THE REPAIR OF CASA GRANDE RUIN, ARIZONA, IN 1891

BY

COSMOS MINDELEFF

CONTENTS

ILLUSTRATIONS

PLATE CXII

MAP OF THE CASA GRANDE GROUP

THE REPAIR OF CASA GRANDE RUIN

By Cosmos Mindeleff

INTRODUCTION

In March, 1889, an appropriation of $2,000 was made by Congress for
the repair of Casa Grande ruin in southern Arizona. This amount was
insufficient for complete restoration, but under the authority of the
act of Congress making the appropriation some work was done. Partly as
an aid to further possible work, and partly that there may be an
available record of what has been done for the benefit of future
students of American archeology, this report is presented.

A full description of Casa Grande has been given by the writer in a
published memoir1 on
that ruin, hence only a brief account will now be necessary to aid in
making the present report intelligible. Following this description is a
statement of the condition of the ruin in 1891 and of the plans formed
for its repair, the latter being necessarily controlled by the amount
appropriated. After this there is an account of the work done, from the
passage of the bill until the delivery of the work to the agent of the
United States who received it, and of the reservation, of an area of
land about the ruin by order of the President. This is followed by a
catalogue of the articles found during the excavations in and about the
ruin, which were subsequently deposited in the National Museum; a
transcript of the contract under which the work was done, including
specifications, plans, and sections, and the report of Mr H. C.
Rizer, who inspected and received the work. Finally, there are appended
the correspondence and report relating to the condition of Casa Grande
in 1895, with recommendations concerning its further protection.

Casa Grande has occupied a very important place in the literature of
American archeology, a place which it doubtless will continue to occupy;
and as dates are frequently of importance an effort has been made to
make the present report as full as possible in that respect.

PLATE CXIII

GROUND PLAN OF CASA GRANDE RUIN

DESCRIPTION OF THE RUINS

Casa Grande appears to be the sole surviving remnant of an extensive
and important class of remains in the southwest. These remains occur
usually in large groups or clusters, and Casa Grande is no exception.
322

The name has been ordinarily applied to a single house structure
standing near the southwestern corner of a large area covered by mounds
and other debris; but some writers have applied the term to the
southwestern portion of the area, others to the whole area.

Probably no two investigators would assign exactly the same limits to
this area, as its margins merge imperceptibly into the surrounding
country. The accompanying map (plate CXII) shows the limits of the ruins as
interpreted by the writer. The surface covered by well-defined remains,
as there shown, extends about 1,800 feet north and south and 1,500 feet
east and west, or a total area of about 65 acres.

Casa Grande ruin occupies a position near the southwestern corner of
the group, and its size is insignificant as compared with the entire
cluster of ruins, or even with the remains of the large structure which
occupied the north-central part of the area. The contour interval on the
map is 1 foot, sufficiently small to show much surface detail. The
depressions are indicated by dotted contours.

Within the area shown on the map there are a large number of mounds,
more or less leveled by long-continued exposure to the elements. Some
appear to be quite old, others represent buildings which were standing
within the historic period, and many interesting features are presented
which can not even be alluded to here.

Casa Grande proper was one of the smallest of the house clusters, but
it is unique in that the walls are still standing to a height of more
than 25 feet. While fragments of standing wall are not uncommon, either
in the area mentioned or in the valleys of Gala and Salt rivers
generally, no other example exists, so far as known, so well preserved
as the one under consideration.

For miles around Casa Grande the ground surface is so flat that from
the summit of the walls an immense stretch of country is brought under
view in every direction. In the whole southwest, where there are
thousands of ruins, many of which represent villages located with
especial reference to outlook, there are few, if any, so well situated
as this.

A ground plan of the ruin is shown in plate CXII and a general
view in plate CXIV. The area covered and inclosed by standing
walls is about 43 by 59 feet, but the building is not exactly
rectangular, nor do its sides exactly face the cardinal points,
notwithstanding many published statements to that effect. The building
comprised three central rooms, each approximately 10 by 24 feet,
arranged side by side with the longer axes north and south, and two
other rooms, each about 9 by 35 feet, occupying, respectively, the
northern and southern ends of the building, and arranged transversely
across the ends of the central rooms, the longer axes running east and
west. Excepting the central tier of rooms, which was three stories high,
all the walls rose to a height of two stories above the ground. The
northeastern and southeastern corners of the structure have fallen, and
large blocks of the material of which they were composed are strewn upon
the ground in the vicinity.

