Aztec Ruins Administrative History

PHYSICAL PLANT

As Miller moved into the custodian's residence, natural gas heat was put into all the modern monument buildings. A gas burner was positioned in the old coal-burning furnace of the administration building. [7] The next year an underground phone line replaced former conspicuous poles and wires.

Almost coincident with Faris's departure, he requested $6,500 for a new house for the custodian. Since plans to erect a park ranger's house were scrapped during the Civilian Conservation Corps program, the old custodian's residence could fill the need. In March 1937, the request was approved. Detailed specifications under a Public Works Administration project were completed a month later. [8] Again, action on the construction was postponed.

Otherwise, routine maintenance work was done on leaking roofs at the administration building, Great Kiva, and custodian's residence. New linoleum was laid in two modern buildings, rooms were repainted, water pipes were repaired. Cracked plaster on the residence was touched up and repainted. Its cement floor was waterproofed. [9]

A study was made of the monument's water rights because of Farmers Ditch adjudication proceedings. [10]

At the outset of Miller's administration, the museum arrangement was not settled. The proposed doorway to the west room, which got Faris in trouble, was not authorized nor had display or storage shelving been built. After Miller secured permission to proceed with the doorway, he appealed for prompt action in equipping the museum in three rooms of the administration building. [11] "The past winter has been a hard one on our artifacts stored in the underground rooms in the Ruins," Miller reported. "The rooms have been wet from snow and rain for more than sixty days now. Some of the artifacts have been removed from the Ruins and stored in the Administration building to keep from ruining them." [12] The estimated cost of new cases and the work of preparing them came to $645.55. [13]

By summer, the door was cut, new cases were arriving, and exhibits were being arranged with the help of Archeologist Charlie R. Steen. Eight new cases doubled the amount of materials shown. Four cases held pottery, two basketry and weaving, one stone, bone, and wood artifacts, and eight were devoted to the place of Aztec Ruins in Southwestern prehistory. [14] The floor of the exhibit room was reinforced to resist the tramp of many feet, which had been rocking cases. In order to alleviate some congestion in the small front room, in warm weather the registration desk was moved to the front porch so that visitors could be greeted before they went into the museum.

A few imperishable specimens continued to be shown in the ruins until 1942. At that time all artifacts were taken out of the ruins, and the shelving upon which they rested was dismantled. [15]

In 1940, Sherman Howe caused concern for the monument staff by withdrawing 42 specimens from his collection to present them to the Museum of New Mexico in Santa Fe. Although approximately 100 Howe items remained at Aztec Ruins, Dorr G. Yeager, then assistant museum chief, felt that the Western Museum Laboratory in Berkeley should have been permitted to arrange a small attractive exhibit of selected representative specimens for Santa Fe. [16] However, since none of the specimens came from ruins within the monument boundaries, they were unprovenienced and of limited scientific value.

National Youth Administration enrollees cleaned the irrigation ditches, chopped weeds, planted native shrubs such as sage, chico, and chamiza, and watered the vegetation.

By 1940, Southwest Monuments Superintendent Hugh M. Miller was impressed with the progress that had been made at Aztec Ruins. He reported, "From the standpoint of accessibility, facilities, and administration, Aztec is one of the top monuments in the Southwestern group." [17]