Cameron Clouse
Taos Pueblos
My name is Cameron Clouse and I am a Junior at Oklahoma State University. I am a food science major and my main focus with this site is to talk about the Pueblo that lived in Taos New Mexico. I will discuss how the Taos Pueblo came to be as well as their agriculture and general life. This website is dedicated to the study of Pueblo history.
Historical Background
Archeological remains within the Taos Valley date its earliest known human occupation to around 900 AD. Various precontact Anasazi tribes are believed to have moved into the area around this time, sticking close to the life-sustaining Rio Grande River tributaries around the present-day border of Southern Colorado and Northern New Mexico. Traditions surrounding the Taos Pueblo eventually emerged out of the various cultures present in the valley. The first Spanish visitors to Taos Pueblo arrived in 1540 as members of the Francisco Vásquez de Coronado expedition, which stopped at many of New Mexico’s pueblos in search of the rumored Seven Cities of Gold. At the time, Hernando de Alvarado described the pueblo as having adobe houses built very close together and stacked five or six stories high. The homes became narrower as they rose, with the roofs of each level providing the floors and terraces for those above. Surrounded by a low defensive wall, the community had two main clusters of buildings, one on each side of Rio Grande, which provided water for the residents and their crops.
Location
The Taos Pueblo Indians lived just a few miles north of present day Taos New Mexico. The village is located in a small tributary of the Rio Grande. A small stream called Red Willow Creek streams down from the Sangre de Cristo range, at the sacred Blue Lake. The creek flows through the village where it provides clean drinking water, water for cooking, cleaning, and religious activities.
Housing
The Pueblo's lived in house like structures made of adobe. Adobe is clay and sand mixed with water and straw which is either poured into frame like structures, or made into bricks and left in the sun to dry. The roofs are supported by large timbers or "vigas" that were hauled down from the mountain forests. The outside surface of the building had to be continusoly maintained by replacing broken or wornout spots by replastering it with thick layers of mud. They built the houses with multiple levels and also made the wall several feet thick. They built the walls thick for protection, they used the thickness of the walls to protect themselves from raids from rival tribes. A normal home consisted of two rooms: one was a room for sleeping and basic living, the other was for cooking, eating, and storage. The homes were also self-contained meaning that there were no passageways between houses. The buildings at Taos originally had few windows and no standard doorways. Instead, access to rooms was through square holes in the roof that the people reached by climbing long, wooden ladders.
Religion
With the arrival of the Spanish, two main religions were and still to this day are present in the Taos Pueblo. One is the indigenous spiritual and religious tradition, the other is Roman Catholicism. Blue Lake and Rio Pueblo de Taos are the lifeblood of the native religion. Blue Lake is the most sacred thing that the Taos Pueblo have. They not only use it for water, but they believe they descend from it. Pueblo myth tells of an ancient chief who led his people to Taos by following an eagle, and when two plumes of the bird’s feathers dropped on either side of the Rio Pueblo de Taos, the people knew to settle the area The lake is located about twenty miles north of the village and it plays host to annual pilgrimage and ceremony. The annual August pilgrimage is undertaken by the Pueblo people on foot or horseback, and it takes roughly two days to cover the twenty miles of uphill, dense forest trail. Catholicism was brough by the Spanish. The Spanish missions were established by Franciscan friars who had the goal of converting the native people to Christianity.
Agriculture
The Taos Pueblo Indians farming was limited. Their knowledge of growing crops was limited and the landscape and weather made it difficult to farm. They did however try growing corn (maize), beans, and squash. They used a crude form of irrigation. Irrigation is the artificial application of water to the land. Since they lived in a place that did not receive a sufficient amount of rainfall, they had to make due with the stream that flowed through their town. The style they used is referred to as terrace style irrigation. a terrace is a piece of sloped plane that has been cut into a series of successively receding flat surfaces or platforms, which resemble steps, for the purposes of more effective farming. This type of landscaping, therefore, is called terracing. Even with their irrigation system, the natives were not very successful with farming. With their lack of production through farming they were forced to hunt.
Terrace Style Irrigation
This is an example of how a terrace works.
Hunting
With the lack of food produced from farming, the villagers were forced to hunt. They would hunt in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. This mountain range provided the people with a variety of game which included elk, deer, antelope, and big horn sheep. The men would do the hunting and would use hand made knifes and spears as well as bows and arrows. The Taos Pueblo used the animals for more then just food. They used their bones to make new weapons and tools. They also became skilled artisans in the making of leather, making boots, moccasins, and different kinds of clothing. Feathers from hawks, ducks, and eagles were also important when it came to different religious rituals.
Important Dates
1540: Spanish explorer Francisco de Coronado arrives in Pueblo country.
1598: Juan de Oñate sets up a Spanish colony and builds San Geronimo Mission at Taos Pueblo.
1680: The Pueblo Revolt pushes the Spaniards from the region for 12 years.
1847: Another Pueblo rebellion leads to the assassination of the American territorial governor. In retaliation U.S. troops destroy the mission at Taos Pueblo, killing 150 Taos Indians.
1970: The U.S. government returns sacred Blue Lake to Taos Pueblo.
1996: The Taos receive 764 acres in Wheeler Park Wilderness, including a trail connecting the pueblo with Blue Lake Wilderness.
1598: Juan de Oñate sets up a Spanish colony and builds San Geronimo Mission at Taos Pueblo.
1680: The Pueblo Revolt pushes the Spaniards from the region for 12 years.
1847: Another Pueblo rebellion leads to the assassination of the American territorial governor. In retaliation U.S. troops destroy the mission at Taos Pueblo, killing 150 Taos Indians.
1970: The U.S. government returns sacred Blue Lake to Taos Pueblo.
1996: The Taos receive 764 acres in Wheeler Park Wilderness, including a trail connecting the pueblo with Blue Lake Wilderness.
This website was created for educational purposes only.