The Mormon Battalion
Council Bluffs, July 16, 1846
Fort Leavenworth, Aug. 2, 1846
Santa Fe, Oct. 9, 1846
San Diego, Jan 29, 1847
Erected June 16, 1940
[ Map of Mormon Battalion Route ]
The Mormon Battalion, composed . . . — — Map (db m150860) HM
Near here the Rio Grande Valley closes into a narrow pass (angostura). Control of this pass was critical to the safety of the trade along the Camino Real, so this area has been the focus of fortifications since the early 17th century. The 18th . . . — — Map (db m32800) HM
[Español:]
El Pueblo del Río Grande tenía una larga tradición agrícola. Su práctica agrícola estaba bien adaptada al paisaje desértico. Comunidades enteras limpiaban, araban, y cultivaban campos cerca del río. Usaban el sistema de . . . — — Map (db m273597) HM
The depression in front of you has a distinctly square appearance. This depression revealed the occurrence of yet another smaller square kiva at Kuaua. This kiva was excavated in the 1930s but was immediately backfilled to protect its damaged walls. . . . — — Map (db m273568) HM
The Pueblo of Kuaua was inhabited from about 1300 to 1600. During the late 1930s archaeologists unearthed approximately 1200 rooms of the village. There are many more which remain unexcavated.
The walls you see in front of you are not original. . . . — — Map (db m273470) HM
The Pueblo Indian province of Tiguex, in the area of Bernalillo, served as winter headquarters for Francisco Vásquez de Coronado in 1540-42 during his explorations of the Southwest. Bernalillo was founded after the Spanish reconquest of New . . . — — Map (db m45440) HM
Archaeological research indicates that this fertile valley has been the focus of human occupation for at least 10,000 years. Soon after the Spanish colonized New Mexico in 1598, a series of estancias, or farming and ranching communities, flanked the . . . — — Map (db m45441) HM
Many of the large pueblos constructed along the Rio Gande were built over a long period of time. New households were connected to previous construction and eventually surrounded a central plaza. As other people joined the community, they constructed . . . — — Map (db m273557) HM
In spite of Coronado's accomplishments of exploring and opening up areas unknown to the European, the expedition was considered a failure. For they had not found the fabled cities of gold, only mud villages.
Coronado suffered an injury from a . . . — — Map (db m273583) HM
Spanish:
La dieta tradicional Pueblo se basaba en "las tres hermanas": maíz, frijol, y calabaza. Se preparaban tortillas, panes, gachas, y bebidas con harina de maíz. También se cazaban ciervos, conejos, pájaros, y otros animales. . . . — — Map (db m273753) HM
[Español:]
Los colonizadores españoles trajeron nuevos alimentos a los Pueblos tales como el trigo, los melones, y los árboles frutales. Ellos también introdujeron alimentos nativos de México como tomates y chiles a la gente . . . — — Map (db m273887) HM
Spanish:
Muchos Pueblos, tanto del pasado como del presente, han dependido al Bosque de Río Grande, una región que comprende el río y el bosque que lo rodea. En 1540, el río era más ancho y profundo. Las grandes inundaciones . . . — — Map (db m273783) HM
Spanish: El bosque se refiere a los álamos que habitan los ríos en Nuevo México. Los álamos pueden alcanzar hasta un metro de diámetro y treinta metros de altura. Durante muchos años, las poblaciones indígenas han utilizado el álamo . . . — — Map (db m273884) HM
Spanish:
El Mundo Pueblo de 1540
Por más de doscientos años, el Pueblo de Kuaua permanecía sobre una plataforma arenosa con vistas del Rio Grande. Contaba con más de mil habitaciones usadas para guardar los alimentos secos y . . . — — Map (db m273591) HM
Archaeologists learn about the past in many ways. The excavation of Kuaua resulted in a wealth of information about the original earthen structures, although the actual techniques and time involved for construction is still unknown. The recent . . . — — Map (db m273482) HM
Toward the end of February 1540, an army of nearly three hundred Spanish soldiers, one thousand Indian allies and slaves, one thousand horses, and at least five hundred mules and other stock, left the frontier town of Compostela, Mexico, and marched . . . — — Map (db m273412) HM
"They keep the separate houses where they prepare the food for eating and where they grind the meal, very clean. This is a separate room or closet, where they have a trough with three stones fixed in stiff clay. Three women go in here, each having a . . . — — Map (db m273555) HM
The pit-like structures to your right and left are the ruins of underground chambers called kivas. The Pueblo Indians of today conduct many of their religious ceremonies in similar kivas although they are now generally built above ground. . . . — — Map (db m273479) HM
