In
1863, while the War Between the States raged in the East,
legendary"Indian fighter" Kit Carson led a brutal
campaign against the Navajo of the Southwest, whose raiding
parties were seen as a threat by the United States government.
One Navajo stronghold was Canyon de Chelly (pronounced "d'SHAY,"
from a Spanish mispronunciation of the Navajo name for the area,
tsegi), a colorful canyon near present-day Chinle, Arizona.
Beginning in 1864, Carson, with the eager assistance of the
Navajo's traditional enemies, marched into the beautiful,
steep-walled canyon to destroy cornfields, hogans (circular,
domed structures made of mud and logs), and orchards. Without
food or shelter, the Navajo surrendered. Thousands of them were
forced to march 300 miles eastward across New Mexico to a
parched reservation where they were held as prisoners of war.
Throughout
the nearly five years on the reservation at Fort Sumner, the
Navajo people begged to be allowed to return to the land they
considered"the heart of the world." Of those who
survived the grueling "Long Walk," only half saw the
day their people returned to the canyon in 1868. Slowly, the
people rebuilt their lives. Today there are approximately 80
families living in Canyon de Chelly. You can see the plowed
fields and homes scattered about the canyon floor from overlooks
high above.
The national
monument, which actually includes Canyon del Muerto, Monument
Canyon, and Canyon de Chelly, has housed people for more than
1,500 years. Numerous pictographs, petroglyphs, and ruins tell
the tales of the people who once made their homes here. The
style of living has changed-from the circular pit houses of the
Basket Makers to the cliff dwellings of the Anasazi and Pueblos
to the hogans of the Navajo (who first came here in the
1700s)-but the regard for the cliffs as a spiritual place has
always remained true.
Although
its history is marred by incidents of massacre, forced
relocation, and abuse, Canyon de Chelly's overall effect is a
lasting sense of peace. Its beauty is subtler and more profound
than that of other parks in the U.S., and its intricacies are
entwined in the culture that calls it home. Highlights of the
Canyon are Spider Rock, an 800-foot spire said to be the home of
"Spider Woman," and White House Ruin, an ancient
dwelling that allows visitors to understand how the ancients
lived and thrived here.
In
1863, while the War Between the States raged in the East,
legendary"Indian fighter" Kit Carson led a brutal
campaign against the Navajo of the Southwest, whose raiding
parties were seen as a threat by the United States government.
One Navajo stronghold was Canyon de Chelly (pronounced "d'SHAY,"
from a Spanish mispronunciation of the Navajo name for the area,
tsegi), a colorful canyon near present-day Chinle, Arizona.
Beginning in 1864, Carson, with the eager assistance of the
Navajo's traditional enemies, marched into the beautiful,
steep-walled canyon to destroy cornfields, hogans (circular,
domed structures made of mud and logs), and orchards. Without
food or shelter, the Navajo surrendered. Thousands of them were
forced to march 300 miles eastward across New Mexico to a
parched reservation where they were held as prisoners of war.
Throughout
the nearly five years on the reservation at Fort Sumner, the
Navajo people begged to be allowed to return to the land they
considered"the heart of the world." Of those who
survived the grueling "Long Walk," only half saw the
day their people returned to the canyon in 1868. Slowly, the
people rebuilt their lives. Today there are approximately 80
families living in Canyon de Chelly. You can see the plowed
fields and homes scattered about the canyon floor from overlooks
high above.
Although
its history is marred by incidents of massacre, forced
relocation, and abuse, Canyon de Chelly's overall effect is a
lasting sense of peace. Its beauty is subtler and more profound
than that of other parks in the U.S., and its intricacies are
entwined in the culture that calls it home. Highlights of the
Canyon are Spider Rock, an 800-foot spire said to be the home of
"Spider Woman," and White House Ruin, an ancient
dwelling that allows visitors to understand how the ancients
lived and thrived here.