Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
History
A US army lieutenant recorded the spectacular cliff dwellings in the canyons of Mesa
Verde in 1849-50. The large number of sites on Ute tribal land, and their relative inac-
cessibility, protected the majority of these antiquities from pothunters.
The first scientific investigation of the sites in 1874 failed to identify Cliff Palace, the
largest cliff dwelling in North America. Discovery of the 'magnificent city' occurred only
when local cowboys Richard Wetherill and Charlie Mason were searching for stray cattle
in 1888. The cowboys exploited their 'discovery' for the next 18 years by guiding both
amateur and trained archaeologists to the site, particularly to collect the distinctive black-
on-white pottery.
When artifacts started being shipped overseas, Virginia McClurg of Colorado Springs
was motivated to embark on a long campaign to preserve the site and its contents .
McClurg's efforts led Congress to protect artifacts on federal land, with the passage of the
Antiquities Act establishing Mesa Verde National Park in 1906.
