The Indians of the Painted Desert Region

by George Wharton James

Overview

Explore the rich history and vibrant cultures of the Southwest's Native American tribes in George Wharton James's "The Indians of the Painted Desert Region." This meticulously researched work offers a fascinating glimpse into the lives and traditions of the Hopi, Navajo, Wallapai, and Havasupai peoples.

Delve into the anthropological and historical context of these tribes, examining their unique customs, social structures, and enduring connection to the land. James provides invaluable insights into the cultural heritage of the Indians of North America in the Southwest, painting a vivid portrait of their lives in this historically significant region.

"The Indians of the Painted Desert Region" remains a crucial resource for anyone interested in the history of the American Southwest and the enduring legacy of its Native American inhabitants. Discover a timeless account of these fascinating cultures.

This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it.

This work is in the public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work.

Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781023420822
Publisher:	Anson Street Press
Publication date:	03/29/2025
Pages:	206
Product dimensions:	6.14(w) x 9.21(h) x 0.44(d)

Read an Excerpt

INTRODUCTORY WILD, weird, and mystic pictures are formed in the mind by the very name the Painted Desert. The sound itself suggests a fabled rather than a real land. Surely it must be akin to Atlantis or the Island of Circe or the place where the Cyclops lived. Is it not a land of enchantment and dreams, not a place for living men and women, Indians though they be? It is a land of enchantment, but also of stern reality, as those who have marched, unprepared, across its waterless wastes can testify. No fabled land ever surpassed it in its wondrousness, yet a railway runs directly over it, and it is not on some far-away continent, but is close at hand; a portion, indeed, of our own United States. In our schoolboy days we used to read of the Great American Desert. The march of civilization has marched that " desert" out of existence. Is the Painted Desert a fiction of early geographers, like unto the Great American Desert, to be wiped from the map when we have more knowledge? No! It is in actual existence as it was when first seen by the white men, about three hundred and fifty years ago, and as it doubtless will be for untold centuries yet to come. Coronado and his band of daring conquistadors, preceded by Marcos de Niza and Stephen the Negro,reaching out with gold-lustful hands, came into the region from northern Mexico, conquered Cibola Zuni and from there sent out a small band to investigate the stories told by the Zunis of a people who lived about one hundred miles to the northwest, whom they called A-mo-ke-vi. The Navaho Indians said the home of the A-mo-ke-vi was a Ta-sa-un' a country of isolated buttes so the Spaniards called the people Moki (Moqui) and their land " theprovince of Tusayan," and by those names they have ever since been known. Yet the...