Read Ebook: Mesa Verde [Colorado] National Park by United States Department Of The Interior

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revealed many hitherto unknown ruins. Two splendid watchtowers were found on the west cliff of Rock Canyon. In a small area at the head of Long Canyon 10 new Early Pueblo ruins were located and no doubt scores of others will be found upon more careful search. In the heads of the small canyons many dams and terraces were noted.

In the stabilization program that was carried on in 1934-35 a number of artifacts were found. A certain amount of debris had to be moved in order that the weakened walls and slipping foundations might be strengthened and varied finds resulted. Axes, bone awls, sandals, pottery, planting sticks, and similar articles were most common, but a few burials were also found.

In August 1934 the undisturbed skeleton of an old woman was found on the bare floor of a small ruin just across the canyon from the public campgrounds. This skeleton, of particular importance because of fusion of the spinal column, had apparently remained exposed and undisturbed through more than seven centuries.

Because of the fact that no detailed, comprehensive survey has ever been made of the archeological resources of the park, the findings of new ruins, artifacts, and human remains are more or less regularly reported at the park museum.

PREHISTORIC INHABITANTS OF THE MESA VERDE

The so-called "Mesa Verde cliff dwellers" were not the first of the prehistoric southwestern cultures, nor were they the first human occupants of the natural caves that abound in the area of the park. Centuries before the cliff-dweller culture with its complex social organizations, agriculture, and highly developed arts of masonry, textiles, and ceramics, it is thought that small groups of primitive Mongoloid hunters crossed from the north-eastern peninsula of Asia to the western coast of Alaska. The Bering Strait, with but 60 miles of water travel, offered the safest and easiest route.

Just when these migrations to the east had their origin and how long they continued cannot definitely be said, but it is thought the earliest Mongoloid hunters were in northwestern America about twelve to fifteen thousand years ago. When Columbus "discovered" America the continent was inhabited from Alaska to the Strait of Magellan and from the Pacific to the Atlantic coasts.

For perhaps several thousand years following the first migrations little of great significance developed. There undoubtedly was cultural progress, but it was slow, and in the long perspective of time its evidences are hardly discernible. With the knowledge and benefits of agriculture, which was probably developed first in Mexico, hunting gave way to husbandry, nomadism to sedentary life, and there followed a great period of change and advancement. The introduction of corn or Indian maize into what is now the southwestern United States may be called the antecedent condition for all advanced cultures of the area.

Evidence has not yet been established that the first of the maize-growing Indians of the Southwest were permanent occupants of the Mesa Verde. Nevertheless, in the Cliff Palace cave, well below the horizon or floor level of the cliff dwellers, archeologists have found a yucca fiber sandal of a distinctive type which is associated only with the first agricultural civilization. From this evidence it would be reasonable to assume that the caves of Mesa Verde at least offered temporary shelter, if not permanent homes, to the people of this period.

These early inhabitants made basketry, excelled in the art of weaving, and it is believed were the first of the southwestern cultures to invent fired pottery. The course of this invention can be traced from the crude sun-dried vessel tempered with shredded cedar bark to the properly tempered and durable fired vessel.

Then followed a long development in house structure, differing materially from this earlier type. Horizontal masonry replaced the cruder attempts of house-wall construction; rectangular or squarish forms replaced the somewhat circular earlier type; and gradually the single-room structures were grouped into ever-enlarging units which assumed varying forms of arrangement as the development progressed. The art of pottery making improved concurrently with the more complex house structure. This later period represents the intermediate era of development from the crude Late Basket Maker dwellings to the remarkable structures of the "Cliff House Culture."

During this period of transition new people penetrated the area. The Basket Makers throughout the course of their development were consistently a long-headed group. The appearance of an alien group is recorded through the finding of skeletons with broad or round skulls and a deformed occiput. These new people, the Pueblos, took over, changed, and adapted to their own needs the material culture of the earlier inhabitants.

The Pueblos were not content with the crude buildings and earth lodges that sufficed as homes during the earlier periods. For their habitations they shaped stones into regular forms, sometimes ornamenting them with designs, and laid them in mud mortar, one on another. Their masonry has resisted the destructive forces of the elements for centuries.

The arrangement of houses in a cliff dwelling the size of Cliff Palace is characteristic and is intimately associated with the distribution of the social divisions of its former inhabitants.

The population was composed of a number of units, possibly clans, each of which had its more or less distinct social organization, as indicated in the arrangement of the rooms. The rooms occupied by a clan were not necessarily connected, and generally neighboring rooms were distinguished from one another by their uses. Thus, each clan had its men's room, which is called the "kiva." Each clan had also a number of rooms, which may be styled the living rooms, and other enclosures for granaries. The corn was ground into meal in another room containing the metate set in a stone bin or trough. Sometimes the rooms had fireplaces, although these were generally in the plazas or on the housetops. All these different rooms, taken together, constituted the houses that belonged to one clan.

The conviction that each kiva denotes a distinct social unit, as a clan or a family, is supported by a general similarity in the masonry of the kiva walls and that of adjacent houses ascribed to the same clan. From the number of these rooms it would appear that there were at least 23 social units or clans in Cliff Palace.