323

The exterior walls rise to a height of from 20 to 25 feet above the
ground. This height accommodated two stories, but the top of the wall is
from 1 to 2 feet higher than the roof level of the second story. The
middle room or space was built up three stories high, and the walls are
still standing to a height of 28 to 30 feet above the ground level. The
tops of the walls, while rough and greatly eroded, are approximately
level. The exterior surface of the walls is rough, as shown in the
illustrations, but the interior walls of the rooms are finished with a
remarkable degree of smoothness, so much so that it has attracted the
attention of everyone who has visited the ruin. Plate CXV shows this
feature. At the ground level the exterior wall is from 3½ to 4½ feet
thick, and in one place over 5 feet thick. The interior walls are from 3
to 4 feet thick. At the tops the walls are about 2 feet thick. The
building was constructed by crude methods, thoroughly aboriginal in
character, and there is no uniformity in its measurements. The walls,
even in the same room, are not of even thickness; the floor joists were
seldom in a straight line, and measurements made at similar places (for
example, at the two ends of a room) seldom agree.

Casa Grande is often referred to as an adobe structure, but this use
of the term is misleading. Adobe construction consists of the use of
molded brick, dried in the sun, but not baked. The walls here are
composed of huge blocks of rammed earth, 3 to 5 feet long, 2 feet high
and 3 to 4 feet thick. These blocks were not molded and then laid in the
wall, but were manufactured in place.

Plate CXVI shows the character of these blocks. The
material employed was admirably suited for the purpose, being when dry
almost as hard as sandstone and nearly as durable. A building with walls
of this material would last indefinitely, provided a few slight repairs
were made at the conclusion of each rainy season. When abandoned,
however, sapping at the ground level would commence and would in time
bring down all the walls; yet in the two centuries which have elapsed
since Padre Kino’s visit to this place—and Casa Grande was then a
ruin—there has been but little destruction from the elements, the
damage done by relic hunters during the last twenty years being, in
fact, much greater than that due to all causes in the preceding two
centuries.

The building was well provided with doorways and other openings,
arranged in pairs, one above the other. There were doorways from each
room into every adjoining room, except that the rooms of the middle tier
were entered only from the east. Some of the openings were not used, and
were closed with blocks of solid masonry, built into them long prior to
the final abandonment of the structure.

PLATE CXIV

GENERAL VIEW OF CASA GRANDE RUIN

CONDITION OF CASA GRANDE IN 1891

The south and east fronts of Casa Grande seem to have suffered,
particularly from the weather, and here rainstorms have probably caused
some of the damage. The outer faces of the walls are of the same
material as the wall mass, all the masonry being composed of
324

earth from the immediate site. In the construction of the walls this
soil was laid up in successive courses of varying thickness, whose
limits form clearly defined and approximately horizontal joints. The
northeast and southeast corners of the building have entirely fallen
away, and low mounds of their debris still show many knobs and lumps,
parts of the original wall mass.

The destruction of the walls was due mainly to undermining at the
ground level. The character of this undermining is shown in many of the
illustrations to this report, especially in plate CXVI, and its extent
is indicated on the accompanying ground plan (plate CXVII) by dotted lines
within the wall mass. Although the material of which the walls are
composed is very hard when dry, and capable of resisting the destructive
influences to which it has been subjected for a long time, yet under
certain conditions it becomes more yielding. The excessively dry climate
of this region, which in one respect has made the preservation of the
ruin possible, has also furnished, in its periodic sandstorms, a most
efficient agent of destruction. The amount of moisture in the soil is so
small as scarcely to be detected, but what there is in the soil next to
the walls is absorbed by the latter, rising doubtless by capillary
attraction to a height of a foot or more from the ground. This portion
of the wall being then more moist than the remainder, although possibly
only in an infinitesimal degree, is more subject to erosion by flying
sand in the windstorms so frequent in this region, and gradually the
base of the wall is eaten away until the support becomes insufficient
and the wall falls en masse. The plan shows that in some places the
walls have been eaten away at the ground level to a depth of more than a
foot. Portions of the south wall were in a dangerous condition and
likely to fall at any time.

