Plains Apache at El Cuartelejo

Plains Apache at El Cuartelejo. . , Although El Cuartelejo is popularly associated with a Puebloan people, during most of its habitation it was actually used by a band of Plains Apache. They were descendants of Indians who came into the Plains from the North probably in late prehistoric times., The first mention of the Plains Apache in recorded history was by the Coronado expedition in 1540-1541. They were described as a nomadic people who hunted the bison and used dogs to carry their skin tipis and other belongings as they moved from place to place. After their hunts the Apache visited the Wichita villages and the Rio Grande pueblos, trading meat and hides for maize, cotton blankets and pottery. Usually they were friends and allies of the Spanish and the Pueblo peoples., By 1700 the Apache at El Cuartelejo had become more settled. They continued to go on hunts but lived in their own villages during the growing seasons and raised crops of maize, beans and pumpkins. About the mid-18th century they were forced to the Southwest by the Comanche, who swept into the Plains as mounted marauders after 1700.