Canyon de Chelly National Monument ( ) was established on April 1, 1931, as a unit of the

National Park Service The National Park Service (NPS) is an agency of the United States federal government within the U.S. Department of the Interior that manages all national parks, most national monuments, and other natural, historical, and recreational properti ...

. Located in northeastern

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...

, it is within the boundaries of the

Navajo Nation The Navajo Nation ( nv, Naabeehó Bináhásdzo), also known as Navajoland, is a Native Americans in the United States, Native American Indian reservation, reservation in the United States. It occupies portions of northeastern Arizona, northwe ...

and lies in the

Four Corners The Four Corners is a region of the Southwestern United States consisting of the southwestern corner of Colorado, southeastern corner of Utah, northeastern corner of Arizona, and northwestern corner of New Mexico. The Four Corners area ...

region. Reflecting one of the longest continuously inhabited landscapes of North America, it preserves ruins of the indigenous tribes that lived in the area, from the

Ancestral Puebloans The Ancestral Puebloans, also known as the Anasazi, were an ancient Native American culture that spanned the present-day Four Corners region of the United States, comprising southeastern Utah, northeastern Arizona, northwestern New Mexico, a ...

(also known as the Anasazi) to the

Navajo The Navajo (; British English: Navaho; nv, Diné or ') are a Native Americans in the United States, Native American people of the Southwestern United States. With more than 399,494 enrolled tribal members , the Navajo Nation is the largest fe ...

. The monument covers and encompasses the floors and rims of the three major canyons: de Chelly, del Muerto, and Monument. These canyons were cut by streams with headwaters in the Chuska Mountains just to the east of the monument. None of the land is federally owned. Canyon de Chelly is one of the most visited national monuments in the United States.

Etymology

The name ''Chelly'' (or ''Chelley'') is a Spanish borrowing of the

word'' '', which means "canyon" (literally "inside the rock" < ''tsé'' "rock" + ''-yiʼ'' "inside of, within"). The Navajo pronunciation is . The Spanish pronunciation of ''de Chelly'' was adapted into English, apparently modeled on a French-like spelling pronunciation, and is now .

History

Canyon de Chelly long served as a home for

Navajo people The Navajo (; British English: Navaho; nv, Diné or ') are a Native American people of the Southwestern United States. With more than 399,494 enrolled tribal members , the Navajo Nation is the largest federally recognized tribe in the United ...

before it was invaded by forces led by future

New Mexico ) , population_demonym = New Mexican ( es, Neomexicano, Neomejicano, Nuevo Mexicano) , seat = Santa Fe, New Mexico, Santa Fe , LargestCity = Albuquerque, New Mexico, Albuquerque , LargestMetro = Albuquerque metropolitan area, Tiguex , Offi ...

governor Lt.

Antonio Narbona Antonio Pascual Narbona (1773 – 20 March 1830) was a Spanish soldier from Mobile ''(Mauvila'' in Spanish) now in Alabama, who fought native American people in the northern part of Mexico (now the southwestern United States) around the turn of t ...

in 1805. In 1863, Col.

Kit Carson Christopher Houston Carson (December 24, 1809 – May 23, 1868) was an American frontiersman. He was a fur trapper, wilderness guide, Indian agent, and U.S. Army officer. He became a frontier legend in his own lifetime by biographies and ...

sent troops through the canyon, killing 23 Navajo, seizing 200 sheep, and destroying

hogan A hogan ( or ; from Navajo ' ) is the primary, traditional dwelling of the Navajo people. Other traditional structures include the summer shelter, the underground home, and the sweat house. A hogan can be round, cone-shaped, multi-sided, or squ ...

s, as well as peach orchards and other crops. The resulting demoralization led to the surrender of the Navajos and their removal to

Bosque Redondo Fort Sumner was a military fort in New Mexico Territory charged with the internment of Navajo and Mescalero Apache populations from 1863 to 1868 at nearby Bosque Redondo. History On October 31, 1862, Congress authorized the construction of For ...

, New Mexico.

Description

Canyon de Chelly is entirely owned by the Navajo Tribal Trust of the Navajo Nation. It is the only National Park Service unit that is owned and cooperatively managed in this manner. About 40 Navajo families live in the park. Access to the canyon floor is restricted, and visitors are allowed to travel in the canyons only when accompanied by a park ranger or an authorized Navajo guide. The only exception to this rule is the White House Ruin Trail. A095, Canyon de Chelly National Monument, Arizona, USA, Spider Rock, 2004

A095, Canyon de Chelly National Monument, Arizona, USA, Spider Rock, 2004

The park's distinctive

geologic Geology () is a branch of natural science concerned with Earth and other astronomical objects, the features or rocks of which it is composed, and the processes by which they change over time. Modern geology significantly overlaps all other E ...

feature, Spider Rock, is a sandstone spire that rises from the canyon floor at the junction of Canyon de Chelly and Monument Canyon. Spider Rock can be seen from South Rim Drive. It has served as the scene of a number of television commercials. According to traditional Navajo beliefs, the taller of the two spires is the home of Spider Grandmother. Most park visitors arrive by automobile and view Canyon de Chelly from the rim, following both North Rim Drive and South Rim Drive. Ancient ruins and geologic structures are visible, but in the distance, from turnoffs on each of these routes. Deep within the park is Mummy Cave. It features structures that have been built at various times in history. Private Navajo-owned companies offer tours of the canyon floor by horseback, hiking or four-wheel drive vehicle. The companies can be contacted directly for prices and arrangements. No entrance fee is charged to enter the park, apart from any charges imposed by tour companies. Accommodations for visitors are located in the vicinity of the canyon, on the road leading to Chinle, which is the nearest town. The National Monument was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

on August 25, 1970.

Climate

The data below were compiled starting in 1908 via the WRCC.

Gallery

File:Canyon de Chelly1.jpg, White House Ruin File:CACH-Antelope House 633e9c5e611443dcacce1ce649285c35.jpg, Antelope House Ruin File:Massacre Cave Overlook 3 (cropped).jpg, Massacre Cave File:Mummy Cave with snow.jpg, Snow at the canyon, with Mummy Cave in the background File:A094, Canyon de Chelly National Monument, Arizona, USA, cliff dwelling, 2004.jpg, First Ruin File:Ancient ruins in the Cañon de Chelle 10055u.jpg, White House Ruin, Timothy H. O'Sullivan, 1873 File:Canyon de Chelly.jpg, Aerial view File:CACHmap1 relief.png, Park map

References

External links

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''Canyon de Chelly''
(poem by

Simon Ortiz Simon J. Ortiz (born May 27, 1941) is a Native American writer, poet, and enrolled member of the Pueblo of Acoma. Ortiz is one of the key figures in the second wave of what has been called the Native American Renaissance. Ortiz's commitment t ...

, 1977) Accessed 2013 January 15 {{DEFAULTSORT:Canyon De Chelly National Monument 1931 establishments in Arizona Archaeological museums in Arizona Archaeological sites on the National Register of Historic Places in Arizona Arizona placenames of Native American origin Cliff dwellings Former populated places in Arizona Geography of the Navajo Nation Historic American Buildings Survey in Arizona Museums in Apache County, Arizona National Park Service National Monuments in Arizona Native American history of Arizona Native American museums in Arizona Protected areas established in 1931 Protected areas of Apache County, Arizona Former populated places in Apache County, Arizona Canyons and gorges of Arizona National Register of Historic Places in Apache County, Arizona Populated places on the National Register of Historic Places in Arizona