Snaketown is the name of a prehistoric Native American settlement in Arizona's lower Gila River valley near the community of Chandler in the United States of America. Snaketown was registered as a national historic landmark, and was made part of the National Park system in 1972. The area, located within the Gila River Indian Reservation, is not open to the public. Assiniboin Boy, an Atsina Native Americans in the United States (also Indians, American Indians, First Americans, Indigenous Peoples, Aboriginal Peoples, Aboriginal Americans, Amerindians, Amerinds, or Original Americans) are those indigenous peoples within the territory that is now encompassed by the continental United States, and their descendants in modern times. ... State nickname: The Grand Canyon State, The Copper State Other U.S. States Capital Phoenix Largest city Phoenix Governor Janet Napolitano (D) Senators John McCain (R) Jon Kyl (R) Official language(s) English Area 295,254 km² (6th)  - Land 294,312 km²  - Water 942 km² (0. ... The Gila River, a tributary of the Colorado, is shown highlighted on a map of the United States The Gila River (Oodham [Pima]: Hila Akimel) is a tributary of the Colorado River, 630 mile (1,014 km) long, in the southwestern United States. ... == chandlerLink title == may refer to many different meanings: Profession: A chandlerBold textItalic text is someone who makes or sells wax or tallow candles, and also usually soap. ... Yosemite National Park in the United States. ... The Gila River Indian Community is a reservation in Arizona, south of Phoenix, Arizona, Tempe, Arizona and Chandler, Arizona. ...

Archaeological history

Snaketown was first excavated in 1934 by the Gila Pueblo Foundation, under the direction of Harold S. Gladwin. Between 1964-1965, a second excavation was led by Emil Haury, Assistant Director of Gila Pueblo, with assistance from E.B. Sayles, Erik K. Reed, and Irwin and Julian Hayden. The two expeditions discovered that the site contained more than sixty midden mounds. A central plaza and two ball-courts were surrounded by pit houses, and an elaborate irrigation system fed the nearby fields in which beans, maize and squash were grown. The Hohokam practiced cremation, and the expedition excavated up to eight areas which could have been used as crematoria. Industries producing pottery and shell jewellery also existed and the settlement had trade links with Mesoamerican societies, evidenced by copper bells and figurines. A midden, or kitchen midden, is a dump for domestic waste. ... Plaza is a Spanish word related to field which describes an open urban public space, such as a city square. ... High-altitude aerial view of irrigation in the Heart of the Sahara Irrigation (in agriculture) is the replacement or supplementation of rainfall with water from another source in order to grow crops. ... Unfired green ware pottery on a traditional drying rack at Conner Prairie living history museum. ... Jewellery (Jewelry in American spelling); consists of ornamental devices worn by persons, typically made with gems and precious metals. ... Mesoamerica is the region extending from central Mexico south to the northwestern border of Costa Rica that gave rise to a group of stratified, culturally related agrarian civilizations spanning an approximately 3,000-year period before the European discovery of the New World by Columbus. ...

Most archaeological excavations have been backfilled to protect the site for future research. However, a scale model of the original Snaketown community is held at the Heard Museum in Phoenix, while artifacts from excavations are housed in the Arizona State Museum. The Heard Museum is a museum dedicated to Native American art, located in Phoenix, Arizona. ...

Cultural history

This site is a significant example of the Hohokam culture, which lived in the broader area from about 2100 BP until approximately AD 1500. 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 BC to AD 1100). Hohokam is the name of one of the four major prehistoric archaeological traditions of the American Southwest. ... In archaeology, culture refers to either of two separate but allied concepts: An archaeological culture is a pattern of similar artefacts and features found within a specific area over a limited period of time. ...

The Hohokam were farmers, even though they lived in an area with dry sandy soil, rugged volcanic mountains and slow running rivers. They grew beans, squash, tobacco, cotton and corn. The Hohokam made the sandy soil fertile by channeling water from the local river through a series of man-made canals. Woven mat dams were used to channel river water into the canals. The canals were generally shallow and wide, reaching up to ten miles in length.

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. 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. The Mogollon (pronounced mo-goi-YONE) Native American culture lived in the American Southwest from approximately AD 700 until sometime between AD 1300 and AD 1400. ...

The Mesoamerican inspired ball courts of Snaketown are fascinating features. The ball courts were in the shape of an oval bowl, formed by two parallel banks. Each were about 60 meters long, 33 meters apart, and 2.5 meters high. These embankments did not meet on the ends, but sloped into the ground. The number of ball courts in the settlement increased over time, which suggests that the game/ritual met with increasing favor or that the population increased enough to support more courts.

Snaketown's pottery was generally homogeneous during the periods of its occupation. However, most specialists agree that pottery samples contain elements implying the presence two different, but probably related groups, over time.

Reference

• Crown, Patrica L. and Judge, James W, editors. "Chaco & Hohokam: Prehistoric Regional Systems in the American Southwest." School of American Research Press, Sante Fe, New Mexico, 1991. ISBN 0-933452-76-4.