Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-08-09
RELIC OF THE PIMA INDIANS
Wonder of the New World for Over
200 Years.
MYSTERY OF. FIRST BUILDERS
Government Has Withdrawn the
Land From Entry and Has In
stalled q Custodian.

Deiug mauo Oy ire bureau or
ethnoiogy for another expedition to the
Casa Grande. tho Big House" DR.. Walter
Fewkes will be In charge of the field work
and though the plans are not yet fully out
lined there viii be some exploration and ad-
ditional steps taken for the preservation OF
the ruin.
The big ruin Is one of the most famous I'm
the United States. but although the name
probably is familiar to most people. there
are few who can tell. just what 1t is and
fewer still who have seen It.. The ruin is on
the ella river in Arizona not more THIN
nine miles west of Florence. The one house
which Is still standing is the attraction to
tourists and sightseers. But for the archae-
ologist and the ethnologist there Is an i'm
mehse amount of interest In several acres
that are covered by ruins. some OF them
much older than the big house, but prob
aoly all OF them Of the same sort of archi-
lecture and the work of the same people.
BY whom the Casa Grande group was
built Is not known. Probably It was by
some OF the ancestors OF the Pima Indians.
This Is the conclusion of Bandelier and
Fewkes. who ought to be good judges. but
tive Of that particular region of the south
west and differs materially from any other
ruins of the arid western country.
The tract OF ground on which the ruins
entry by the government and the Interior
Department has had q custodian In charge
for some years. Some work has been done
in repairing the ruin and preventing the
further ravages OF the elements and Of
tourists, who are much the more destruc-
tive Of the two. The present expedition
probably will unearth some more Interest,"
ing facts In their expeditions and will have
5000 to help in the work Of preservation
and restoration.
Casa Grande Described.
There Is an interesting account of the
ruin in the book Of American Indians now
being published by the bureau Of ethnology.
This account says in part that the ruin was
first mentioned by the Jesuit Father Kino.
VINO first visited 1t In 1904 and said mass
within its walls and went there again In
1897 and 1899.
I'm Kino's time" says this account. "the
great house was OF four stories. but roofiess,
1852. when seen by the author OF the anony-
nous Rudo Ensayo. Its construction Is OF
the pise type. e., the walls. to 5 feet
thick, consist OF huge blocks OF adobe
mortar and gravel nodded in place and al
lowed to dry hard. then smoothed on the
inner surface. The present height of the
outer walls Is % to Is feet, accommodating
two Stories while the central part or tower.
forming an additional story. Is . to 30 feet
above the gaound- he house measures 43
by 50 feet. with five rooms In its ground
plan. Casa Grande was also visited October
81, 1775 by Padre Pedro Font. who wrote
an excellent description of its appearance
and mentions the outlying structures. then
fairly preserved. Font remarks that the
Casa Grande itself measured 30 by 10 feet.
and infers that its beams a or 5 inches
thick apparently Of pine, must have been
carried 20 miles. while the water supply for
the settlement was conveyed from the river
by means of a canal. At this date the
building was of three stories, though the
nafQhbnrinR PfmaS Informed him that there
had been four. The celebrated ruins were
visited seventysseven years later July II.
1852 by ]. r. Bartlett whose description
indicates little change in the main structure
since the time of Font. although all but two
of the outlying buildings had been reduced
to mounds. BY act Of Congress of March 2.
1889. $1,000 was appropriated for the repair
of the building. and the work was performed
under the direction of the Secretary of the
Interior. By executive order of June %.
1892. under the provisions of the same act,
tract of about three-auarters OF square
mile surrounding the ruins. was reserved
from sale or settlement and a custodian ap-
pointed"
Apparently a Fortress.
The big house Is evidently only a part Of
what 1t once was, there being several small
er structures around IT at various angles.
apparently connected to 1t by open courts.
The whole has the appearance OF a fortress
or place of last resort and showed when first
visited evidences OF having been stormed
and burned. AS late as twenty or thirty
years ago there were the remnants Of floors
and door posts. But the vandalism Of tour
lists swept out every vestige OF wood and
the walls were being rapidly undermined
by the weather when the government took
charge of 1t and stopped the work Of de-
struction.
There are many other ruins In the small
tract reserved, all of them apparently or
the same general type, and 1t is possible
that further exploration may turn up mute
records that will throw more light on the
origin of this remarkable American ruin.