Archaeology and Oral Histories along the Lower Gila River in Southwestern Arizona, 600-1830 AD

FAIN: RZ-255760-17

Center for Desert Archaeology (Tucson, AZ 85701-1107)
Aaron Wright (Project Director: December 2016 to present)

Artifact survey at 43 Native American sites in the Gila River Valley in Arizona, leading to the development of interpretive print and online publications, lectures, and a book. (36 months)

The Lower Gila River Ethnographic and Archaeological Project (LGREAP) is an interdisciplinary, collaborative research program that is exploring and interpreting the relationship between cultural identity and migration along the lower Gila River in southwestern Arizona from 600 A.D. to 1830 A.D. through a Native American lens. In particular, LGREAP aims to couple archaeological and tribal interpretations of the past to yield a comprehensive, multiple narrative history on the dynamics of cultural identity in contexts of religious difference and migration. LGREAP has avid support from the four tribes with whom ethnographic research will be carried out. Furthermore, the Arizona State Historic Preservation Office has determined that the proposed archaeological fieldwork will not have an adverse affect on the historic properties, as regulated by Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act. Project deliverables include at least four peer-reviewed articles and a documentary film.

Media Coverage

From the Gila River to Bears Ears, a renewed push to protect public lands in the Southwest (Media Coverage)
Author(s): Anton Delgado
Publication: Arizona Republic
Date: 4/22/2021
Abstract: News coverage of our field recording efforts on the lower Gila River embedded in larger discussion of landscape conservation in the West.
URL: https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/arizona-environment/2021/04/22/activists-push-to-protect-arizona-public-lands-undo-trump-changes/4347459001/

Culturescape of the Great Bend of the Gila (Media Coverage)
Author(s): Dyana Z. Furmansky
Publication: Desert Leaf
Date: 10/1/2022
Abstract: Where the Gila River sharply elbows past basaltic mountains and extinct volcanoes, the land is like a dry parchment that has been written on by the forebears of 13 sovereign tribal nations. Ak- Chin, Cocopah, Colorado River Indian Tribes, Fort McDowell Yavapai, Fort Mojave Indian Tribe, Fort Yuma Quechan, Gila River Indian, Hopi Nation, Salt River Pima-Maricopa, Tohono O’odham, Yavapai-Apache, Yavapai-Prescott, and Zuni trace their sacred past through a vast swath of geography known as the Great Bend of the Gila. Bumping up against about 300,000 acres of the Gila River valley, which is administered by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), are the exurbs of Phoenix and Yuma. Petroglyphs, potsherds, pit houses, trails, ball courts, villages, and canals that have endured for more than 1,000 years are there for any visitor to respectfully see. Or carelessly destroy.

Associated Products

Archaeology Southwest (Web Resource)
Title: Archaeology Southwest
Author: Aaron Wright
Abstract: For three decades, Archaeology Southwest has practiced a holistic, conservation-based approach to exploring the places of the past. We call this Preservation Archaeology. By exploring what makes a place special, sharing this knowledge in innovative ways, and enacting flexible site protection strategies, we foster meaningful connections to the past and respectfully safeguard its irreplaceable resources.
Year: 2017
Primary URL: http://www.archaeologysouthwest.org

Where's the Buff? (Blog Post)
Title: Where's the Buff?
Author: Aaron Wright
Abstract: Lower Colorado Buffware is a type of pottery associated with the Patayan archaeological tradition in the farwestern American Southwest. This blog summarizes current problems with the major typologies for Lower Colorado Buffware and summarizes the results of a recent workshop on the topic.
Date: 11/20/2018
Primary URL: http://www.archaeologysouthwest.org/2018/11/19/wheres-the-buff/
Primary URL Description: organization's website
Blog Title: Where's the Buff?
Website: Archaeology Southwest