Apparently there is no uniformity or prearranged plan in the distribution of the kivas. As religious belief and custom prescribed that these rooms should be subterranean, the greatest number were placed in front of the rectangular buildings where it was easiest to construct them. When necessary, because of limited space or other conditions, kivas were also built far back in the cave and enclosed by a double wall of masonry, with the walls being spaced about two and a half to three feet apart. The section between the walls was then backfilled with earth or rubble to the level of the kiva roof. In that way the ceremonial structure was artificially made subterranean, as their beliefs required.

In addition to their ability as architects and masons, the cliff dwellers excelled in the art of pottery making and as agriculturists. Their decorated pottery--a black design on pearly white background--will compare favorably with pottery of the other cultures of the prehistoric Southwest.

As their sense of beauty was keen, their art, though primitive, was true; rarely realistic, generally symbolic. Their decoration of cotton fabrics and ceramic work might be called beautiful, even when judged by our own standards. They fashioned axes, spear points, and rude tools of stone; they wove sandals, and made attractive basketry.

The staple product of the cliff dwellers was corn; they also planted beans and squash. This limited selection was perhaps augmented by pi?on nuts, yucca fruit, and other indigenous products found in abundance. Nevertheless, successful agriculture on the semiarid plateau of the Mesa Verde must have been dependent upon hard work and diligent efforts. Without running streams irrigation was impossible and success depended upon the ability of the farmer to save the crop through the dry period of June and early July.

Rain at the right time was the all-important problem, and so confidently did they believe that they were dependent upon the gods to make the rain fall and the corn grow that their prayers for rain probably developed into their most important ceremonies.

From Dr. A. E. Douglass's tree-ring chronology the earliest date so far established for the Mesa Verde cliff dwellings is 1066 A.D. and the latest date 1274 A.D. While it should not be imagined that these are the all-inclusive dates representing the total time of the cliff-dweller culture, it is interesting to note that this same tree-ring story tells us that a great drought commenced in 1276 and extended for a 24-year period to 1299. It may logically be presumed that the prehistoric population was gradually forced to withdraw from the area as the drought continued and to establish itself near more favorable sources of water supply.

The so-called "Aztec ruin", which is situated on the banks of the Animas River in northwestern New Mexico, substantiates this hypothesis of the voluntary desertion of the cliff dwellings. In this ruin is found unmistakable evidence of a secondary occupation which has been definitely identified as a Mesa Verde settlement.

It is thought that certain of the present-day Pueblo Indians are descendants, in part at least, of the cliff dwellers. Many of these Indian towns or pueblos still survive in the States of New Mexico and Arizona, the least modified of which are the villages of the Hopi, situated not far from the Grand Canyon National Park.

FAUNA AND FLORA

The fauna and flora of Mesa Verde should be particularly interesting to visitors. A combination of desert types from the lower arid country and mountain types, usually associated with regions of greater rainfall, occur here. The desert types are highly specialized to cope with their environment, particularly the plant and smaller animal life.

Rocky Mountain mule deer are perhaps the only big game to be found abundantly in the park. They are often seen. Their numbers in the park, however, vary greatly according to the season. It is hoped to reintroduce the native species of Rocky Mountain bighorn as soon as range sufficient for the needs of this species has been added to the park. Occasionally a black bear is reported.

Cougars, or mountain lions, and bobcats are part of the wildlife of the park and, strange to say, are occasionally seen in broad daylight. In other national parks these animals are rarely seen even by rangers. Coyotes and foxes are not as numerous as they once were on the mesa. As a result of the reduction of the predators, many of the smaller animals, such as rabbits, porcupines, and prairie dogs, have greatly increased. Rock and ground squirrels and the Colorado chipmunk are present in great numbers.

More than 200 varieties of birds have been recorded. The species range from the majestic golden eagle, the largest bird, down to a variety of dainty humming birds.

Game birds are represented by the dusky grouse. No wild turkeys are now to be found in the park, although it is believed that they were once here. The cliff dwellers domesticated the turkey, and their bones, feathers, and droppings are found in all the ruins. At present the reintroduction of wild turkeys to Mesa Verde is under consideration.

Among the interesting animal residents of Mesa Verde are the reptiles. The lizards are represented by the horned lizard, the western spotted or earless lizard, the collared lizard, the striped race runner, utas, rock swifts, and sagebrush swifts. Among the snakes are found the bull snake, the smooth green snake, the western striped racer, the rock snake, and the prairie rattlesnake. The latter, the only poisonous species on the Mesa Verde, lives among the rocks in the lower canyons.

Mesa Verde receives considerably more rainfall than true desert areas, and vegetation typical of the upper sonoran or transition zone is moderately luxuriant. This heavy cover of vegetation accounts for its name, which means "Green Tableland." The dense forest consists of pi?on pine, juniper, Douglas fir, and western yellow pine. The north-facing slopes and moist canyons contain quaking aspen and box elders, with willows and cottonwoods growing along the Mancos River. The heavy covering of scrub oak and mountain mahogany over the higher elevations of the park makes this region a most colorful one during the fall months.

