Blasterz were privileged to visit the Acoma Pueblo, which has been inhabited for at least 1000 years by the Acoma Pueblo people.
From the LandmarkHunter.com website: (
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"Acoma Pueblo, built on top of a giant, craggy mesa, is one of the oldest continuously occupied settlements in the United States. Founded as early as A.D. 1100, its location made it virtually impregnable in early times. The Mission of San Estevan del Rey, built to the side of the pueblo ca. 1629-1642 adds to the impressiveness of the site with its battered adobe walls and bold silhouette, a near-perfect blend of Indian and Spanish influences. The Acoma still use the pueblo and have considerable interaction with neighboring non-Indians, yet maintain their identity as a separate community with distinctive cultural systems. -- National Historic Landmark statement of significance, October 9, 1960"
From the Acoma Sky City website: (
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"Discover the centuries-old history of New Mexico’s southwest Indians. Acoma Pueblo offers a window in time where Native people carry on the customary traditions of their ancestors through Native American pottery making and tribal celebrations. Educational tours and cultural exhibits are designed to generate a broader and deeper understanding of the Acoma People.
Acoma Pueblo is built atop a sheer-walled, 367-foot sandstone bluff in a valley studded with sacred, towering monoliths. Since 1150 A.D., Acoma Pueblo has earned the reputation as the oldest continuously inhabited community in North America. The mesa-top settlement is known worldwide for its unique art and rich culture.
A federally recognized Indian Tribe, Acoma Pueblo has a land base covering 431,664 acres and is home to 4,800 tribal members with more than 250 dwellings, none of which have electricity, sewer, or water. In 1629, construction began on the massive San Esteban del Rey Mission, a Catholic mission. Both the Mission and the Pueblo are Registered National Historical Landmarks and are on the National Register of Historic Places.
Acoma Pueblo was named the 28th Historic Site by the National Trust for Historic Preservation (NTHP) in 2007 and is the only Native American site to be designated. Acoma assists the NTHP to expand its preservation activities and mission beyond bricks and mortar and into community development."
And from Wikipedia: (
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"History
Acoma Pueblo Sky City
Origins and early history
Pueblo people are believed to have descended from the Anasazi, Mogollon, and other ancient peoples. These influences are seen in the architecture, farming style, and artistry of the Acoma. In the 1200s the Anasazi abandoned their canyon homelands due to climate change and social upheaval. For upwards of two centuries migrations occurred in the area, and Acoma Pueblo would emerge by the thirteenth century This early founding date makes Acoma Pueblo one of the earliest continuously inhabited communities in the United States.
The Pueblo lies on a 365-foot mesa, about 60 miles west of Albuquerque, New Mexico. The isolation and location of the Pueblo has sheltered the community for more than 1,200 years, which sought to avoid conflict with neighboring Navajos and Apaches.
European contact
The Acoma Pueblo had contact with Spanish explorers heading north from Central America, all generally recorded as peaceful interactions.Francisco Vásquez de Coronado's expedition described the Pueblo in 1540 as "one of the strongest places we have seen." Upon visiting the Pueblo the expedition "repented having gone up to the place." The only access to the Acoma Pueblo during this time was a set of almost vertical stairs cut into the rock face. It is believed Coronado's expedition was the first European contact with the Acoma.
By 1598, relationships with the Spaniards had declined. In December of that year, the Acoma heard that Juan de Oñate had intended on colonizing the area. The Acoma ambushed a group of Oñate's men, killing 11 of them, including Oñate's nephew. The Spanish took revenge on the Acoma, burning most of the village and killing more than 600 people and imprisoning approximately 500 others. Prisoners of war were forced into slavery and men over 25 years old had their right foot amputated. A row of houses on the north side of the mesa still retain marks from the fire started by a cannon during the Acoma War.
