Living Spaces of Some Southwestern Native American Tribes

Acoma Pueblo, New Mexico, the oldest continually inhabited city in the United States.

 
Known as Sky City, Acoma Pueblo was strategically built on top of a 357-foot sandstone mesa many hundreds of years ago for effective defense against raiders. Spanish conquerors learned of this defensive stronghold when they entered New Mexico in the 1500s. Acomans claim that their 70-acre village is the oldest continuously inhabited city in the U.S.

Acoma was nearly destroyed when Gov. Juan de Ońate and 70 of his men retaliated for the killing of 13 Spanish soldiers by the Acomas when they tried to take grain from the pueblo storehouses in 1598. As a restitution of peace, the San Estéban del Rey Mission was built in 1629 and completed in 1640 under the guidance of Friar Juan Ramírez. Both the mission and the pueblo have been designated as Registered National Historical Landmarks.

Today, fewer than 50 Acomans live in Sky City year-round and the remaining residents live in nearby villages. Only on feast days do all the Acomans gather on the mesatop. Census 2000 figures indicate a total of 2,802 Acoma villagers.

source: http://www.nmmagazine.com/NMGUIDE/acoma.html