Visiting tourists have done much damage by their vandalism. They have
torn out and carried away every lintel and every particle of visible
wood in the building. After the removal of the lintels a comparatively
short time elapses before the falling in of the wall above. Apparently
but a small amount of this damage can be attributed to rainstorms,
which, although rare in this region, are sometimes violent. There is
evidence that the present height of the walls is nearly the original
height, in other words, that the loss from surface erosion in several
centuries has been trifling, although numerous opinions to the contrary
have been expressed by causal observers. The eastern wall has suffered
more from this cause than the others; a belt on the northern half,
apparently softer than the remainder of the wall, has been eaten away to
a depth of nearly a foot. The interior wall faces are in good condition
generally, except about openings and in places near the top.

Evidences of the original flooring are preserved in several of the
rooms, especially in the north room. The flooring conformed to the
pueblo type in the use of a series of principal beams, about 3 inches in
diameter, above which was a secondary series smaller in size and placed
325

quite close together, and above this again a layer of rushes with a
coating of clay. All the walls show evidences of the principal series of
beams in the line of holes formed by their ends where they were embedded
in the walls. In the south wall, in parts of the east wall high up on
the level of the upper roof, and in parts of other walls a few stumps of
floor beams remained. These specimens of aboriginal woodwork have
survived only because they are not in sight from the ground, and their
existence therefore was not suspected by the tourists. Evidence of the
other features of the floor construction can be seen on the walls in
places where they have left an imprint, as described in the memoir
previously cited.

No single opening remains intact, as the lintels have been removed
from every one of them. This is particularly unfortunate, for openings
at their best are an element of weakness in a wall, and here each
opening, after the lintel was removed, became, as it were, a center of
weakness from which the destruction of the wall mass gradually proceeded
further and further.

PLATE CXV

INTERIOR WALL OF CASA GRANDE RUIN

PLANS FOR THE REPAIRS

The plans for the repair of the ruin and its preservation included
the reservation of the area covered by remains and, if possible, its
inclosure, for within that area are exhibited all the various degrees of
decay and disintegration which clearly link the comparatively well
preserved Casa Grande with the numerous almost obliterated ruins along
the Gila and the Salt, whose vestiges will become even less distinct as
time passes and cultivation increases.

It was deemed necessary to remove all the rubbish and debris within
the building and from an area measuring 10 feet from the outer walls in
every direction. Plate CXVII shows the extent of this area, and
six sections are shown in plates CXVIII and CXIX, three on east-and-west lines and
three on north-and-south lines. The lines along which these sections
were made are indicated on the plan, plate CXVII. The ground level was determined
by excavation, and is of course only approximate. The sections show the
estimated amount of debris which was to be removed. Aside from other
considerations, it was necessary to uncover the walls to the ground
level in order to do the necessary underpinning.

It was planned to underpin the walls, where erosion at the ground
level had weakened them, with hard-burned brick laid in cement mortar.
Plate CXVII
shows in a measure the extent of this erosion. The brick surface was to
be set back an inch or two and faced with that thickness of cement
mortar. Plate CXX shows the south front and plate CXXI the south and
east fronts when the brickwork was completed, but before it was
plastered, and will illustrate what was planned better than can a
description.

326

This treatment, it was believed, would give a surface capable of
effectually resisting atmospheric influences and the destructive action
of flying sand, and at the same time would not disfigure the ruin by
making the repairs obtrusive.

The broken-out lintels of openings were to be replaced, and the
cavities above them filled in with brick faced with mortar similar to
the underpinning.

The south wall, which was in a dangerous condition, was to be
supported by three internal braces, as shown in the plan, plate CXVII. The longest
brace or beam was necessarily of wood, as the wide range of temperature
in this region, even between day and night, would produce so much
expansion and contraction in an iron rod 60 feet long that without some
compensating device the wall would be rocked on its base and its rapid
destruction necessarily follow.

