History of The Grand Canyon
History of The Grand Canyon
About 3,000 to 4,000 years ago archaeologists believe that the Desert Archaic people lived in the Grand Canyon. Evidence of this are small willow-twig effigies called “split- twig figurines.” These are animal figurines made from a single twig.
Many pictographs were made in the Grand Canyon. Made from a crude paint made of minerals mixed with plant juice and animal oils. Most of these pictures are to faded to tell what they were. Archaeologists believe they were used to communicate.
The Anasazi who had been occupying the lands east of the Canyon drifted in to the rim of the Canyon around 500A.D. At about 800A.D. the Anasazi entered the phase known as the Pueblo. Adobe house ruins in the Canyon show that Pueblo Indians lived in this area. Spaniards from Francisco Vasquez de Coronado’s expedition were the first white men to discover the canyon in 1540. In the early 1800’s the only humans that went by the canyon were trappers and Indians. Settlement along the Canyon didn’t happen until about the mid-1800’s.A Mormon missionary group led by Jacob Hamblin. this group was looking for arable land to settle. In 1864 Hamblin and men used a raft to cross the Colorado River. in the south end. Despite this the Canyon was still very much unexplored.
Major John Wesley(1834-1902) a Civil War veteran along with ten other men set forth to explore the Colorado River and the Grand Canyon. They came back a year later to explore the North Plateau. They made a second expedition through the Canyon 1872.
In the 1880’s there was a lot of live stock companies developing around the Canyon. In the 1890’s.There was an estimate of 100’000 head of cattle more than 250,000 sheep grazing the land.
Kaibab Nation Forest was established on the Kaibab Plateau in 1883. By 1906 when Grand Canyon National Preserve was founded most of the ranches were out of business. The grass the cattle and sheep ate was all gone.
James T. Owen was appointed the warden of the Grand Canyon National Preserve. He started a mountain lion hunting business. After about 12 years and around 600 mountain lions later began to buffalo ranch. By this...