A Perspective on the Lower Gila River Ethnographic and Archaeological Project (Blog Post)
Title: A Perspective on the Lower Gila River Ethnographic and Archaeological Project
Author: Skylar Begay
Abstract: Tribal field assistant Skylar Begay shares his perspective working on the Lower Gila Ethnographic and Archaeological Project.
Date: 04/22/2019
Primary URL: http://www.archaeologysouthwest.org/2019/04/22/a-perspective-on-the-lower-gila-river-ethnographic-and-archaeological-project/
Website: Archaeology Southwest Preservation Blog

What's West of Phoenix: Patayan Archaeology of the Lower Gila River (Film/TV/Video Broadcast or Recording)
Title: What's West of Phoenix: Patayan Archaeology of the Lower Gila River
Writer: Aaron Wright
Director: Bictorious Media, LLC
Abstract: Project Director Aaron Wright shares insight on the Patayan cultural tradition of the lower Gila River as studied through the NEH project titled "Archaeology and Oral Histories along the Lower Gila River in Southwestern Arizona, 600-1830 AD."
Year: 2019
Primary URL: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8NzeHyUKm-E
Format: Digital File
Format: Web

Why You Should Experience the Painted Rock Petroglyph Site (Film/TV/Video Broadcast or Recording)
Title: Why You Should Experience the Painted Rock Petroglyph Site
Writer: Aaron Wright
Director: Bictorious Media, LLC
Abstract: Project Director Aaron Wright shares information about the Painted Rock Petoglyph Site, a place being investigated as part of the NEH grant "Archaeology and Oral Histories along the Lower Gila River in Southwestern Arizona, 600-1830 AD."
Year: 2019
Primary URL: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C8Myf6y6p4o
Format: Digital File
Format: Web

Lower Gila Field Notes (Blog Post)
Title: Lower Gila Field Notes
Author: Aaron Wright
Abstract: Project Director Aaron Wright shares some insight into Patayan archaeology being carried out as part of the NEH grant "Archaeology and Oral Histories along the Lower Gila River in Southwestern Arizona, 600-1830 AD."
Date: 03/28/2019
Primary URL: https://www.archaeologysouthwest.org/2019/03/28/lower-gila-field-notes/
Website: Archaeology Southwest Preservation Blog

Finding Friends in Low Places (Blog Post)
Title: Finding Friends in Low Places
Author: Aaron M. Wright
Abstract: Blog post about the Lower Gila fieldwork
Date: 4/3/2020
Primary URL: https://www.archaeologysouthwest.org/2020/04/02/finding-friends-in-low-places/
Primary URL Description: Blog post
Blog Title: Preservation Archaeology Blog
Website: Archaeology Southwest

Focus on the Field Crew: Keahna Owl (Blog Post)
Title: Focus on the Field Crew: Keahna Owl
Author: Keahna Owl
Author: Aaron M. Wright
Abstract: Blog post of interview with Keahna Owl
Date: 4/10/2020
Primary URL: https://www.archaeologysouthwest.org/2020/04/09/focus-on-the-field-crew-keahna-owl/
Primary URL Description: Blog post
Blog Title: Preservation Archaeology Blog
Website: Archaeology Southwest

Focus on the Field Crew: Zion White (Blog Post)
Title: Focus on the Field Crew: Zion White
Author: Zion White
Author: Aaron M. Wright
Abstract: Blog post interview with Zion White
Date: 4/24/2020
Primary URL: https://www.archaeologysouthwest.org/2020/04/23/focus-on-the-field-crew-zion-white/
Primary URL Description: Blog post
Blog Title: Preservation Archaeology Blog
Website: Archaeology Southwest

Focus on the Field Crew: Charles Arrow (Blog Post)
Title: Focus on the Field Crew: Charles Arrow
Author: Charles Arrow
Author: Aaron M. Wright
Abstract: Blog post interview with Charles Arrow
Date: 4/17/2020
Primary URL: https://www.archaeologysouthwest.org/2020/04/16/focus-on-the-field-crew-charles-arrow/
Primary URL Description: Blog post
Blog Title: Preservation Archaeology Blog
Website: Archaeology Southwest

