The Jemez Historic Site (formerly Jemez State Monument) is a state-operated historic site on
New Mexico State Road 4
New Mexico State Road 4 (NM 4) is a state highway in Sandoval, Los Alamos, and Santa Fe counties in New Mexico, United States. It is significant as the main access route (in conjunction with NM 501 and NM 502) connecting the r ...
in
Jemez Springs, New Mexico
Jemez Springs (pronounced HEH-mes) is a village in Sandoval County, New Mexico, United States. The population was 250 at the 2010 census. Named for the nearby Pueblo of Jemez, the village is the site of Jemez State Monument and the headqua ...
. The site preserves the archaeological remains of the 16th-century Native American Gíusewa Pueblo and the 17th-century Spanish colonial mission called San José de los Jémez. The site was listed on the
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...
in 1973,
and in 2012 it was designated as a
National Historic Landmark
A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the United States government for its outstanding historical significance. Only some 2,500 (~3%) of over 90,000 places listed ...
.
It is considered an ancestral site of the
Jémez Pueblo people who live nearby.
Description
The Jemez Historic Site is located north of the village of Jemez Springs, in the Jemez River valley. It is on the east side of New Mexico State Road 4, near the mouth of Church Canyon. The site is about in size, and includes partially stabilized remains of a Native American pueblo and a Spanish mission compound. The principal feature of the latter are the remnant walls of the church, which at in length represent one of the largest 17th-century mission churches known in the state. The church walls are built mainly out of limestone, with some sandstone and volcanic tuff. Portions have been finished in the traditional mud plaster style, and have had partial restorative and preservative work done on the wall tops to limit erosion. The walls range in thickness between at their bases. Near the church are the foundational remnants of another structure, probably used as a residence by the priest, and another Spanish foundation that was probably a civic building. On the south side of the church is a small plaza that also has a cemetery.
Adjacent to the mission are the remains of a medium-sized pueblo. It had an estimated 200 rooms in five blocks, including two
kiva
A kiva is a space used by Puebloans for rites and political meetings, many of them associated with the kachina belief system. Among the modern Hopi and most other Pueblo peoples, "kiva" means a large room that is circular and underground, ...
s, and would probably have originally looked similar to surviving pueblos such as
Taos Pueblo
Taos Pueblo (or Pueblo de Taos) is an ancient pueblo belonging to a Taos-speaking (Tiwa) Native American tribe of Puebloan people. It lies about north of the modern city of Taos, New Mexico. The pueblos are considered to be one of the oldest c ...
. Portions of the pueblo have been excavated and are open to visitors, while others have been backfilled or plastered over to limit damage by erosion or weather.
History
The Gíusewa Pueblo was probably established in the second half of the 15th century, and was first described by Spanish explorers in 1581. A small mission was apparently established next to the pueblo in 1598, but the present surviving structures were begun in 1621. The church was completed in 1623, but damaged by fire not long after, and was again worked on in 1625-26. There was apparently no settled priest, with Franciscan friars making repeated attempts to convert the puebloans until about 1639. The Jémez people continued to occupy the pueblo, and even built a square kiva in one part of the mission compound. The pueblo was abandoned in 1680, when the Jémez participated in the
Pueblo Rebellion
The Pueblo Revolt of 1680, also known as Popé's Rebellion or Popay's Rebellion, was an uprising of most of the indigenous Pueblo people against the Spanish colonizers in the province of Santa Fe de Nuevo México, larger than present-day New Mexic ...
which evicted the Spanish from the region until 1692. Over time, the forces of nature took their toll on the buildings, resulting in the collapse of the church roof, and the partial collapse of its walls. The site first underwent major excavation in 1910 and 1922, at which time stabilization of some of its features began. The state also acquired the land at that time, and it was designated a state monument in 1935.
Gallery
See also
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Puebloan peoples
The Puebloans or Pueblo peoples, are Native Americans in the Southwestern United States who share common agricultural, material, and religious practices. Currently 100 pueblos are actively inhabited, among which Taos, San Ildefonso, Acoma, Zun ...
*
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List of National Historic Landmarks in New Mexico
This is a complete List of National Historic Landmarks in New Mexico. New Mexico has 46 National Historic Landmarks (NHLs), including Raton Pass which is shared with Colorado, and listed by the National Park Service as in that state.
Current NH ...
*
Astialakwa
Astialakwa ( Towa: ''Walatowa'', Navajo: ''Mąʼii Deeshgiizh'') was a prehistoric and historic village built by the ancestral Puebloan people located within the Astialakwa Archeological District (FS-360, LA-1825), in an area now known as the ...
References
External links
New Mexico Historic SitesJemez Pueblo WebsiteJemez Springs Website
{{National Register of Historic Places
Jemez Mountains
National Historic Landmarks in New Mexico
Protected areas of Sandoval County, New Mexico
History of Sandoval County, New Mexico
Museums in Sandoval County, New Mexico
Native American museums in New Mexico
National Register of Historic Places in Sandoval County, New Mexico