Gila Cliff Dwellings, Continental Divide

The dwellings here were built about 700 years ago.  They are constructed inside 5 naturally eroded alcoves in the cliff and built from local stone, supported by wooden beams that still survive from the day of their construction.

These cliffs were first used by nomads as a temporary shelter as they followed the seasonal migration patterns of game across what is now the southwestern USA.  By around 1200, the alcoves were permanently settled by the Mogollon people, who farmed the nearby valley.  10-15 families made the cliffs home and built the stone houses found here today, remaining for about a century before moving on.

The dwellings are sheltered in the alcove, accessed by a wooden ladder and entered through a distinctive T-shaped doorway.  It’s a rare opportunity wander around the streets and courtyards of this ancient town.  Stop and listen, and you can almost hear the children playing among the houses, laughing groups of men returning from the fields, the women chatting as they grind corn.

Today, the Pueblo people of the modern-day southwestern United States trace their history back to the Mogollons, with many of the artefacts found near the dwellings, especially the pottery, having historical links to later Pueblo material culture.  The site is a reminder of the people who inhabited the land before the coming of the Europeans, and who still live as New Mexico’s indigenous people.