PLATE CXVI

WEST FRONT OF CASA GRANDE RUIN, SHOWING BLOCKS OF MASONRY

EXECUTION OF THE WORK

Appended to that portion of the sundry civil appropriation act
approved March. 2, 1889,2 in which certain expenses of the United States Geological
Survey are provided for, is the following item:

Repair of the ruin of Casa Grande, Arizona: To enable the Secretary of
the Interior to repair and protect the ruin of Casa Grande, situate in
Pinal County, near Florence, Arizona, two thousand dollars; and the
President is authorized to reserve from settlement and sale the land on
which said ruin is situated and so much of the public land adjacent
thereto as in his judgment may be necessary for the protection of said
ruin and of the ancient city of which it is a part.

On the 12th of April, 1889, there was a conference between the
Secretary of the Interior and the Commissioner of the General Land
Office looking to the execution of the law, and on the 16th of that
month the Commissioner submitted a statement on the subject, calling
attention to the fact that the appropriation would not be available
until July 1 following, and suggesting that a special agent should be
sent out to examine the ruin. This suggestion was approved, and on April
27, 1889, Special Agent Alexander L. Morrison, of the General Land
Office, was instructed to proceed to the ruins for the purpose of
investigating and reporting as to what method should be adopted for
their repair and protection. Mr Morrison was further instructed to
report “all the facts obtainable as regards said ruins of ‘Casa Grande,’
in order that appropriate action may be taken by the Department for its
preservation.”

On May 15,1889, Mr Morrison submitted a report to the Commissioner,
describing his journey, the location of the ruin, the ruin itself, and
other ruins in the vicinity. He stated that danger to the ruin was of
three kinds—(1) by vandalism, (2) by elements, (3) by undermining.
He recommended the construction of a roof and an underpinning of
327

stone for the walls. Finally, he gave some historical notes, and closed
with a peroration.

Mr Morrison’s plans were found impracticable, as their execution
would require an expenditure of many times the sum appropriated, and on
September 23, 1889, all the papers in the case were transmitted by the
Secretary to the Director of the Geological Survey, “for appropriate
action under the clause of the act referred to, as being within the
province of your Bureau.” It was ordered that the work be commenced
without the least delay, and November 27, 1889, Mr Victor Mindeleff, of
the Bureau of Ethnology, was detailed by the Director and ordered to
proceed to the ruin and report on the best means of repairing it and
protecting it from further destruction. He was also directed to make
other investigations in the vicinity, which have no relation to the
present case.

On July 1, 1890, Mr Mindeleff submitted a report. He described the
ruins of which Casa Grande is the type, and also Casa Grande itself. He
also made a statement of the condition of the ruin and suggested that
the main destruction “was due to the undermining of the walls, and
stated that much damage had been done by tourists. He recommended (1)
that an area about the ruin be fenced in; (2) that a man be located
permanently on the ground to watch the ruins; (3) that the ruins be
cleaned out; (4) that the walls be underpinned with brick instead of
stone, as previously suggested; (5) that the tops of the walls, after
removing several inches to afford a good bearing surface, be treated
with a coping of cement. It was regarded that this plan, if carried into
effect, would afford sufficient protection against the weather, but a
plan for a roof was submitted should such a structure be deemed
desirable and practicable. Mr Mindeleff also recommended a number of
tie-rods and beams, the replacement of the broken-out lintels, and the
filling of the cavities above.

This plan was approved in its general features, but the means
provided for its execution were found insufficient. A further
complication arose from the fact that a few months later Mr Mindeleff
severed his connection with the Bureau of Ethnology and his knowledge
became no longer available.

