Canyon de Chelly National Monument
Canyon de Chelly National Monument | |
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IUCN category V (protected landscape/seascape)
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Canyon de Chelly, 1904, by Edward S. Curtis
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Location | Apache County, Arizona, USA |
Nearest city | Chinle |
Coordinates | Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.[1] |
Area | 83,840 acres (33,929 ha)[2] |
Created | April 1, 1931 |
Visitors | 828,478 (in 2013)[3] |
Governing body | Bureau of Indian Affairs |
NRHP Reference # | 70000066 |
Added to NRHP | August 25, 1970[4] |
Canyon de Chelly National Monument (/dəˈʃeɪ/ də·shā′) was established on April 1, 1931 as a unit of the National Park Service. It is located in northeastern Arizona within the boundaries of the Navajo Nation. Reflecting one of the longest continuously inhabited landscapes of North America, it preserves ruins of the early indigenous tribes that lived in the area, including the Ancient Pueblo Peoples (also called Anasazi) and Navajo. The monument covers 83,840 acres (131.0 sq mi; 339.3 km2) and encompasses the floors and rims of the three major canyons: de Chelly, del Muerto, and Monument. These canyons were cut by streams with headwaters in the Chuska mountains just to the east of the monument. None of the land is federally owned.[5] In 2009 Canyon de Chelly National Monument was recognized as one of the most-visited national monuments in the United States.[6]
Etymology
The name chelly (or Chelley) is a Spanish borrowing of the Navajo word Tséyiʼ, which means "canyon" (literally "inside the rock" < tsé "rock" + -yiʼ "inside of, within"). The Navajo pronunciation is [tséɣiʔ]. The Spanish pronunciation of de Chelly [deˈtʃeʎi] was adapted into English, apparently through modelling after a French-like spelling pronunciation, and now English pronunciation: /dəˈʃeɪ/ də·shā′.
History
Canyon de Chelly long served as a home for Navajo people before it was invaded by forces led by future New Mexico governor Lt. Antonio Narbona in 1805. In 1863 Col. Kit Carson sent troops to either end of the canyon to defeat the Navajo population within. The resulting devastation led to the surrender of the Navajos and their removal to Bosque Redondo, New Mexico.[7]
Description
Canyon de Chelly is entirely owned by the Navajo Tribal Trust of the Navajo Nation. It is the only National Park Service unit that is owned and cooperatively managed in this manner.[8][9] Approximately 40 Navajo families live in the park.[10] Access to the canyon floor is restricted, and visitors are allowed to travel in the canyons only when accompanied by a park ranger or an authorized Navajo guide.[11] The only exception to this rule is the White House Ruin Trail.
Most park visitors arrive by automobile and view Canyon de Chelly from the rim, following both North Rim Drive and South Rim Drive. Ancient ruins and geologic structures are visible, but in the distance, from turnoffs on each of these routes. Deep within the park is Mummy Cave. It features structures that have been built at various times in history. Private Navajo-owned companies offer tours of the canyon floor by horseback, hiking or 4-wheel drive vehicle. The companies can be contacted directly for prices and arrangements. There is no entrance fee to enter the park, apart from any charges imposed by tour companies.
Accommodations for visitors are located in the vicinity of the canyon, on the road leading to Chinle, which is the nearest town.
The National Monument was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on August 25, 1970.[4]
The park's distinctive geologic feature, Spider Rock, is a sandstone spire that rises 750 feet (229 m) from the canyon floor at the junction of Canyon de Chelly and Monument Canyon. Spider Rock can be seen from South Rim Drive. It has served as the scene of a number of television commercials. According to traditional Navajo beliefs the taller of the two spires is the home of Spider Grandmother.[12]
Gallery
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See also
References
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External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to [[commons:Lua error in Module:WikidataIB at line 506: attempt to index field 'wikibase' (a nil value).|Lua error in Module:WikidataIB at line 506: attempt to index field 'wikibase' (a nil value).]]. |
Wikivoyage has a travel guide for [[Wikivoyage:Canyon de Chelly National Monument#Lua error in Module:Wikidata at line 863: attempt to index field 'wikibase' (a nil value).|Canyon de Chelly National Monument]]. |
- Official website
- Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- Historic American Buildings Survey (HABS) No. AZ-157, "Antelope House Ruin, Canyon del Muerto, Chinle vicinity, Apache County, AZ"
- HABS No. AZ-213, "Bad Trail Ruin, Chinle vicinity, Apache County, AZ"
- HABS No. AZ-211, "Ledge Ruin, Canyon del Muerto, Chinle vicinity, Apache County, AZ"
- HABS No. AZ-72, "Mummy Cave, Navajo Indian Reservation, Chinle vicinity, Apache County, AZ"
- HABS No. AZ-156, "White House Ruin, Navajo Indian Reservation, Chinle vicinity, Apache County, AZ"
- HABS No. AZ-212, "Yucca House Ruin, Canyon del Muerto, Chinle vicinity, Apache County, AZ"
- Canyon de Chelly (poem by Simon Ortiz, 1977) Accessed 2013 January 15
- IUCN Category V
- Articles containing Navajo-language text
- Articles using small message boxes
- Commons category link from Wikidata
- Official website not in Wikidata
- 1931 establishments in Arizona
- Archaeological museums in Arizona
- Archaeological sites on the National Register of Historic Places in Arizona
- Cliff dwellings
- Former populated places in Arizona
- Geography of the Navajo Nation
- Historic American Buildings Survey in Arizona
- Museums in Apache County, Arizona
- National Park Service National Monuments in Arizona
- Native American archeology
- Native American history of Arizona
- Native American museums in Arizona
- Pre-historic cities in the United States
- Protected areas established in 1931
- Protected areas of Apache County, Arizona
- Former populated places in Apache County, Arizona
- Canyons and gorges of the United States