Searching for archaeological evidence of Roque Madrid's 1705 campaign and Navajo resistance in northwest New Mexico

Summary

This is an abstract from the "SAA 2024: Individual Abstracts" session, at the 89th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology.

In 1705, Spanish commander Roque Madrid led a group of soldiers and Pueblo allies on a 20 day excursion through the traditional Navajo homeland in northwest New Mexico. The goal of this excursion was to burn Navajo cornfields and resources as punishment for raiding and general resistance. Madrid kept a campaign journal during these days, describing the route traveled as well as different skirmishes with Navajo fighters. This journal was translated and published in 1996 by Rick Hendricks and John P. Wilson. The location of one violent encounter between Madrid’s army and Navajo resistance is described to be at the confluence of Tapicito Creek and Cañon Largo. This confluence is, in part, currently on land managed by the New Mexico State Land Office (NMSLO). This presentation will describe the investigation of the location and the attempt by NMSLO archaeologists to locate any remaining material evidence of this battle. Methods include a complete archaeological survey of the area in question and subsurface testing.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• SAA 2024: Individual Abstracts   •
• Society for American Archaeology 89th Annual Meeting, New Orleans, LA (2024)

Keywords

Spatial Coverage

Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 37899.0