Tuzigoot National Monument
Encyclopedia
Tuzigoot National Monument (Western Apache: Tú Digiz) preserves a 2 to 3 story pueblo
ruin on the summit of a limestone and sandstone ridge just east of Clarkdale, Arizona
, 120 feet (36 m) above the Verde River
floodplain. The pueblo has 110 rooms. The National Park Service
currently owns 58 acres (234,717.9 m²), within an authorized boundary of 834 acres (3.4 km²).
Tuzigoot is Apache
for "crooked water", from nearby Peck's Lake, a cutoff meander
of the Verde River. Historically, it was built by the Sinagua
people between 1125 and 1400 CE. Tuzigoot is the largest and best-preserved of the many Sinagua pueblo ruins in the Verde Valley
. The ruins at Tuzigoot incorporate very few doors. Instead they use trapdoor type openings in the roofs, and use ladders to enter each room.
The monument is located on land once owned by United Verde/Phelps Dodge
. The corporation sold the site to Yavapai County for $1, so that the excavation could be completed under the auspices of federal relief projects. The County in turn transferred the land to the Federal Government.
Tuzigoot was excavated from 1933 to 1935 by Louis Caywood and Edward Spicer of the University of Arizona
, with funding from the federal Civil Works Administration
and Works Project Administration. In 1935–1936, with additional federal funding, the ruins were prepared for public display, and a Pueblo Revival-style museum and visitor center was constructed.
Franklin D. Roosevelt
designated Tuzigoot Ruins as a U.S. National Monument
on July 25, 1939. The Tuzigoot National Monument Archeological District was listed on the National Register of Historic Places
on October 15, 1966.
The ruins are surrounded by the tailings
pond of the former United Verde copper mine at Jerome
. The tailings have recently been stabilized and revegetated.
Pueblo
Pueblo is a term used to describe modern communities of Native Americans in the Southwestern United States of America. The first Spanish explorers of the Southwest used this term to describe the communities housed in apartment-like structures built of stone, adobe mud, and other local material...
ruin on the summit of a limestone and sandstone ridge just east of Clarkdale, Arizona
Clarkdale, Arizona
Clarkdale is a town in Yavapai County, Arizona, United States. According to 2006 Census Bureau estimates, the population of the town is 3,836.Clarkdale, formerly a mining town, is now largely a retirement community with an eye for the arts.-History:...
, 120 feet (36 m) above the Verde River
Verde River
The Verde River is the north and northwestern watershed of the Salt River–Verde River Watershed that co-join and enter the Gila River at Phoenix, Arizona, located in the U.S. state of Arizona...
floodplain. The pueblo has 110 rooms. The National Park Service
National Park Service
The National Park Service is the U.S. federal agency that manages all national parks, many national monuments, and other conservation and historical properties with various title designations...
currently owns 58 acres (234,717.9 m²), within an authorized boundary of 834 acres (3.4 km²).
Tuzigoot is Apache
Apache
Apache is the collective term for several culturally related groups of Native Americans in the United States originally from the Southwest United States. These indigenous peoples of North America speak a Southern Athabaskan language, which is related linguistically to the languages of Athabaskan...
for "crooked water", from nearby Peck's Lake, a cutoff meander
Meander
A meander in general is a bend in a sinuous watercourse. A meander is formed when the moving water in a stream erodes the outer banks and widens its valley. A stream of any volume may assume a meandering course, alternately eroding sediments from the outside of a bend and depositing them on the...
of the Verde River. Historically, it was built by the Sinagua
Sinagua
The Sinagua were a pre-Columbian cultural group occupying an area in central Arizona between the Little Colorado River and the Salt River including the Verde Valley and significant portions of the Mogollon Rim country between approximately 500 AD and 1425 AD.Early Sinagua sites consist of pit houses...
people between 1125 and 1400 CE. Tuzigoot is the largest and best-preserved of the many Sinagua pueblo ruins in the Verde Valley
Verde Valley
The Verde Valley is a valley in central Arizona in the United States of America. The Verde River runs through it. It is overlooked by Mingus Mountain and the Mogollon Rim.- History :The first notice of this region appears in the report of one Espejo,...
. The ruins at Tuzigoot incorporate very few doors. Instead they use trapdoor type openings in the roofs, and use ladders to enter each room.
The monument is located on land once owned by United Verde/Phelps Dodge
Phelps Dodge
Phelps Dodge Corporation was an American mining company founded in 1834 by Anson Greene Phelps and William Earle Dodge, Sr.. On March 19, 2007, it was acquired by Freeport-McMoRan and now operates under the name Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc.-History:...
. The corporation sold the site to Yavapai County for $1, so that the excavation could be completed under the auspices of federal relief projects. The County in turn transferred the land to the Federal Government.
Tuzigoot was excavated from 1933 to 1935 by Louis Caywood and Edward Spicer of the University of Arizona
University of Arizona
The University of Arizona is a land-grant and space-grant public institution of higher education and research located in Tucson, Arizona, United States. The University of Arizona was the first university in the state of Arizona, founded in 1885...
, with funding from the federal Civil Works Administration
Civil Works Administration
The Civil Works Administration was established by the New Deal during the Great Depression to create manual labor jobs for millions of unemployed. The jobs were merely temporary, for the duration of the hard winter. Harry L. Hopkins was put in charge of the organization. President Franklin D...
and Works Project Administration. In 1935–1936, with additional federal funding, the ruins were prepared for public display, and a Pueblo Revival-style museum and visitor center was constructed.
Franklin D. Roosevelt
Franklin D. Roosevelt
Franklin Delano Roosevelt , also known by his initials, FDR, was the 32nd President of the United States and a central figure in world events during the mid-20th century, leading the United States during a time of worldwide economic crisis and world war...
designated Tuzigoot Ruins as a U.S. National Monument
U.S. National Monument
A National Monument in the United States is a protected area that is similar to a National Park except that the President of the United States can quickly declare an area of the United States to be a National Monument without the approval of Congress. National monuments receive less funding and...
on July 25, 1939. The Tuzigoot National Monument Archeological District was listed on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
on October 15, 1966.
The ruins are surrounded by the tailings
Tailings
Tailings, also called mine dumps, slimes, tails, leach residue, or slickens, are the materials left over after the process of separating the valuable fraction from the uneconomic fraction of an ore...
pond of the former United Verde copper mine at Jerome
Jerome, Arizona
Jerome is a town in Yavapai County, Arizona, United States. According to 2006 Census Bureau estimates, the population of the town is 353.-History:...
. The tailings have recently been stabilized and revegetated.