Casa Grande Ruins

Casa Grande ruins with protective dome

The Casa Grande National Monument in Coolidge , Arizona, just northeast of the city of Casa Grande is an archaeological site with the Hohokam Indian culture that lived in the Hila River Valley at the beginning of the 13th century. A settlement of several buildings was surrounded by a protective wall. The largest of the structures was 4-story. The settlement was abandoned in the middle of the 15th century. The structure was built from Chilean nitrate and therefore was able to withstand the natural impact for about 7 centuries. Graffiti of vandals of the XIX century remained on the walls. Otherwise, thanks to the efforts of the administration of the monument, the appearance of the ruins has not changed much since the 1940s. ^[one]

The monument is listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places on October 15, 1966 .

In the period 1937-1940, the Civil Environmental Protection Corps built several adobe buildings that housed the administration of the National Monument. These buildings, constructed according to the traditional construction method of pueblo, are used to date and are included in the National Register of Historic Places.

In 1932, a roof was built over the ruins to protect them from the weather. ^[2] At the beginning of the XXI century, a pair of large horned owls settled under the roof. ^[3]