Spirit Mountain, also known as Avi Kwa Ame ( ; Mojave: ''ʔaviː kʷaʔame'', "highest mountain", from ''ʔaviː'', "mountain, rock", and ''ʔamay'', "up, above") is a mountain within the

Lake Mead National Recreation Area Lake Mead National Recreation Area is a U.S. national recreation area in Southeastern Nevada and Northwestern Arizona. Operated by the National Park Service, Lake Mead NRA follows the Colorado River corridor from the westernmost boundary of Gran ...

near

Laughlin, Nevada Laughlin () is an unincorporated community in Clark County, Nevada, United States. Laughlin lies south of Las Vegas, in the far southern tip of Nevada. As a resort town, it is known for its gaming and water recreation. As of the 2020 census, t ...

. It is listed on the United States

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

as a sacred place to Native American tribes in Southern Nevada. Spirit Mountain is the highest point in the Spirit Mountain Wilderness and is the highest point in the Newberry Mountains with the summit peak at .

History

Environmentalists have sought designation of a significant area to the west of the mountain as a

national monument A national monument is a monument constructed in order to commemorate something of importance to national heritage, such as a country's founding, independence, war, or the life and death of a historical figure. The term may also refer to a sp ...

. The Avi Kwa Ame National Monument was established on March 21, 2023, by President Biden and named after the peak as the mountain is visible from almost the entire area. The mountain was listed on the National Register of Historic Places as a Traditional Cultural Property on September 8, 1999.

Description

Spirit Mountain is the center of creation for all Yuman speaking tribes and is considered a sacred area. The is managed by the

Bureau of Land Management The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is an agency within the United States Department of the Interior responsible for administering federal lands, U.S. federal lands. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., the BLM oversees more than of land, or one ...

National Park Service The National Park Service (NPS) is an List of federal agencies in the United States, agency of the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government, within the US Department of the Interior. The service manages all List ...

, and

Bureau of Reclamation The Bureau of Reclamation, formerly the United States Reclamation Service, is a List of United States federal agencies, federal agency under the U.S. Department of the Interior, which oversees water resource management, specifically as it ...

References

External links

* * Mountains of Nevada Religious places of the Indigenous peoples of North America Sacred mountains of the United States Mojave Desert Mountains of Clark County, Nevada National Register of Historic Places in Clark County, Nevada Properties of religious function on the National Register of Historic Places in Nevada Natural features on the National Register of Historic Places Creation myths {{NorthAm-native-stub