| Southwestern Native America includes Arizona, New Mexico, southern Colorado, and the northern Mexican states of Sonora and Chihuahua. Circa 300 b.c.e, Mexican culture called the Hohokam appeared in area 1 (see map above) of southern Arizona based on agriculture with irrigated field technology |
| Basketmaker II — The First Pueblo People? The advent of agriculture signalled the beginning of the Basketmaker II era. At this time (circa 1000 B.C. E.), corn, melons and squash were introduced into the southwest region. People living in this area were very adept at creating their utilitarian needs by using sources provided by their surroundings. Basketry and other woven items, though present earlier, were now highly crafted. The arrival of agriculture also meant a more sedentary lifestyle which would lead to the foundation of permanent settlements, the beginnings of Pueblo society. (crowcanyon.org) |
| SOUTHWEST Pueblo tribes pre-contact history |
| By 300 a.d. an hunter/gatherer and agricultural people called the Mogollon settled in SE Arizona and SW New Mexico (area 2) until 1200 a.d., when they moved to Chihuahua, Mexico. |
| Anasazi people began as nomadic basket makers until circa 700 a.d., when they became sedentary, living in towns of stone and adobe apartments with central plazas in the four corners region (area 3). Agriculture, with irrigation techniques, was practiced until circa 1275 when severe droughts caused migration to the Rio Grande. Here, Pueblos (village, sp) were established and flourished until the arrival in 1540 of Francisco Vasquez de Coronado. |
| Chaco Canyon "...was a major center of Puebloan culture between AD 850 and 1250. The Chacoan sites are part of the homeland of Pueblo Indian peoples of New Mexico, the Hopi Indians of Arizona...." (nps.gov) Photo Gallery |
| "The Ancestral Puebloans inhabited Mesa Verde for more than 700 years (550 A.D. to 1300 A.D.), but for the first six centuries, they primarily lived on the mesa tops. It was not until the final 75 to 100 years that they constructed and lived in the cliff dwellings for which Mesa Verde is known." (nps.gov) Photo Gallery |
| Canyon de Chelly (Shay) For more than two millennium, the canyon has been occupied by ancient peoples who lived in pit houses, cliff dwellings, and Navajo hogans. The earliest appearance was around 2500-200 BC. Anasazi began arriving about 700 a.d. until 1300 a.d. By 850, larger communities, mainly the large cliff houses, were built between 1100 -1300 a.d. By 1300, most of the inhabitants had left the canyon sue to severe droughts. Later, the Hopi would intermittently inhabited the canyon from 1300-1700. About 1700 Navajo began settling the area where they have remained since. Photo Gallery |
| Sandal Remnants |
| Interior of Basketmaker pithouse |
| Diorama of early pithouse |
| Fajada Butte |
| Map of Chaco Canyon |
| Pueblo Bonito |
| Square Tower Ruin |
| Cliff Palace Ruin |
| Map of Mesa Verde |
| Early view of Canyon |
| River View of Canyon |
| Map of Canyon de Chelly |
| All photographs and other graphics are under copyright protection. Any reproduction of these images could lead to prosecution under current copyright laws. This sight is not responsible for any illegal use of this material and is only intended as a visual learning tool for academic research. |