Among the fruit-bearing shrubs and trees are the service berry, choke cherry, Oregon grape, and elderberry.

An abundance of wild flowers, varying in color with the growing season, include principally the Mariposa lily, Indian paint brush, pentstemon, lupine, wild sweet pea, and a great variety of the compositae family.

HOW TO REACH THE PARK

BY AUTOMOBILE

Mesa Verde National Park may be reached by automobile from Denver, Colorado Springs, Pueblo, and other Colorado points. Through Pueblo one road leads to the park by way of Canon City, from where one may look down into the Royal Gorge, the deepest canyon in the world penetrated by a railroad and river. This road passes through Salida and on through Gunnison and Montrose, and then south through Ouray, Silverton, and Durango. This route passes through some of Colorado's most magnificent mountain scenery. Another road leads south from Pueblo through Walsenburg, across La Veta Pass, on through Alamosa, Del Norte, Pagosa Springs, and Durango, crossing Wolf Creek Pass en route. Both roads lead west from Durango to Mancos and on into the park.

Motorists coming from Utah turn southward from Green River or Thompsons, crossing the Colorado River at Moab, proceeding southward to Monticello, thence eastward to Cortez, Colo., and the park.

From Arizona and New Mexico points, Gallup, on the National Old Trails Road, is easily reached. The auto road leads north from Gallup through the Navajo Indian Reservation and a corner of the Ute Indian Reservation. At Shiprock Indian Agency, 98 miles north of Gallup, the San Juan River is crossed.

BY RAILROAD

Mesa Verde National Park is approached by rail both from the north and from the south: From the north via the Denver & Rio Grande Western Railroad main transcontinental line through Grand Junction, and branch lines through Montrose or Durango; from the south via the main transcontinental line of the Santa Fe Railroad through Gallup, N. Mex.

The lines of the Denver & Rio Grande Western System traverse some of the most magnificent scenery of the Rocky Mountain region, a fact which gives the journey to Mesa Verde zestful travel flavor. Two main-line routes are provided to the Grand Junction gateway.

The Royal Gorge Route goes through the Grand Canyon of the Arkansas, now spanned by an all-steel suspension bridge, 1,053 feet above the tracks in the Royal Gorge. This route crosses Tennessee Pass and follows the Eagle River to its junction with the Colorado River at Dotsero, thence to Grand Junction.

Service was inaugurated in June 1934 via the new James Peak Route of the D. & R. G. W., utilizing the Moffat Tunnel , 6.2-mile bore which pierces the Continental Divide 50 miles west of Denver. This route follows the Colorado River from Fraser, high on the west slope of the continent, through Byers Canyon, Red Gorge, Gore Canyon, and Red Canyon, thence over the Dotsero Cut-off to Dotsero, where it joins the Royal Gorge Route. The new line saves 175 miles in the distance from Denver to Grand Junction.

MOTOR TRANSPORTATION

The Rio Grande Motor Way, Inc., of Grand Junction, Colo., from June 15 to September 15, operates a daily motor service from Grand Junction, Delta, Montrose, Ouray, Silverton, Durango, and Mancos, Colo., to Spruce Tree Lodge in Mesa Verde National Park. This motor bus leaves Grand Junction at 6:45 a.m., via the scenic Chief Ouray Highway, stopping en route at other places mentioned, crossing beautiful Red Mountain Pass , arriving at Spruce Tree Lodge at 7 p.m. The stage leaves the park at 7 a.m., when there are passengers, arriving at Grand Junction at 5:40 p.m. The round trip fare between Grand Junction and the park is .65.

Entrance to Mesa Verde from the south through Gallup, N. Mex., via the Navajo and Southern Ute Indian Reservations, is growing constantly in convenience and popularity. Hunter Clarkson, Inc., with headquarters at El Navajo Hotel, in Gallup, operates two-day round trip light sedan service, leaving Gallup at 8 a.m. and returning to Gallup at 6 p.m. the second day. This service permits the visiting of ruins in the park, in accordance with regular schedules, on the afternoon of the first day and on the morning of the second. The round trip fare per person is . A minimum of two passengers is required. Fare for children, five and under twelve, is .50. Meals and hotel accommodations en route or at the park are not included. El Navajo Hotel, operated by Fred Harvey, offers excellent overnight accommodations at Gallup.

The Cannon Ball Stage operates bus service from Gallup, via Shiprock and Farmington, to Durango, where arrangements may be made with the Rio Grande Motor Way, Inc., for transportation to and from the park.

The Cannon Ball Stage bus leaves Gallup each day at 11:30 a.m., arriving at Durango at 4:45 p.m. Returning it leaves Durango at 8 a.m. and arrives at Gallup at 1 p.m. The fare from Gallup to Durango is one way and .80 for the round trip. The round trip fare to the park from Durango via the Rio Grande Motor Way, Inc., is .50.

ADMINISTRATION

The Mesa Verde National Park is under the exclusive control of the National Park Service of the Department of the Interior, which is authorized to make rules and regulations and to establish such service as it may deem necessary for the care and management of the park and the preservation from injury or spoliation of the ruins and other remains of prehistoric man within the limits of the reservation.

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