Box 588, Chinle, AZ 86503
Telephone: 602-674-5500/5501

Background information
With its beautiful, steep-walled canyons and numerous prehistoric Indian dwelling ruins nestled below towering cliffs or perched on high ledges, Canyon de Chelly National Monument offers visitors the chance to learn about Southwestern Indian history from the earliest Basketmakers to the Navajo who still live in the area.

Visitor Activities
Auto tours, hiking, pictograph viewing, interpretive exhibits and talks, horseback riding (by prior arrangement), picnicking and photography.
Concession jeep tours are available from
Thunderbird Lodge, PO Box 548, Chinle, AZ 86503, phone 602-674- 5841/5842. Tje Visitor Center is open daily from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., October to April; and 8.a.m. to 6 p.m., May to September. The inner Canyons are impassable in winter and at certain other times of the year.

Camping
Camp sites are available at no charge on a first-come, first served basis year-round. Reservations for group sites of 15 or more people can be made by contacting the Monument. No reservations are accepted for RV groups. Backcountry camping is allowed with an authorized guide. Lodging is available at Thunderbird Lodge. Make reservations in advance by writing Thunderbird Lodge, Box 548, Chinle, AZ 86503, or calling 602-674-5841/5842. Other overnight accommodations are available in Chinle; Window Rock, AZ 66 miles; Monument Valley, 128 miles; and Gallup, NM.

Chinle Arizona

Peak Visitation July

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ANAZASI

Square Tower House, Mesa Verde NP, Colorado

Superintendent, Mesa Verde National Park,
CO 81330 Telephone: 303-529-4465
Background information
Mesa Verde National Park occupies part of a large plateau rising high above the Montezuma and Mancos Valleys. it preserves spectacular remains of the thousand-year-old ancestral pueblo culture, including elaborate stone cities built in the sheltered recesses of the canyon walls.
Visitor Activities
Photography, interpretive exhibits and lectures, picknicking, auto tours, guided tours, hiking and campfire programs (summer only.). Facilites include gas stations, stores, showers, picnic areas, post office, laundry, hiking trails, and telephones. Accommodations, facilites and services are available from memorial Day to Labor Day. The Museum and Spruce Tree House cliff dwelling are open all year. Cliff Palace and Balcony House ruins are closed from about mid-October to mid-April. The Wetherill Mesa ruins are open from Memorial Day through Labor Day only.
Camping
Morefield Campground is open from mid-April through mid-October for tents and trailers. The fees are $8 per night for individual sites and $20 per night for organized groups or $1 per person, whichever is greater. The full hookup fee is $14.50 per day plus $2 per person for parties of 3 or more. No reservations accepted. Morefiled has restrooms, and each site has a table, benches and grills. Souvenirs, a gas station, showers and laundry facilites are also available. Lodging is available at Far View Lodge, which is closed in winter, It is advisable to make reservations with the Mesa Verde Co., PO Box 227, Mancos, CO 81328, phone 303-529-4421. Other overnight accommodations are available in Cortez, 7 miles; and Mancos 8 miles.

Cortez Colorado

Peak Visitation July

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ANAZASI

Ceremonial Cave at Bandelier NM, New Mexico Caves in the base of Bandelier cliffs were created by rapidly cooling lava flows.

Superintendent, Bandelier National Monument, Los Alamos, NM 87544 Telephone: 505-672-3861

Background information
An area is crossed only by trails, Bandelier National Monument is characterized by tan cliffs, forested mesas and deep gorges. It is of interest today to geologists and archaeologists because of its prehistoric Native American ruins, including cliff ruins that extend for 2 miles.

Visitor Activities
Hiking, interpretive and audiovisual exhibits, self-guiding walking tours, picnicking and campfire programs nightly in the summer. Printed trail guides of the ruins are available.

Camping
Juniper Campground has 94 sites with no reservations accepted. Reservations for group camp sites are made through the Visitor Center. Lodging is available in White Rock, 10 miles; and in Los Alamos, 13 miles.

Los Alamos New Mexico

Peak Visitation August

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MOGOLLON

Mogollon culture cliff dwellings in Gila Dwellings NM, New Mecixo These structures were built around A.D. 1270 and were abandoned by the early 1300's.

Gila Cliff Dwellings National Monument, Rt. 11, Box 100, Silver City, NM 88061 Phone: 505-536-9461

Background information
Gila Cliff Dwellings National Monument offers a glimpse of the homes and lives of Indians who lived here from 1280s through the early 1300s, as people from an earlier period who built pithouses, the earliest example from AD 100 to 400.

Visitor Activities
Self-guided interpretive trail, photography and exhibits at the Visitor Center and Contact Station. The Visitor Center is open from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., during the summer and from
9 a.m. to 4 p.m., in the winter. The Visitor Center is closed Dec. 25 and Jan. 1. Other activites available in the adjacent Gila National Forest are picnicking, camping, wildlife and bird watching, hiking and fishing.

Camping
Camping is available in nearby Forest Service campground. Limited lodging is available at Gila Hot Springs, 3 miles south of the Visitor Center.

Silver City New Mexico

Peak Visitation July

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HOHOKAM

Casa Grande Ruin, Casa Grande Ruins NM, Arizona

Casa Grande Ruins National Monument, Superintedent, 1100 Ruins Drive, Coolidge, AZ 85228
Telephone: 602-723-3172

Background information
Among the 60 prehistoric Indian sites at Casa Grande Ruins National Monument, the 4-story earthern building built about 650 years ago that gives the Monument its name is the most prominent and most perplexing. Its purpose in the widespread civilization that once flourished in the Gila Valley has never been determined.

Visitor Activities
Interpretive talks and exhibits, walking tours and picnicking.
A 400-yard round trip, self guiding walking trail leads through the Ruins area. Facilites include parking and restrooms at the Visitor Center, drinking water and a picnic area. The Monument is open from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m., year-round.

Camping
Overnight accommodations are available in Coolidge, AZ 87; Florence, AZ 287, 12 miles east; and Casa Grande, AZ 287, 22 miles southwest.

Coolidge Arizona

Peak Visitation February

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