Focus on the Field Crew: Jason Andrews (Blog Post)
Title: Focus on the Field Crew: Jason Andrews
Author: Jason Andrews
Author: Aaron M. Wright
Abstract: Blog post interview with Jason Andrews
Date: 5/1/2020
Primary URL: https://www.archaeologysouthwest.org/2020/04/30/focus-on-the-field-crew-jason-andrews/
Primary URL Description: Blog post
Blog Title: Preservation Archaeology Blog
Website: Archaeology Southwest

Stucco as a Timestamp on Lowland Patayan Pottery in the Far-Western Southwest (Article)
Title: Stucco as a Timestamp on Lowland Patayan Pottery in the Far-Western Southwest
Author: Aaron M. Wright
Abstract: Poor chronology has long plagued the Patayan archaeological tradition of the far-western reaches of the North American Southwest. Archaeologists typically rely upon ceramics to assign associated materials to the broadly defined Patayan I, II, and III periods. However, as data amass, it is becoming increasingly clear that the established date ranges for certain types of Patayan pottery tied to those periods are inaccurate, and that the overall chronology may benefit from revision. Consequently, there are renewed calls to reassess the ceramic typologies and identify attributes with utility for dating affiliated archaeological phenomena. Here I focus on one such attribute, the stucco surface treatment on Lower Colorado Buff Ware. While the prevailing typology regards stucco as diagnostic of the Patayan II and III periods (circa AD 1000–1900), I present data that show stucco is conspicuously absent from contexts dating before AD 1400 but is rather common thereafter. I conclude Lowland Patayan potters began applying stucco to their wares between 1400 and 1600, and this attribute is therefore useful for dating associated material to a narrower AD 1400–1900 timeframe.
Year: 2020
Primary URL: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/00231940.2020.1775426?journalCode=ykiv20
Primary URL Description: journal's link to the article
Secondary URL: https://www.academia.edu/43534043/Stucco_as_a_Timestamp_on_Lowland_Patayan_Pottery_in_the_Far-Western_Southwest
Secondary URL Description: link to pre-proof version of the article that is free to access
Access Model: subscription only
Format: Journal
Periodical Title: Kiva: The Journal of Southwestern Anthropology and History
Publisher: Taylor and Francis

'Iihor Kwsnavk: Connecting and Collaborating in the Great Bend of the Gila (Article)
Title: 'Iihor Kwsnavk: Connecting and Collaborating in the Great Bend of the Gila
Author: Aaron Wright
Author: Jason Lee Andrews
Author: Charles Ronald Arrow
Author: Keahna Owl
Author: Zion C. White
Author: Harry Winters
Author: Lorey Cachora
Author: Manfred Scott
Author: William H. Doelle
Abstract: ‘Iihor kwsnavk (pronounced Ee-hór qui-snáh-vick) means “story of long ago” to the Kwatsáan. It is also a Piipaash place-name in the Great Bend of the Gila (pages 27–28). This issue of Archaeology Southwest Magazine shares the story of how the Quechan (Kwatsáan) Tribe of the Fort Yuma Reservation and Archaeology Southwest are collaborating to help protect this important ancestral landscape. The opinions and views of contributors do not necessarily represent those of other Kwatsáan Tribal members or the Quechan Tribe of the Fort Yuma Reservation.
Year: 2020
Primary URL: https://www.archaeologysouthwest.org/product/iihor-kwsnavk-connecting-and-collaborating-in-the-great-bend-of-the-gila-asw-34-1-hardcopy/
Primary URL Description: link to magazine access (for purchase/subscription) and free online highlights/additional content
Access Model: Subscription only, but is open access after several years
Format: Magazine
Periodical Title: Archaeology Southwest Magazine
Publisher: Archaeology Southest

Prizes

Conservation and Preservation Award
Date: 6/18/2022
Organization: American Rock Art Research Association
Abstract: Aaron M. Wright has organized research and recording projects resulting in the conservation and protection of many rock-art sites in southwestern Arizona. He has worked with and involved the descendant communities and publicized their efforts and conclusions to the general public encouraging respect and understanding of this valuable sacred heritage.

