Casa Grande Ruins National Monument ( ood, Siwañ Waʼa Ki: or ''Sivan Vahki''), in Coolidge, Arizona, just north-east of the city of Casa Grande, preserves a group of Hohokam structures dating to the Classic Period ().

History of the area

The national monument consists of the

ruins Ruins () are the remains of a civilization's architecture. The term refers to formerly intact structures that have fallen into a state of partial or total disrepair over time due to a variety of factors, such as lack of maintenance, deliberate ...

of multiple structures surrounded by a compound wall constructed by the ancient people of the Hohokam period, who farmed the Gila Valley in the early 13th century. "Archeologists have discovered evidence that the ancient Sonoran Desert people who built the Casa Grande also developed wide-scale irrigation farming and extensive trade connections which lasted over a thousand years until about . "Casa Grande" is

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...

for "big house" (''Siwañ Wa'a Ki:'' in O'odham); these names refer to the largest structure on the site, which is what remains of a four-story structure that may have been abandoned by 1450. The structure is made of

caliche Caliche () is a sedimentary rock, a hardened natural cement of calcium carbonate that binds other materials—such as gravel, sand, clay, and silt. It occurs worldwide, in aridisol and mollisol soil orders—generally in arid or semiarid regions ...

, and has managed to survive the extreme weather conditions for about seven centuries. The large house consists of outer rooms surrounding an inner structure. The outer rooms are all three stories high, while the inner structure is four stories high. The structures were constructed using traditional adobe processes. The wet adobe is thicker at the base and adds significant strength. Noticeable horizontal cracks define the breaks between courses on the thick outer walls. The process consisted of using damp adobe to form the walls and then waiting for it to dry, and then building it up with more adobe. Casa Grande contained a ball court much like that found at

Pueblo Grande de Nevada Pueblo Grande de Nevada, (26 CK 2148), is a complex of villages located near Overton, Nevada, and listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Native American history The site, also known as ''Nevada's "Lost City"'', was founded by Baske ...

. Father Eusebio Kino was the first European to view the Hohokam complex in November 1694 and named it Casa Grande.

Graffiti Graffiti (plural; singular ''graffiti'' or ''graffito'', the latter rarely used except in archeology) is art that is written, painted or drawn on a wall or other surface, usually without permission and within public view. Graffiti ranges from s ...

from 19th-century passers-by is scratched into its walls; though this is now illegal. Casa Grande now has a distinctive modern roof covering built in 1932.

Administrative history

In 1891, the monument underwent repairs supervised by Cosmos Mindeleff of the Bureau of American Ethnology, until funds ran out. Proclaimed Casa Grande Reservation on June 22, 1892 by Executive Order 28-A of President

Benjamin Harrison Benjamin Harrison (August 20, 1833March 13, 1901) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 23rd president of the United States from 1889 to 1893. He was a member of the Harrison family of Virginia–a grandson of the ninth pr ...

, 480 acres around the ruins became the first prehistoric and cultural reserve in the United States. It was then re-designated a national monument by President

Woodrow Wilson Thomas Woodrow Wilson (December 28, 1856February 3, 1924) was an American politician and academic who served as the 28th president of the United States from 1913 to 1921. A member of the Democratic Party, Wilson served as the president of ...

on August 3, 1918. As with all historical areas administered by the

National Park Service The National Park Service (NPS) is an agency of the United States federal government within the U.S. Department of the Interior that manages all national parks, most national monuments, and other natural, historical, and recreational propert ...

, Casa Grande 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 ...

on October 15, 1966.

Historic adobes

Between 1937 and 1940 the

Civilian Conservation Corps The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) was a voluntary government work relief program that ran from 1933 to 1942 in the United States for unemployed, unmarried men ages 18–25 and eventually expanded to ages 17–28. The CCC was a major part of ...

built several adobe buildings to serve as housing and administrative offices for the national monument. The adobe buildings, constructed using traditional methods, continue in use today and are now listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Because of careful conservation, the physical appearance of Casa Grande Ruins has hardly changed since the 1940s.

Olmsted shelter

In 1932, a ramada to shelter the ruins from weathering was built by Boston architect Frederick Law Olmsted, Jr. In the early 21st century, a pair of

great horned owl The great horned owl (''Bubo virginianus''), also known as the tiger owl (originally derived from early naturalists' description as the "winged tiger" or "tiger of the air"), or the hoot owl, is a large owl native to the Americas. It is an extre ...

s took up residence in the rafters of the Olmsted shelter. The current protective structure covering the "Great House" replaced a wooden similar structure built to protect it in 1903. Due to the fragile nature of the "Great House," visitors to the site are not permitted inside. To protect its integrity, observation by visitors is only permitted outside the structure.

Gallery

File:Casa Grande. West wall of the Casa Grande ca. 1880.jpg, West wall of the Casa Grande c.1880 File:Casa Grande. The east side of the Casa Grand ca. 1900.jpg, The east side of the Casa Grande c.1900 File:2021 Sivan Vahkih, Casa Grande Ruins, north facade.jpg, The northern facade from the south File:2021 Sivan Vahkih, Casa Grande Ruins, east facade from northeast.jpg, The northeast corner of the Big House File:Casa Grande Big House Doorway.jpg, Doorway to the Big House File:2021 Sivan Vahkih, Casa Grande Ruins, interior 1.jpg, Inside the Big House File:2021 Casa Grande Ruins 2.jpg, Another ruin in the monument, just to the east File:2021 Casa Grande Ruins 4.jpg, A ruin to the south of the Big House

References

Notes Bibliography * *

External links

National Park Service: official Casa Grande Ruins National Monument website
* * * * {{authority control Buildings and structures completed in the 13th century National Park Service National Monuments in Arizona Hohokam Archaeological sites in Arizona Archaeological museums in Arizona Museums in Pinal County, Arizona Native American museums in Arizona Native American history of Arizona Archaeological sites on the National Register of Historic Places in Arizona Civilian Conservation Corps in Arizona 1918 establishments in Arizona Protected areas of Pinal County, Arizona Ruins in the United States 13th century in North America Pueblo great houses Casa Grande, Arizona Historic American Buildings Survey in Arizona Works Progress Administration in Arizona National Register of Historic Places in Pinal County, Arizona Ancient Puebloan archaeological sites in Arizona