Here in the heart of Coolidge surrounded by agricultural fields, you’ll find an amazing example of Native American history and ingenuity. Just 56 miles Southeast of Phoenix, Coolidge is home to the nation’s first archaeological reserve. The Casa Grande National Monument was established in 1892 by President Benjamin Harrison and declared a national monument in 1906.

The monument allows you to stand right in the middle of history. Built in the early 13-hundreds, the four story “great house” or Casa Grande, is a structural marvel.

Think about it, the folks who lived here built this more than 800 years ago and literally just dug up the right type of soil, mixed it with water to turn into cement and then built it by hand layering the mud up four stories tall. Eight hundred years later, it is still standing along with smaller ruins all the way around the main structure used for additional storage or living space. The construction appears like it was well-planned and organized, requiring tons of material and a huge cooperative effort on the part of many people.

The ruins are not only the largest protected Hohokam site, but also one of the few national park units that preserve and interpret what life was like for Sonoran Desert farmers in the past.

At the height of the Hohokam civilization, they established trade routes, dug hundreds of miles of wide scale irrigation farming canals for their crops, created jewelry and pottery and used natural soil material called caliche to erect buildings like the Casa Grande. Southwest archeologists say the Casa Grande Ruins is exceptional for its high degree of preservation. Not only does it have a protective roof over its four stories but efforts to protect it have continued for more than a century.

The Casa Grande Ruins shows us a native society that thrived in the Sonoran Desert growing corn, beans, squash, cotton, and tobacco. In addition to their crops, the Hohokam culture continued to make use of the many native plants and animals of the desert. These included cactus fruit, pads and buds, agave hearts, mesquite beans and the medicinal creosote bush. Archeologists have even found shells from the seacoasts pointing to expansive trade.

Archeologists also learned that the ancestral Sonoran Desert people left the Casa Grande in the 1400’s after suffering a period of widespread depopulation and change. Speculation as to the cause was drought, disease, floods, earthquakes, invasion and internal strife. The Spanish arrived in the 1600’s and found the big adobe building and called it Casa Grande.

If you want to learn more about the history and marvel at this structural wonder, there are plenty of ways to experience Casa Grande Ruins. There is a picnic area with a pollinator garden with views over some of the cultural sites.

When the weather gets cooler, you can go on a guided tour with a park ranger. Kids who want to learn, explore and protect the monument while having fun can sign up to be a junior ranger. You can also participate in special programs presented by archeologists, Native American storytellers, entertainers and authors of books sold in the bookstore.

It’s a history lesson that’s free of charge. The Casa Grande Ruins is one of several National Parks that don’t charge an entry fee. They tell us the best time to visit is November through Easter.