Survivors of the Acoma Massacre would recover and rebuild their community and Oñate would proceed to force the Acoma and other local Indians to pay taxes in crops, cotton, and labor. Spanish rule also brought Catholic missionaries into the area. The Spanish renamed the pueblos with the names of saints and started to construct churches at them. New crops also were introduced to the Acoma, including peaches, peppers, and wheat. A royal decree in 1620 created civil offices in each pueblo, including Acoma, with a governor to go along with the office. In 1680 the Pueblo Revolt took place, with Acoma participating.The revolt brought refugees from other pueblos. Those who eventually left Acoma would go on to form Laguna Pueblo.
The Acoma then suffered from smallpox epidemics and raiding from the Apache, Comanche, and Ute. On occasion, the Acoma would side with the Spanish to fight against nomadic tribes. The Acoma proceeded to practice their religion in secrecy. Intermarriage and intraction also became common among the Acoma, other pueblos, and Hispanic villages. These communities would intermingle to form the culture of New Mexico.
San Esteban Del Rey Mission
Between 1629 and 1641 Father Juan Ramirez oversaw construction of the San Estevan Del Rey Mission Church church. The Acoma were ordered to build the church, moving 20,000 tons of adobe, straw, sandstone, and mud to the mesa for the church walls. Ponderosa pine was brought in by community members from Mount Taylor, over 40 miles away. At 6,000-square-feet, with an altar flanked by 60-foot-high wood pillars hand carved in red and white designs representing Christian and Indigenous beliefs, the structure is considered a cultural treasure by the Acoma, despite the slave labor used to build it. In 1970 it was placed on the National Register of Historic Places and in 2007 it became the 28th designated National Trust Historic Site; the only Native American site designated with the latter title.
19th and 20th century
During the nineteenth century, the Acoma people, while trying to uphold traditional life, also adopted aspects of the once-rejected Spanish culture and religion. By the 1880s, railroads brought the pueblos out of isolation. In the 1920s, the All Indian Pueblo Council gathered for the first time in more than 300 years. Responding to congressional interest in appropriating Pueblo lands, the U.S. Congress passed the Pueblo Lands Act in 1924. Despite successes in retaining their land, the twentieth century proved difficult for the survival of cultural traditions for the Acoma. Protestant missionaries and schools came into the area and the Bureau of Indian Affairs forced Acoma children into boarding schools. By 1922, most children from the community were in boarding schools.
Present day
Today, about 300 two- and three-story adobe buildings reside on the mesa, with exterior ladders used to access the upper levels where residents live. Access to the mesa is by a road blasted into the rock face during the 1950s. Approximately 30 or so people live permanently on the mesa, with the population increasing on the weekends as family members come to visit and tourists, some 55,000 annually, visit for the day.
Acoma Pueblo has no electricity, running water, or sewage disposal. A reservation surrounds the mesa, totaling 600 square miles (1,600 km2). Tribal members live both on the reservation and outside it. contemporary Acoma culture remains relatively closed, however. According to the 2000 United States census, 4,989 people identify themselves as Acoma.
Many Acoma people disapprove of Juan de Oñate being called New Mexico's founder. In 1998, after a statue was erected as a tribute to Oñate at the Oñate Monument Center in Alcalde, someone cut off the bronze right foot of his statue with a chainsaw.
Culture
Governance and reservation
Acoma government was maintained by two individuals: a cacique, or head of the Pueblo, and a war captain, who would serve until their deaths. Both individuals maintained strong religious connections to their work, representing the theocracy of Acoma governance. The Spanish eventually imposed a group to oversee the Pueblo, but, their power was not taken seriously by the Acoma. The Spanish group would work with external situations and comprised a governor, two lieutenant governors, and a council. The Acoma also participated in the All Indian Pueblo Council, which started in 1598 and arose again in the twentieth century.
Today, the Acoma maintain approximately 500,000 acres of their traditional land. Mesas, valleys, hills, and arroyos dot the landscape that averages about 7,000 feet in altitude with about 10 inches of rain each year. Since 1977, the Acoma have acquired land through several land purchases, increasing their land base. On the reservation, only tribal members may own land and almost all enrolled members live on the property. The cacique is still active in the community, and is from the Antelope clan. The cacique appoints tribal council members, staff, and the governor."