9781422286197

12

Southwest: New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas

History Ancient people made their way into the land of New Mexico thousands of years ago. Artifacts found near Clovis place humans here at least 12,000 years ago. Near Capulin Volcano, archaeologists found evidence of a later group, the Folsom People. Like the Clovis People, the Folsom used stone tools and weapons. Three advanced cultural groups later emerged in New Mexico: Hohokam, Mongollon, and Anasazi. Agriculture, architecture, population clusters, and social structure helped advance their societies. Hohokam lived in smaller settle- ments in the Sonoran Desert near Gila River about 200 C . E . They developed irrigation systems to grow crops and trade with cultures to the south. Mongollons settled into southern and western New Mexico around 150 C . E . Initially foragers, they began to rely more on farming. Anasazi settled northward near the four corners. By 700 C . E ., they built permanent dwelling places. In a remote northwestern desert, Anasazi

Sacramento, and San Andres. Three Rivers Petroglyph Site in this region preserves 21,000 rock art glyphs cre- ated by Jornada Mogollon people starting about 900 C . E . The Rio Grande Gorge Bridge is one of the highest bridges in the United States, rising 565 feet (172 m) above the river to the northwest of Taos.