November 20, 1890, the writer was ordered to proceed to the ruin and
inaugurate the work of repair, following, so far as practicable, the
plans already approved. He left Washington soon afterward and reached
the ruin late in December. It was found necessary to make a detailed
survey of the ruin and of the group of which it forms a part, and to
make plans and sections showing the probable amount of excavation for
the use of those who were invited to bid on the work. Furthermore, the
amount appropriated was so well known to be inadequate that great
difficulty was experienced in obtaining bids, and it was only through
the efficient cooperation of the Reverend I. T. Whittemore at Florence
and of Mr C. A. Garlick at Phoenix that success was finally
328

achieved. Two bids were received from the former place and one from the
latter; but this was not accomplished until March 17, 1891, the date
when the last bid was received. In the meantime the writer, having
completed his work at Casa Grande, so far as he could, had entered, in
January, on an archeologic investigation of the valley of the Rio Verde,
in compliance with his orders to that effect.

It was found impossible to execute all the work deemed requisite for
the preservation of the ruin within the limits of the appropriation. A
selection of items became necessary, therefore, and those which were of
most importance were chosen. Even in this, however, it was found that a
maximum limit on the amount of work to be done on each item must be set,
and this limit was considerably below the amount of work estimated to be
necessary.

The first thing to be done was, of course, the clearing out of the
rubbish and debris. The item next in importance was the underpinning of
the walls with brick wherever it was needed. The third item was the
restoration of the lintels and the filling of the cavities above them.
The fourth item was the tying in of the south wall, or of the several
parts of it, with braces. This was the only feature of the plan which
would appreciably disfigure the ruin, but some such device was deemed
essential for the preservation of the south wall.

These four items consumed practically all of the amount appropriated,
and the other items of the original plan were therefore omitted. The bid
of T. L. Stouffer and F. E. White, of Florence, Arizona,
covering the four items, was accepted, and a contract was made with
them, under date of May 9, 1891, for the execution of the work for the
sum of $1,985. This contract, together with the specifications, plans,
and other drawings which formed part of it, accompany this report. It
was transmitted to the Director of the Geological Survey, and by him
approved and forwarded to the Secretary of the Interior June 6, 1891. It
was approved by the Acting Secretary June 20, 1891. Finally, on July 20,
1891, it was placed on file, together “with the bids, proposals, and all
the original papers.”

A time limit of two months was made in the contract, expiring August
20, 1891, but it was changed to four months from July 1, 1891, expiring
October 31, 1891. Before the time expired, however, Mr H. G. Rizer,
then chief clerk of the Bureau of Ethnology, was ordered to proceed to
Casa Grande ruin to examine the work done and, if in accord with the
terms of the contract and the specifications, to certify the amount due
the contractors. He submitted a report, under date of November 24, 1891,
which is appended hereto. He also obtained six photographic negatives of
the work as it stood a short time before its completion, and two of
these (reproduced in plates CXX and CXXI) have been utilized in the preparation of
this report.

Mr Rizer found that a considerable amount of work had been done by
the contractors in excess of that authorized, and also that not
sufficient
329

work had been done to render the repairs permanently effective. Under
the terms of the contract, no amount in excess of that stated ($1,985)
could be paid, and payment of this amount was made late in 1891. On
January 7, 1892, the contractors filed a claim for extra work on the
ruin amounting to $600.40. The work was actually performed, but the
terms of the contract were clear, and the claim was therefore
disapproved January 28, 1892.

It would have been desirable to have had a supervisor of the work,
but as the contract consumed practically all of the amount appropriated
no provision could be made for one. It is fortunate, therefore, that the
Reverend I. T. Whittemore, who had in the meantime been appointed
honorary custodian of the ruin, generously undertook to look after the
work without compensation, and on its conclusion the small sum remaining
($15) was turned over to him, thus exhausting the appropriation. In the
sundry civil appropriation act for the year ending June 30, 1893,
provision was made for a salaried custodian of the ruin, and Mr
Whittemore was appointed to this position. Similar provision has been
continued from year to year to the present time.

It is to be regretted that the necessities of the case, imposed by
the limited amount appropriated, compelled the fixing of a maximum
amount of work so far below the amount necessary that the repair of the
ruin is incomplete. Had it been possible to carry out the plans, it is
believed that the ruin would have stood unchanged for many decades, if
not for a century. Should further provision be made for the continuation
of the work, it should include an item for the fencing of the area
covered by the ruins or of the reservation, and possibly an item for the
construction of a roof.

