Navajo Nation Council Chamber ( nv, Béésh bąąh dah si'ání) is the center of government for the

Navajo Nation The Navajo Nation ( nv, Naabeehó Bináhásdzo), also known as Navajoland, is a Native American reservation in the United States. It occupies portions of northeastern Arizona, northwestern New Mexico, and southeastern Utah; at roughly , the ...

. The landmark building, in

Window Rock, Arizona Window Rock ( nv, , ) is a census-designated place that serves as the seat of government and capital of the Navajo Nation, the largest territory in North America of a sovereign Native American nation. The capital lies within the boundaries of the ...

, is significant for its association with the 1930s

New Deal The New Deal was a series of programs, public work projects, financial reforms, and regulations enacted by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in the United States between 1933 and 1939. Major federal programs agencies included the Civilian Cons ...

, and its change in Federal policy for relations with Native Americans, as established in the

Indian Reorganization Act The Indian Reorganization Act (IRA) of June 18, 1934, or the Wheeler–Howard Act, was U.S. federal legislation that dealt with the status of American Indians in the United States. It was the centerpiece of what has been often called the "Indian ...

. With its red sandstone

façade A façade () (also written facade) is generally the front part or exterior of a building. It is a Loanword, loan word from the French language, French (), which means 'frontage' or 'face'. In architecture, the façade of a building is often t ...

and overall rustic architectural style, the chamber was designed to harmonize with its spectacular natural surroundings. The building was declared 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 ...

in 2004. It is "the only legislative headquarters in the United States owned by an American Indian tribe which has been continuously in use by that tribe and whose design incorporates

indigenous Indigenous may refer to: *Indigenous peoples *Indigenous (ecology), presence in a region as the result of only natural processes, with no human intervention *Indigenous (band), an American blues-rock band *Indigenous (horse), a Hong Kong racehorse ...

materials and architectural traditions tied to the Navajo heritage."

Description and history

The Navajo National Council Chamber stands amid a campus of other Navajo Nation government facilities in Window Rock, on the south side of Tribal Hill Road, sited with a view of the stone arch formation that gives Window Rock its name. It is a two-level stone structure, built out of red sandstone designed to harmonize with the surrounding sandstone formations. It is octagonal in shape, its design intended to evoke a monumental

hogan A hogan ( or ; from Navajo ' ) is the primary, traditional dwelling of the Navajo people. Other traditional structures include the summer shelter, the underground home, and the sweat house. A hogan can be round, cone-shaped, multi-sided, or squ ...

, the traditional building form of the

Navajo people The Navajo (; British English: Navaho; nv, Diné or ') are a Native American people of the Southwestern United States. With more than 399,494 enrolled tribal members , the Navajo Nation is the largest federally recognized tribe in the United ...

Ponderosa pine ''Pinus ponderosa'', commonly known as the ponderosa pine, bull pine, blackjack pine, western yellow-pine, or filipinus pine is a very large pine tree species of variable habitat native to mountainous regions of western North America. It is the ...

vigas radiate outward to stone buttresses, and heavy wooden timbers serve as lintels and trim. The main entrance faces east (a traditional Navajo orientation), with flanking seven-foot wooden panels carved by the Navajo artist Charles Shirley. At the center of the structure is an octagonal

clerestory In architecture, a clerestory ( ; , also clearstory, clearstorey, or overstorey) is a high section of wall that contains windows above eye level. Its purpose is to admit light, fresh air, or both. Historically, ''clerestory'' denoted an upper l ...

level. The interior is a single large chamber, with steel columns supporting smaller vigas tied to the larger ones which support the roof. The Navajo artist

Gerald Nailor, Sr. Gerald Nailor Sr. (or Toh Yah ( nv, ); January 21, 1917 – August 13, 1952) was a Navajo Studio painter from Picurís, New Mexico. Beginning in 1942, he was commissioned to paint the history of the Navajo people for a large mural at the Navaj ...

was commissioned in 1942 for a mural cycle depicting ''The History and Progress of the Navajo Nation,'' which is installed in the interior.Navajo Nation Council Chamber
at National Park Service. This article incorporates

public domain The public domain (PD) consists of all the creative work A creative work is a manifestation of creative effort including fine artwork (sculpture, paintings, drawing, sketching, performance art), dance, writing (literature), filmmaking, ...

text from this

US government The federal government of the United States (U.S. federal government or U.S. government) is the national government of the United States, a federal republic located primarily in North America, composed of 50 states, a city within a feder ...

website. The site for the building was chosen by John Collier, United States Commissioner for Indian Affairs, in 1933, and it was erected in 1934–35 with funding from the

Public Works Administration The Public Works Administration (PWA), part of the New Deal of 1933, was a large-scale public works construction agency in the United States headed by Secretary of the Interior Harold L. Ickes. It was created by the National Industrial Recove ...

. It was designed by

Mayers Murray & Phillip Mayers, Murray & Phillip was an architecture firm in New York city and the successor firm to Goodhue Associates, after Bertram Goodhue's unexpected death in 1924. The principals were Francis L.S. Mayers, Oscar Harold Murray, and Hardie Phillip. Fo ...

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

, a firm known for its

Mission Revival architecture The Mission Revival style was part of an architectural movement, beginning in the late 19th century, for the revival and reinterpretation of American colonial styles. Mission Revival drew inspiration from the late 18th and early 19th century ...

Gallery

File:Navajo3.jpg,

References

External links

Navajo Nation Council Chambers tour information
Discover Navajo * {{National Register of Historic Places 1935 establishments in Arizona Government buildings completed in 1935 Buildings and structures in Apache County, Arizona National Historic Landmarks in Arizona Council Chamber Octagonal buildings in the United States Government buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in Arizona National Register of Historic Places in Apache County, Arizona Pueblo Revival architecture in Arizona

Description and history

Gallery

See also

References

External links