Kwatsáan Voices, Kwatsáan Views (Film/TV/Video Broadcast or Recording)
Title: Kwatsáan Voices, Kwatsáan Views
Writer: Aaron Wright
Director: Jessica Yaquinto
Producer: Jessica Yaquinto
Abstract: On today’s podcast Jessica interviews Zion White, Charles Arrow, and Aaron Wright from Archaeology Southwest, a 501c3 based in Tucson, Arizona. Archaeology Southwest is working with several Tribes in southern Arizona to establish permanent protection for the Great Bend of the Gila, a rich cultural landscape nestled between Yuma and Phoenix. Today’s guests have been documenting the Great Bend of the Gila landscape together over the past several years. They talk about the significance of this landscape both culturally and archaeologically, how they’d like to see the place treated, and what it means to them to be working collaboratively on documenting this cultural landscape.
Year: 2021
Primary URL: https://cms.megaphone.fm/channel/heritage?selected=FULLCAST8602763605http://
Primary URL Description: Link to episode 54 of the Heritage Voices podcast.
Access Model: open access
Format: Web

The People behind the Petroglyphs: The Cultural Landscape of the Lower Gila River (Public Lecture or Presentation)
Title: The People behind the Petroglyphs: The Cultural Landscape of the Lower Gila River
Abstract: The lower Gila River in southwestern Arizona is renowned for the sheer abundance and uniqueness of the petroglyphs adorning the cliffs and buttes lining it. Places such as the Painted Rock Petroglyph Site and Sears Point – both of which are listed on the National Register of Historic Places – and a growing campaign to establish a national monument or conservation area attest to the richness, value, and significance of this cultural landscape. Lesser known, though, are the Indigenous communities responsible for populating the landscape with such a stunning array of images. The Hohokam and Patayan cultural traditions are often mentioned, but the relationship between them and each’s role in constructing the cultural landscape we see today has long puzzled researchers. Fortunately, following four years of intensive archaeological survey, and the inventory and analysis of over 30,000 \ petroglyphs, a clearer picture is emerging. This presentation will highlight some of what this work has revealed. Particular attention will be given to both the petroglyphs and the nearby settlements in an effort to better understand the people behind it all.
Author: Aaron Wright
Date: 9/16/2021
Location: virtual (due to pandemic)
Primary URL: http://https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=&ved=2ahUKEwiV3Oez6t70AhUPCjQIHbL3BSIQFnoECBMQAQ&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.oldpueblo.org%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2021%2F06%2F20210916v1ThirdThursday_AaronWright_PeopleBehindThePetroglyphs_L
Primary URL Description: Link to flyer for a virtual lecture in Old Pueblo Archaeology Center's "Third Thursday Food for Thought" series. With over 150 viewers, it was the Center's largest audience for a virtual lecture to-date.

“Hohokam, Hohokam, Patayan, or ?”—Unmixing the Archaeology of the Lower Gila River (Public Lecture or Presentation)
Title: “Hohokam, Hohokam, Patayan, or ?”—Unmixing the Archaeology of the Lower Gila River
Abstract: With its varied topography and stark contrast between riverine and desert environs, western Arizona witnessed the flourishing of multiple cultural traditions that followed related yet unique historic trajectories. Archaeologists learned long ago that, in places, the material remains of these distinct traditions overlap on the landscape. This scenario is quite evident along the lower Gila River, where elements of Patayan and Hohokam material culture are often found together or in close proximity. How to explain the “mixing”? In this presentation, Aaron Wright reviews preliminary findings of a four-year survey and documentation of over 150 archaeological sites in the Dendora Valley and surrounding area that show what the archaeological record looks like when worlds collide.
Author: Aaron Wright
Date: 10/13/2021
Location: virtual (due to pandemic)
Primary URL: https://azarchsoc.org/SanTan#MonthlySpeakers
Primary URL Description: Link to schedule of monthly lectures hosted by the San Tan Chapter of the Arizona Archaeological Society.

