The Pueblo Grande Museum and Archaeological Park, just a short 15-minute drive from downtown Phoenix, shows visitors how the oldest-recorded indigenous residents of the Valley of the Sun lived. The museum is open daily, and children are admitted for free on Sunday afternoons. It is closed Mondays and Sundays from May through September.
The Pueblo Grande Museum and Archaeological Park is the site of the ruins of a 1,500-year-old Hohokam village. Visitors can explore the irrigation canals and the tools that were used by this long-lost Native American tribe, as well as enter a replica of one of the homes of the ancients, built using the original supplies and techniques. A trail meanders through the site from which visitors can view a platform mound and a ball court ruin. After exploring the archaeological site, head into the museum to view artefacts and learn more about the Hohokam culture.
The Hohokam were an indigenous tribe who lived in the Valley of the Sun from about 1450 B.C. to 450 A.D. They are the predecessors of the Pima Indians who gave them the name Hohokam, which translates to ‘the people who vanished or went away.’ The Hohokam fished, hunted, and traded with communities from surrounding regions. This particular village—which is now modern day Phoenix—is believed to have contained 2,500 people who cultivated cotton crops. They manually built a complex canal system to irrigate their land, and their digging formed the blueprint for present-day canals.
The galleries within the museum have something for everyone. Visitors can take in a show at the theatre or view the pottery, tools, and jewellery which give us insight into how the Hohokam lived so long ago. Children can enjoy building a miniature Hohokam village or become little archaeologists in the special children’s gallery in the museum.
