Arizona weekly citizen., 1886-07-10
An Ancient Arizona City.


 The most notable and the best pre- preserved remains m Arizona Territory are those at Casa Grande. These relics of once large and populous city are situated about seven miles from Flor ence and six from the Gila river. The location IS on an immense plateau that shows signs of having been extensively cultivated. Accepting the invitation of a gentleman who has resided here many years. We drove out Co this ancient spot, about which SO much has been said and written, but of whose real history, or the history of those who lived here un- told ages back, not s vague legend ex- ists. The antiquity of the ruins may be inferred from the fact that the Pima In- disns, a once powerful and intelligent tribe, told CsbeZa de Nsca, who, in hIs journey across the continent, came here in the early part of the sixteenth cen tury, and was the first European to ex- plore this region, that although their fathers had held possession of the coun- try for unnumbered generations, they were unable to furnish 6 clew to the or igin, career or fate If those who had preceded them, The other tribes were equally ignorant on the subject, yet all claimed, as their descendants now do, to have well authenticated traditions prov ing their occupancy of the country for many centuries. IL IS also known that many of the tribes found here when the Europeans first visited the country were far more advanced in civilization than the average North American Indians, since they owned fiocks and herds, and Vrlu mi fn s, ,N and wool. The next explorer was Mar ""s de Niss. who travelled through Ari- rons to the Zuni towns between 1855 and l54U. They were again visited and more thoroughly examined by Coronado ID l54l, when be led his famous expedition across Ari- Ions in futile search for the seven cities which he supposed contained enormous treasures of gold and silver. Az that time the chief building, a DOT ton of whose walls is yet standing. WAS represented as having four distinct stores. But as three full stories and a portion of the fourth yet stand. there is re ison for thinking the structure must have been far more perfect at the first mentioned period. These conclusions are strongly supported by citzens DOW residing here. The Hon, John J. Devine who accompanied your correspondent to the runs. and to whose kindness the writer IS indebted for much valuable in- says that when he first saw the building about twenty years ago there were five stories intact. The lointsl that supported the diff ferent floors were in place aud perfectly sound. They consisted of round pine poles between six and eight inches in diameter, and showed that they had been cut with blunt in. strument. As there are no forests of that wood nearer than forty miles from the site of the old cIty, the labor Df cutting and transporting them must have been very great. as the facil- l ties for moving such materials were meRger. At present 1 lot vestige of the woodwork remains The loists are said 10 have been carried l way by sIRht-seers. who within the past ev years have visited the place in great numbers, and, ID a spirit of vandalism, everything that could be | emoved, and in their anxiety to extri. ate the timbers from the walls they lsve accelerated the destruction of he latter.