Acoma Indians of New Mexico

Acoma Pueblo

When we visited the Malpais National Monument, we became aware of the Acoma Indians whose reservation is nearby.  Historically, the Acoma Pueblo totaled about 5 million acres, and it is now 1/10 that size. Acoma tradition estimates they have lived in the area for more than two thousand years.  Acoma means “The place that always was.”  We didn't visit there, but I find it's history fascinating, sad, and yet typical of the treatment of  Indians. 

The Pueblo lies on a 365 foot mesa and is about 60 miles west of Albuquerque. NM.  What an unusual looking place, but you can see how it was easily fortified. And you could see for miles! 

Coronado’s 1540 expedition came into contact with the Acoma, but access was by way of  almost vertical stairs cut into the rock face.    The second Spanish Explorer, Juan de Onate arrived in 1598, intending to colonize the area.  The Acoma ambushed a group of Onate’s men, and in retaliation, the Spaniards burned most of the village, killed more than 600, took about 500 prisoners who were forced into slavery, AND, they cut off the right foot of every man over 25.

Then came the missionaries.  The Acoma suffered from smallpox epidemics and raiding by Apache, Comanche and Ute.   The Mesa where they had built their village was originally chosen to guard against raids by other Indian tribes, but the Spaniards made the area more accessible. 

Between 1629 and 1641, a Mission church was built with forced labor from the Acoma.  They moved 20,000 tons of adobe, straw, sandstone and mud to the mesa for the church walls.   The church measures over 6,000 square feet. Today it is a National Landmark and the Acoma are proud of it.  However,  they did continued to practice their own religion in secrecy, and also intermarried with members of others pueblos and of course, Spaniards.  This intermingling is considered to be the genesis of the current culture of New Mexico. 

In the early 1920’s the Bureau of Indian Affairs forced Acoma children into boarding schools.

A road was blasted into the rock face in the 1950’s.  Today, there are only about 30 people living on the Mesa, where there is no electricity, running water or sewage disposal. There are about 5,000 people who identify as Acoma today, with the remainder living elsewhere

The main source of income is tourism, and sale of Acoma pottery which is made of clay from a nearby site.  These are pots I found in google images, but google the pottery yourself - it is unbelievably beautiful and diverse! 

One final thought on the Acoma:  Because of his brutality, Acoma Indians object to Ornate being called New Mexico’s founder. In 1998, when a statue was erected as a tribute to Onate in Alcalde, someone cut off the bronze right foot of the statue with a chainsaw!