It is not clear that a roof is absolutely necessary, but it is
certain that it would be very undesirable. The region where this rain
occurs has probably less rainfall than any other part of the United
States, but it must not be forgotten that while rainstorms are
infrequent they are sometimes violent, and what damage they do may be
done in a few hours. All the items for the repair of the ruin, except
that pertaining to a roof, were so devised that the ruin was not
materially disfigured or changed, and were they fully carried out the
ruin would present much the same general appearance as before. It is
important that this appearance should be preserved as far as possible,
but it can not be maintained if a roof is erected over the walls. As
four years have elapsed since the completion of the work, it should be
possible now to determine whether atmospheric erosion has played a
material part in the work of destruction.3

In the original plans and in the specifications which formed part of
the contract (although this section was not operative) a plan for a roof
was included. Such a structure, if erected at all, should be made as
330

inconspicuous as possible and should be supported entirely from within
the building. The system of framing employed might safely be left to the
contractor if he were made responsible for the strength of the completed
structure.

PLATE CXVII

PLAN SHOWING GROUND-LEVEL EROSION, TIE-RODS, LIMITS OF WORK, AND LINES OF GROUND SECTIONS

RESERVATION OF THE LAND

The final step in the execution of the law quoted was taken June 22,
1892. On that date the recommendation of the writer to the Director of
the Geological Survey, referred by him to the Secretary of the Interior
and by the latter to the President, was finally approved, and it was
ordered that an area of land sufficient for the preservation of the
ruin, and comprising in all 480 acres, be reserved under authority of
act of Congress approved March 2, 1889. This area is shown on the map
reproduced in plate CXXV, the base of which is a map accompanying
the report of Mr H. C. Rizer.

The letter of the Secretary of the Interior recommending the
reservation of the Casa Grande tract, with its indorsement by the
President, is as follows:

The limits of this reservation are laid down on the plat of the
survey of said township in the General Land Office, and the reservation
is now under the control of the Secretary of the Interior.

PLATE CXVIII

Section A-B

Section C-D

Section E-F EAST-AND-WEST GROUND SECTIONS.

SPECIMENS FOUND IN THE EXCAVATIONS

In the course of the excavations a number of specimens of archeologic
interest were unearthed. These were all preserved and on the conclusion
of the work were forwarded to the National Museum in Washington, in
compliance with the terms of the contract. Following is a list showing
the collection number and also the Museum number.

PLATE CXIX

Section G-H

Section I-K

Section L-M NORTH-AND-SOUTH GROUND SECTIONS.

EXHIBITS

I. CONTRACT FOR REPAIRING AND PRESERVING CASA GRANDE RUIN,
ARIZONA

This contract, made and entered into this ninth day of May,
eighteen hundred and ninety-one, between Theodore Louis Stouffer and
Frederick Emerson White, both of Florence, Arizona, as principals, and
Augustine Gray Williams, of Florence, Arizona, Andrew James Doran, of
Florence, Arizona, as sureties, of the first part, and the United States
of America, by Cosmos Mindeleff, acting for the Secretary of the
Interior, of the second part:

Witnesseth, That the said parties of the first part do hereby
contract and agree with the United States of America, as follows: That
for the consideration hereinafter mentioned they will at their own
expense and risk perform and execute the work upon the Casa Grande ruin,
described and specified in the specification hereto annexed and forming
a part hereof, in the manner and with the conditions specified, items of
said work to be as follows:

Item No. 1. Clearing out the débris: To excavate and remove 350 cubic
yards of earth and débris, or less, as specified, amount of excavation
not to exceed 350 cubic yards.

Item No. 2. Underpinning walls: To underpin the walls as specified,
requiring 750 cubic feet of brick masonry, or less, amount of masonry
not to exceed 750 cubic feet.

Item No. 3. Filling in cavities: To fill in cavities and openings as
specified, 500 lineal feet of 2 by 4 inches squared lumber and 800 cubic
feet of masonry, or less, whole amount of filling not to exceed 825
cubic feet.

Item No. 4. To brace the walls as specified in the annexed plan and
specifications.

