I am perched on a ledge at 7,000 feet on the underside of a cliff. There is an ancient cliff dwelling directly in front of me. My hands are touching it. It feels firm, architecturally secure, almost like it was constructed in modern times. I would not guess it dates back to the 12th century. This dwelling, named Spruce Tree House, was discovered in 1888 by Richard Wetherill and Charles Mason (Spruce Tree House: Mesa Verde National Park Visitors Guide; Mesa Verde National Park, 1986). These men came upon the 114 room, eight kiva, Spruce Tree House while searching for their cattle that were lost in the area. The dwelling was marked by a large Douglas spruce tree that was growing from the front of the dwelling to the top of the mesa. It is believed that the men first penetrated the ruin by climbing down the tree.
Spruce Tree House is a human-made marvel that needed to be preserved. Mesa Verde National Park was established 18 years later, in 1906, to fulfill this need. This would mark the first time in our nation’s history that a national park was created to protect an historical, culturally important human-made structure. Spruce Tree House is the third largest cliff dwelling in Mesa Verde National Park. It was built by the Ancestral Puebloans’ between the years A.D. 1200 and 1276 and remains mostly preserved. However, the overhanging cliff is now tattooed with red coloring resembling paint. As I stood there, gazing up at the red coloring, I wondered if it was Ancestral Puebloan pictographs or a modern addition. The ranger on duty helped make the clarification. The red coloring is a fire retardant chemical sprayed on the overhanging cliff to hold back the forest fires that destroyed part of the park in 1996.
While navigating through the ruin with my classmates it was hard to believe that at one point this dwelling was home to as many as 100 people. The 114 rooms and eight kivas (ceremonial chambers) that were part of the original dwelling do not seem to be enough space. Spruce Tree House measures 216 feet at its greatest width and 89 feet at its greatest depth.
Dr. Jesse Walter Fewkes of the Smithsonian Institution contributed to the opening of the Spruce Tree House for visitation by the public. The site was excavated, fallen debris was removed, and walls were stabilized. The majority of the ruin is open for navigation except for a few sections towards the back. The restoration of the ruin even includes a reconstructed kiva that allows you to climb down a ladder and become part of an environment occupied so long ago. It is through the foresight of Fewkes and those who established Mesa Verde National Park that as a visitor to the area I now have the opportunity to navigate through this sandstone masterpiece.
