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Tonto National Monument was created to protect and preserve Native American cultural resources dating to around A.D. 1150 -1450, specifically related to the prehistoric Salado. In 1907, President Theodore Roosevelt set aside 640 acres for a national monument containing the ruins of two large Salado "cliff dwellings" and about sixty other significant archeological sites. Tonto National Monument became a unit of the National Park Service in 1933. It was expanded to its present size of 1,120 acres in 1937.
Total size: 1,120 acres
Location:
Tonto National Monument is located 110 miles east of Phoenix and 4 miles east of Roosevelt, Arizona.
Historical Facts:
The first permanent settlements date from the latter half of the 8th century AD. Hohokam colonists, expanding their domain in what is now the lower Gila River and Salt River valleys, moved into Tonto Basin. By AD 850 the Hohokam were established in pithouse villages where they lived for a few hundred years.That span of time saw distinct changes in their way of life. Pottery styles, construction methods, settlement patterns, and other traits indicated that by AD 1150, the inhabitants of the basin no longer followed the Hohokam traditions, or those of any other Southwestern group. Other cultures such as the Mogollon near the Little Colorado River may also have moved into the Tonto Basin. All of these various cultures may have combined to develop into the Salado.
Like their predecessors, the Salado were farmers. Their pueblo villages dotted the riverside near irrigated fields of corn, beans, pumpkins, amaranth, and cotton. Groups ventured into the hills to hunt and gather plants. They exchanged surplus food and goods with neighbors, thus joining the trade network that reached from Colorado to Mexico to the Gulf of California. As the Salado prospered, their numbers increased. By the early 1300s some of them migrated into the surrounding foothills, building single and two-story pueblo dwellings. The highlands offered a bounty of useful plants and animals. Steep slopes and rough terrain made farming difficult. Some hill dwellers began to specialize in weaving and pottery making, trading their wares for food and cotton grown in the valley.
The Salado lived in the Tonto Basin about 300 years. Sometime between 1400 and 1450 they disappeared for reasons that are not apparent today.
Designation Date: December 19, 1907, by President Theodore Roosevelt
Watch the Clip
Tonto National Monument is the former home of the Salado people. They chose the Salt River Basin for its abundant water and farmland. The ancient ruins reflect the natural wealth this setting afforded. Here they stand. Stately. Vacant.
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Windows Media file:
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QuickTime movie:
Macintosh/PC compatible
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Learn More:Tonto Educational Programs/NPS
Managing Agency:
National Park Service
HC02 Box 4602
Roosevelt, AZ 85545
Visitor Information
(928) 467-2241