Items numbered five and six of the specifications hereto annexed,
together with the plans, specifications, and conditions pertaining
especially and only to them and not to the other items, are omitted.

The said parties of the first part further contract and agree to
deliver over the work, completed and finished, to such person as the
Secretary of the Interior may designate, within two months after receipt
of notice that this contract has been approved by the Secretary of the
Interior.

It is further stipulated and agreed, That should the parties
of the first part fail to complete the work within the time specified,
or should they deliver work which is not in accordance with the plans
and specifications hereto annexed, only such sum shall be paid for the
work as may be agreed upon by the said parties of the first part and the
Secretary
334

of the Interior; and it is further stipulated and agreed on the part of
the parties of the first part that if the work is not completed in the
time specified and according to the specifications hereto annexed they
will pay to the United States a sum not exceeding fifty dollars for each
and every week after the time specified, such payments to be deducted
from the amount due for work done: Provided, That the Secretary
of the Interior, or such person as he may authorize to do so, may extend
the time for the completion of the work.

And the United States of America, by the said Cosmos
Mindeleff, acting for the Secretary of the Interior, do hereby contract
and agree with the said parties of the first part that for the aforesaid
work, performed and executed in the manner and under the conditions
aforesaid, there shall be paid to the said parties of the first part the
following sums:

For item No. 1. For clearing out the débris, as specified and as
above limited, sixty cents ($0.60) for each cubic yard.

For item No. 2. For underpinning walls, as specified and as above
limited, one dollar ($1) for each cubic foot.

For item No. 3. For filling in cavities, as specified and as above
limited, one dollar ($1) for each cubic foot, including lumber.

For item No. 4. For bracing walls, as specified, two hundred dollars
($200). Provided, That payments for the work here contracted for
shall be made only after the inspection and approval of the work by such
person as the Secretary of the Interior shall designate.

It is an express condition of this contract that it shall have no
force or effect until it is submitted to and approved by the Secretary
of the Interior.

It is a further condition of this contract that no Member or Delegate
to Congress, or any other officer or agent of the United States, either
directly or indirectly, himself or by any other person in trust for him,
or for his use and benefit, or on his account, is a party to or in any
manner interested, in whole or in part, in this contract, or in the
enjoyments, benefits, profits, or emoluments arising therefrom.

Witnesses as to Stouffer, White, Doran, and Williams:

Witnesses as to Cosmos Mindeleff:

AFFIDAVIT OF CONTRACTORS

PLATE CXX

SOUTH FRONT OF THE RUIN, SHOWING UNDERPINNING AND ENDS OF TIE-RODS

II. PLANS AND SPECIFICATIONS FOR THE PRESERVATION OF THE CASA GRANDE
RUIN, ARIZONA, 1891

(Attached to and forming part of contract)

GENERAL REQUIREMENTS

All the work upon this ruin is to be carried out in such a manner as
to interfere as little as possible with the present condition and
appearance of the building, and the contractors will be held responsible
for any injury to it.

The work is to be carried on under a supervisor, acting for the
United States, who shall have power to reject any materials it is
proposed to use in the work which are not in his judgment equal to those
specified, and he shall have power to have torn down any work done which
he has reason to suspect is not such as required by the specifications,
but if such work shall prove upon inspection to have been well done the
contractor may make a charge of the amount which would have been allowed
for that part of the work had it passed inspection.

When the work is completed it must pass the final inspection of the
supervisor, or such person as the Secretary of the Interior may
designate for the purpose.

1. CLEARING OUT THE DÉBRIS

The débris now filling up the interior is to be removed down to the
floor level, or the original ground level. The débris covering an area
336

measuring 10 feet from the exterior walls of the building in every
direction is also to be removed. This work is to be carried on in
conjunction with the underpinning of the walls, and is to be dependent
upon the progress of the latter, the work being done as required by the
person holding the contract for the underpinning. All proper precautions
must be observed during the progress of the work to prevent any injury
to the building, the walls being properly braced and supported before
excavation is commenced. The contractor will be held responsible for any
injury to the building. Any objects found of archeologic or other value
properly belong to the United States and must be deposited in the
National Museum. The material removed from the building and from the
area about it is to be removed to a proper distance, not less than 100
yards from the building. Proper drainage channels must be provided to
keep the excavated area permanently clear of water.

