#Hohokam village series

However, they correspond with dance floors of the Tohono O'odham (Papago) people, used for their Vikita ceremonies until at least the 1930s. In 2009 it was suggested that the shape of an oval bowl with curved sides, and the uneven embankments on the long sides, are unsuited for any kind of ball game. Each was about 60 metres (200 ft) long, 33 metres (108 ft) apart, and 2.5 metres (8.2 ft) high. The oval shaped fields at Snaketown were identified as ballcourts at the time of excavation. These pit houses were similar to those constructed by the neighboring Mogollon pueblo people, but were larger in size and made with a more shallow depression. Most of the population lived in pit houses, carefully dug rectangular depressions in the earth with branch and mud adobe walls supported by log sized corner posts. The canals were generally shallow and wide, reaching up to ten miles in length. Woven mat dams were used to channel river water into the canals.

#Hohokam village series

The Hohokam made the sandy soil fertile by channeling water from the local river through a series of man-made canals. They grew beans, squash, tobacco, cotton and corn. The Hohokam were farmers, even though they lived in an area with dry sandy soil, rugged volcanic mountains and slow running rivers. Parts of its structure were burned, and the site was not reoccupied. Early in the Classic Period (1150 CE – 1400/1450) the community of Snaketown, once apparently central to the broader Hohokam culture, was suddenly abandoned. Snaketown, contained in a one-half mile by three-quarters mile piece of property, was occupied by Hohokam people during the Pioneer and Early Sedentary stages (approximately 300 BCE to 1100 CE). This site is a significant example of the Hohokam culture, which lived in the broader area from about 1 CE until approximately 1500 CE. Hohokam is an O’odham word meaning “those who have gone.” Specifically who the Hohokam people were and when the site was inhabited is subject to debate. ĭefinitive dates are not clear, but the site was generally thought to be inhabited between 300 BCE and 1200 CE. The Huhugam Heritage Center also has exhibits on tribal history and archaeology. The museum at the nearby Casa Grande Ruins National Monument, in Coolidge, Arizona, contains artifacts from Snaketown. There is no public access to the Hohokam Pima National Monument. The site is owned by the Gila River Indian Community, which has decided not to open the area to the public. The area was further protected by declaring it a national monument in 1972, and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1974. The monument features the archaeological site Snaketown 30 miles (48 km) southeast of Phoenix, Arizona, designated a National Historic Landmark in 1964. The Hohokam Pima National Monument is an ancient Hohokam village within the Gila River Indian Community, near present-day Sacaton, Arizona.