In northern New Mexico, many American Indians from the west and north moved toward permanent water sources during a drought period in the late 1200s. With their allies in existing communities along the Rio Grande, these people formed new and larger . . . — — Map (db m273410) HM
Spanish:
Las sierras sagradas Sandia y Manzano ofrecían muchos recursos para los Pueblos del Río Grande. Los enebros y los pinos crecían cerca de los picos. Se usaban los abetos para construir los tejados de los pueblos y las . . . — — Map (db m273778) HM
[Español:]
La sierra de las Sandías es un sitio geográfico del valle del Río Grande central que está presente en la mitología y la historia de muchas culturas. Los pueblos indígenas Tewa la nombraron Oekuu P'in (la Montaña de la . . . — — Map (db m273885) HM
"They all work together to build the villages, the women being engaged in making the mixture and the walls, while the men bring the wood and put it in place. They have no lime, but they make a mixture of ashes, coals, and dirt which is almost as . . . — — Map (db m273487) HM
Archaeologists believe that a number of room blocks at this pueblo were two, and possibly even three stories high. A family or household unit may have consisted of up to four upper story rooms used for cooking and sleeping, built over rooms used for . . . — — Map (db m273471) HM
Spanish:
Conocimiento tradicional indígena
La vida tradicional de los Pueblos estaba profundamente conectada con el mundo natural. Se recogían plantas muy útiles en los altiplanos desérticos. Se tejían las resistentes fibras . . . — — Map (db m273774) HM
"This Nuestra Senora river (Rio Grande) flows through a broad valley planted with fields of maise. There are some cottonwood groves. There are twelve pueblos."
Hernando de Alvarado - 1540
"The river is almost as wide as that of Seville, . . . — — Map (db m273587) HM
Kuaua was established by people well versed in the requirements for successful agriculture. The Rio Grande provided a dependable supply of water for both fields and family. The water of the Rio Grande and the rich slopes of the Sandia Mountains to . . . — — Map (db m273576) HM
The plazas integrated into the architectural design of this pueblo were the focus of many daily activities year round. Near the room blocks there were probably pens for turkeys kept as a source of feathers and food for the households. Dogs ran . . . — — Map (db m273474) HM
The Pueblo of Kuau was excavated by archaeologists in the 1930's. The kiva in front of you was reconstructed on the original foundations of a kiva found here during the excavations.
Entrance to the kiva is by a ladder through a hatchway in the . . . — — Map (db m273548) HM
In 2017, Dr. Clay Mathers of the Coronado Institute conducted a metal detecting survey at Coronado Historic Site and discovered dozens of Spanish military artifacts. The layout and nature of these objects indicate that the Spanish briefly besieged . . . — — Map (db m273465) HM
"We visited a good many of these pueblos. They are all well built with straight, well-squared walls. Their towns have no defined streets. Their houses are three, five, six and even seven stories high, with many windows and terraces. The men spin and . . . — — Map (db m273561) HM
(names on the first four columns:)
Ackerson, Bobby • Aguilar, Ernest Arthur • Aragon, Eduardo (Eddie) • Aragon, Enrique Fernando • Aragon, Joe Ismel (Jody) • Aragon, Robert E (Skip) • Aragon, Robert (Bobby) • Aragon, Roberto (Wedo) • . . . — — Map (db m185714) WM
This question motivated the original excavations of the pueblo during the New Deal Era. Dr. Edgar Lee Hewett, the lead archaeologist was confident that Kuaua was the location where Francisco Vázquez de Coronado's entrada encamped during the winter . . . — — Map (db m273414) HM
Spanish colonization of this region, once the location of many Tiwa Indian pueblos, began in the 17th century. Corrales is named for the extensive corrals built here by Juan González, founder of Alameda. In the 18th century this rich farming . . . — — Map (db m45436) HM
This church was constructed in 1868 following a flood which demolished an earlier building. Dedicated to San Ysidro, patron of farmers, the church incorporates materials salvaged from the original structure. The building is one of the finest . . . — — Map (db m45437) HM
In 1769, Spanish Governor Pedro Fermin de Mendinueta made the San Joaquin del Nacimiento land grant to 35 pioneering families who had settled the headwaters of the Rio Puerco in 1766. The community was later abandoned owing to raids by frontier . . . — — Map (db m280219) HM
In 1769, Spanish Governor Pedro Fermin de Mendinueta made the San Joaquin del Nacimiento land grant to 35 pioneering families who had settled the headwaters of the Rio Puerco in 1766. The community was later abandoned, owing to raids by frontier . . . — — Map (db m270134) HM
