  Mesa Verde National Park
Mesa Verde National Park
Author: Tobi 87 (Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported)
Mesa Verde National Park is a World Heritage Site located in Montezuma County, Colorado, United States. It is a national park featuring the prehistoric dwellings of Pueblo Indians. The Indians, known as the Anasazi, built these stone villages between the 6th to the 12th century.
The cliff dwellings of the Anasazis at Mesa Verde is the largest cliff dwelling in North America. The name "mesa verde" comes from Spanish meaning "green table". It is located on the southwestern corner of Colorado, at an elevation of between 6,100 feet to 8,400 feet. Although the Spanish explorers have arrived in the area in the 18th century, the cliff dwellings were only sighted in the latter half of the 19th century. The world get to know more about these ancient dwellings through the work of archaeologist Gustaf Nordenskiöld. To protect the site from vandalism, President Theodore Roosevelt approved turning it into a national park in 1906.
World Heritage Site Inscription Details
Mesa Verde National Park was inscribed as a World Heritage Site during the 2nd session of the World Heritage Committee which met in Washington, D.C., USA, on 5-8 September, 1978.
Location: N 37 15 42 W 108 29 8
Inscription Year: 1978
Type: Cultural
Inscription Criteria: III
Location Map of Mesa Verde National Park
Click here to view the Google Map to Mesa Verde National Park.
Visiting Mesa Verde National Park
The only practical way to visit Mesa Verde is by car. Take US Highway 160. The entrance is 9 miles to the east of Cortez and 35 miles to the west of Durango. The only gas station in the park is at Morefield Campground. Make sure you have enough gas for the trip.
Cliff Palace, Mesa Verde
Author: Jacob Rus (Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic)
Square Tower House, Mesa Verde
Author: Ben FrantzDale (Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported)
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