Archaeology 101: Archaeology in the Great Bend of the Gila (Public Lecture or Presentation)
Title: Archaeology 101: Archaeology in the Great Bend of the Gila
Abstract: The town of Maricopa lies at the upriver end of the Great Bend of the Gila. In this installment of Archaeology 101, Aaron Wright will share the collaborative research undertaken with representatives from the area's tribal communities that is helping to answer longstanding questions about the relationship between Hohokam and Patayan archaeological traditions in the area and how these influenced the historical association among the O'odham and Yuman tribes of the historic era.
Author: Aaron Wright
Date: 10/7/2019
Location: Maricopa, Arizona
Primary URL: https://www.inmaricopa.com/event/maricopa-historical-society-maricopa-archaeology-101/

Kwatsan Culture in Song and Stone (Public Lecture or Presentation)
Title: Kwatsan Culture in Song and Stone
Abstract: Kwatsan tribal members have been involved in documenting heritage places along the lower Gila River in collaboration with Archaeology Southwest. In the presentation, Zion White shares his experience on the project through a creative mixture of traditional Kwatsan song and storytelling.
Author: Zion White
Date: 01/11/2022
Location: virtual

Protecting Kwatsan Heritage in and around the Great Bend of the Gila (Conference Paper/Presentation)
Title: Protecting Kwatsan Heritage in and around the Great Bend of the Gila
Author: Charles Arrow
Author: Zion White
Abstract: As part of the Lower Gila River Ethnographic and Archaeological Project, Kwatsan tribal members engaged in the documentation of over 100 archaeological sites and more than 30,000 petroglyphs. As Kwatsan, we see this work as a way to connect to our heritage and contribute to the conservation of our ancestral legacy on the landscape. We share personal reflections and opinions in this presentation.
Date: 03/10/2022
Secondary URL: https://www.isdanet.org/symposium
Secondary URL Description: Conference Website
Conference Name: Sonoran Symposium

On and Of the Land (Film/TV/Video Broadcast or Recording)
Title: On and Of the Land
Writer: Skylar Begay
Director: David Wallace
Producer: Archaeology Southwest
Abstract: Arnie Bread Sr. and his family spend a day exploring a part of his ancestor's traditional homelands in the Great Bend of the Gila.
Year: 2022
Primary URL: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PH6hsUT6-Ts
Access Model: open access
Format: Digital File

The Stately Art of Remembering and Forgetting Indigenous Cultural Identities in the Neocolonial North American Southwest (Book Section)
Title: The Stately Art of Remembering and Forgetting Indigenous Cultural Identities in the Neocolonial North American Southwest
Author: Aaron M. Wright
Editor: Leslie F. Zubieta
Abstract: The North American Southwest is home to a rich array of petroglyphs commemorating the interests, actions, identities, and histories of the many Native American communities who have lived there for millennia. As symbols, the petroglyphs assume an important dynamic in social processes structuring the cultural identities and collective memories of contemporary tribal communities. For some, petroglyphs are reminders of who they are, from where they have come, what their responsibilities are, and what their relationship was, is, and should be with the land, environment, and their neighbors. At times, those memories are shared among tribal groups, yet in other instances they splinter along cultural or political lines. When that occurs, the petroglyphs can become bound up in contestations over the ownership of place and authenticity of history. Beyond the collective memories of tribes, and generally unaligned with them, is a nationalistic collective memory concerning Native Americans. In this essay I examine the entanglement of petroglyphs, cultural identity, and collective remembering at Tutuveni and Painted Rocks, two of the most renowned petroglyph sites in Arizona. I draw specific attention to the role of the state in an ongoing struggle for authority over cultural history.
Year: 2022
Primary URL: http://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-030-96942-4_12
Primary URL Description: link to publisher website where chapter can be viewed and purchased.
Access Model: purchase only
Publisher: Springer
Book Title: Rock Art and Memory in the Transmission of Cultural Knowledge
ISBN: 978-3-030-9694

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