We enjoyed seeing this amazing structure up close, although very little is known about its purpose, or who lived there, or what happened to the people, as they had no written language or oral history that was passed down through the generations. Most of the native people of the area say that they are descendants of the people who lived near the Casa Grande, however, and feel a very close connection to this place, which they call Sivan Vah'Ki.
The nearest water source is the Gila River about a mile from the compound. As the population of the area grew, they dug canals to irrigate their fields. The canals were 8 feet wide and 4 feet deep and dug with only sticks and rocks as tools. They were engineered to provide just enough water to their fields--too much water would cause erosion, but these canals were at just the right elevations to give fresh water to their crops without eroding the soil or washing the seeds away.
They also made jewelry, pottery, and other items they could trade for what they needed. The wood beams they used were brought in by hand from over 50 miles away. They seemed like a very industrious people and had a few storerooms among the buildings around the Casa Grande.
We learned the names of various cacti, saw some birds (including an owl who makes his home in the ruins), and learned a bit of history. (Did you know that the westernmost battle of the Civil War was fought in Arizona?! Guess where our next field trip will take us!)
Here are a few photos from our outing today.
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| Lucy crossed "hugging a cactus" off her bucket list today. |
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| I elbowed a cactus (not on my bucket list) while taking the picture of Lucy above. |
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| The structure under the cover is the "Casa Grande", but it's part of a larger compound of buildings. |
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| There has been a lot of preservation work done to protect what's left. The smooth parts are brick work that was done by preservationists and covered to make it the same color as the original. |
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| A close up shot of the openings shown in the photo below. |
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| When it was built in the mid-14th century, the Casa Grande had 4 stories. |
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| A majestic saguaro cactus. These are everywhere here! The holes are made by birds who nest inside the cactus. |
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| This was a "secret room" tucked behind a ruin in the far corner of the compound. |
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| There were a couple of other taller buildings in the compound as well. This one was 2 stories originally. The holes mark where beams were placed to support the upper floor. |
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| Cotton was one of many things the people of the Casa Grande grew. It grows so well here that Arizona is known for its cotton. |
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| David's flowing mane works well with his beard, I think. Amy doesn't make for a very good looking boy, though. She's just too adorable. |
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| Sadie's smile cracks me up. I don't really get the bunny ears, but hey, I'm just taking the picture, so what do I know? |
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| I'm not sure what this plant is, but it was very green and looked less deadly than most of the other plants. It actually did have thorns though, so I kept my elbows far away from it. |
Stay tuned for our next adventure!
Something I forgot to share: David and I decided that our family should go on the guided tour of the ruins, so we joined the next one. I told the girls ahead of time that it would be an hour long, and I expected them to listen politely and not interrupt the tour guide, to stay with our family and behave the way they knew they should. Most of the other people in our group were older and retired.
Near the end of the tour, a man went up to David and a woman came up to me (they were husband and wife, we found out later), and said essentially the same thing: "Your children are so respectful and well behaved. And they are asking great questions. You're doing a wonderful job with them!" (short pause) "Are they homeschooled?"
"Yes, they are," I replied to the woman.
"It shows," she said.
She and her husband were both retired school teachers from Florida. The husband said that in Florida many homeschooled children are homeschooled because they acted so badly in school that the parents were hoping to keep them away from negative influences, out of trouble with the law, and away from the possibility of going to jail. The wife mentioned that they were very impressed by most of the homeschoolers they met as they traveled around the country, however. They wanted David and I to share with the girls that their respectful behavior was noticed and appreciated.
They were very delightful people, and I'm grateful they shared this with us. It was very validating.
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