Description
Indigenous peoples of what was to become New Mexico were profoundly affected by first contact with Spanish explorers and other outsiders in the 1530s. The first colony was established in 1598, and the 1600s were especially difficult for indigenous populations and newly arrived colonists. Famine, drought, disease, displacements, massive population loss, social oppression, and religious persecution culminated with the Pueblo Revolt of 1680-1696. In spite of these events, Pueblo peoples endured and sustained strong societies that are the foundation of our multicultural heritage.
Jon Ghahate is from the Pueblos of Laguna and Zuni, of the Turkey and Badger Clans. He currently serves as the Indian Pueblo Cultural Center Museum Cultural Educator in Albuquerque.
Matt Schmader, PhD, has more than 40 years of field experience in southwestern archaeology. He has worked on sites of virtually every cultural time period, ranging from Paleo-Indian to Archaic campsites, from Spanish contact/colonial sites to the historic Red Light district in downtown Albuquerque.