Jemez Pueblo. Evelyn M. Vigil, a descendant of the last remaining Pecos residents that moved to Jemez Pueblo in 1838, led a revival of Pecos Pueblo style pottery. She spent time at Pecos National Historic Park studying materials and techniques . . . — — Map (db m73244) HM
Jémez is the sole surviving pueblo of the seven in the “provencia de los Hemes” noted by Spaniards in 1541, and the last at which the Towa language is still spoken. In 1838, the remaining inhabitants of Pecos Pueblo moved here. The mission of San . . . — — Map (db m280221) HM
The village of Giusewa was occupied by ancestors of the Jémez Indians before the arrival of the Spanish in 1541. Its ruins lie close to those of the great stone mission church of San José de los Jémez, which was built by the Franciscans around 1622. — — Map (db m280222) HM
About one million years ago, the magnificent valley before you was formed by collapse, after a series of tremendous volcanic eruptions ejected a volume of material more than 500 times greater than the May 1980 eruptions of Mt. St. Helens. This event . . . — — Map (db m119763) HM
(side one)
According to oral and recorded history, the Santo Domingo people have always made and traded jewelry. From prehistoric times heishi, drilled and ground shell beads, have been strung into necklaces. Generations of Santo . . . — — Map (db m45475) HM
The Keresan people of Santo Domingo have occupied the area of the Rio Grande Valley since prehistoric times despite several floods that have forced relocation and reconstruction of the original pueblo. Strategically located along the roads that have . . . — — Map (db m45476) HM
Women of Cochiti are known for reviving the historic figurative tradition now referred to as Storytellers, adult clay figurines surrounded by children. The efforts of these women have bloomed into a vibrant cottage industry, inspiring many potters . . . — — Map (db m280218) HM
This black volcanic escarpment is one of New Mexico's most important landmarks. The descent (bajada) of this escarpment marked the traditional division between New Mexico's upper (Rio Arriba) and lower (Rio Abajo) districts. Over the centuries, . . . — — Map (db m60563) HM
English:
The Sandia Mountains have been occupied by human beings for thousands of years. This area was settled by 1767, when Governor Pedro Fermin de Mendinueta made the land grant known as La Merced de San Antonio de las Huertas. The . . . — — Map (db m45460) HM
(side one)
New Mexico has a proud history of military service. We are a state of culturally diverse citizens who are willing to defend our freedom and rights. Over 15,000 women in New Mexico have volunteered to serve in our military. These . . . — — Map (db m45458) HM
(front)
Teacher, agriculturalist, farmer and conservationist, Dulcelina Curtis led efforts to control flooding of arroyos in Corrales where a flood-control channel is named in her honor. The first woman appointed to a board of the U.S. . . . — — Map (db m45438) HM
Among the many prehistoric and historic sites located nearby is a camp where Francisco Vasquez de Coronado’s troops may have spent the winter of 1540-41. Coronado also visited the ancient pueblo of Kuaua located to the north. Kuaua’s ruins are . . . — — Map (db m45439) HM
More the one hundred prehistoric and historic pueblos and other archeological sites and over 15,000 petroglyphs or rock art sites give ample evidence of the occupation of this valley for at least 12,000 years. Spanish explorers who came into the . . . — — Map (db m73508) HM
The Keres-speaking pueblo of Santa Ana was established on its present site in 1693, as part of Diego de Vargas' reconquest of New Mexico. The spot, exposed to flooding, was poorly suited for farming, and today the residents live on their farms . . . — — Map (db m32843) HM
From this point, the Colorado Plateau extends across northwestern New Mexico into northeastern Arizona, southeastern Utah, and southwestern Colorado. A colorful landscape of mesas and canyons, it is underlain by natural mineral, oil and gas . . . — — Map (db m45463) HM
In 1583 Antonio de Espejo recorded this pueblo as one of five in the Province of Punamé. Following the sacking of Zia by Spanish troops in 1689, the pueblo was reestablished, but never attained its former size. The Zia ancient sun symbol is . . . — — Map (db m32858) HM
Trinidad Gachupin Medina was the most widely known Zia potter of her time. She was recognized for her large polychrome storage jars. Sponsored by trader Wick Miller, she toured the United States from 1930 to 1946, demonstrating pottery making at . . . — — Map (db m280223) HM
In 1541 an expedition from the army of Francisco Vasquez de Coronado, New Mexico's first explorer, marched south 80 leagues to investigate the pueblos along the lower Rio Grande. The group reached that part of the infamous Jornada del Muerto, now . . . — — Map (db m32826) HM
