From Rubble to Reconstruction

From Rubble to Reconstruction. Tuzigoot National Monument. , An exploration of Tuzigoot pueblo inspires questions, answering some while provoking others. The story along this trail recounts people both ancient and modern., Along this 1⁄3-mile (0.5 km) loop trail, you will find the remains of a 110-room pueblo, its oldest rooms built over 900 years ago. Many have wondered what it was like to dwell here. What happened in these rooms? Who lived here? Why did they leave, and how do we know?, Before 1933 this hill seemed strewn with rubble rather than rooms. An excavation led by archeologists Louis R. Caywood and Edward H. Spicer revealed some of Tuzigoot's story and rebuilt the pueblo, while giving badly needed jobs to local families in the Great Depression., Their excavations told us about the people who occupied Tuzigoot, but there is still much to learn., Explore these rooms respectfully and stay on the path. Leave what you find and see what you discover., Captions , The pueblo today is mostly reconstructed, allowing you to follow the path meandering among its time-worn rooms. Even the rebuilt walls are now fragile-please refrain from touching them. , By 1933 time and the elements had turned Tuzigoot into piles of stone barely recognizable as the vibrant community it had once been. , We don't know what its first inhabitants called their home. The name "Tuzigoot" was chosen by the workers who rebuilt it, from the Western Apache word Tú zighoot (TWO see-WHOODT). The Yavapai call it Ah-hah dtahlahkvah. Both mean "crooked water," referring to the prominent bend here in the Verde River.