2. UNDERPINNING WALLS

The walls where eroded at the ground level are to be underpinned with
hard-burned brick, laid in good cement mortar and extending to a depth
of at least 12 inches below the original ground level. This work must be
carried on gradually and very carefully in conjunction with the clearing
out of the débris. The under surfaces of the overhanging walls must be
carefully trimmed to afford solid horizontal bearings against the
brickwork. The face of the brickwork is to be set back at least 1 inch
and not more than 2 inches from the face of the wall, and the brickwork
is to be plastered with a coating of cement mortar, 1 to 2 inches thick,
bringing it out flush with the outer wall.

3. FILLING IN OPENINGS

The broken-out lintels of openings are to be replaced by wooden
lintels composed of squared lumber, 2 by 4 inches in size, laid side by
side across nearly the whole thickness of the walls, with not more than
1 inch space between the boards, and of the same length as the original
lintels. The broken-out walls are to be trimmed to afford solid resting
places for the new lintels, which are to occupy the same horizontal
planes that the old ones did. The openings above the lintels are to be
filled in in the same manner as the underpinning previously described,
the tinder wall surfaces being carefully dressed to afford solid
horizontal bearings, the brick work being set back 1 inch from the wall
surfaces and plastered with a coating of cement mortar to bring it out
flush with the wall.

4. BRACING

One wooden brace and two iron braces are to be put in, as shown upon
the plan hereto annexed. The wooden brace is to be of one piece, or of
two pieces well bolted together, of selected lumber, free from knots and
other imperfections, squared, and measuring 6 by 8 inches in
337

cross section. The iron braces are to be of 1 inch diameter, best
quality wrought-iron rods. The bearing plates, four to each rod, are to
be not less than 10 inches in diameter, of sufficient strength, and
securely and permanently fastened to the braces.

5. WIRE FENCING

Such area as may be determined is to be fenced with the best quality
of galvanized iron barbed wire, strung upon posts placed 20 feet apart.
The posts are to be of mesquite, not less than 3 inches in diameter and
of a reasonable degree of straightness (not varying more than 5 inches
from a straight line). The posts are to be at least 6 feet 6 inches long
and are to be planted perpendicularly with 4 feet 6 inches clear and at
least 2 feet below the ground surface. Three lines of double wire are to
be stretched upon and securely fastened to the posts, the first at a
distance of 2 feet from the ground, the second at 3 feet, and the third
at 4 feet from the ground. Two gateways are to be provided, at such
points as may be directed, the side posts to be of squared timber, 6 by
6 inches in cross section, and the gates to be made of sawed lumber 1
inch by 5 inches, hung upon good iron hinges, and leaving a clear space
of not less than 12 feet when open, the whole to be executed in the best
and most workmanlike manner.

6. ROOF

The building is to be crowned by a roof of corrugated iron, supported
in the manner shown in the accompanying plan and sections. The uprights
are to be of selected squared lumber 1 foot square, each in a single
piece, the lower ends planted at least 3 feet below the original ground
level, and to be braced and tied to each other, as shown in the plan.
The tie pieces are to be of selected squared lumber, 4 inches by 6
inches in cross section. The roof is to be framed and braced in the
ordinary manner, and this framing is to extend beyond the outer wall 6
feet. The covering is to be a good quality of corrugated iron roofing,
securely fastened to the framework, and painted with three good coats of
the best quality of roof paint. The whole to be constructed and
executed, in the best and most workmanlike manner, of good materials
throughout, and to be of a strength sufficient to withstand the
windstorms to which it may be subjected.

PLATE CXXI

VIEW FROM THE SOUTHEAST BEFORE THE COMPLETION OF THE WORK

III. PLANS AND SECTIONS—PRESERVATION OF THE CASA GRANDE RUIN,
ARIZONA. SCALE OF ALL THE PLANS AND SECTIONS. 0.1 INCH = 1 FOOT

Plans and sections accompanying specifications are as follows:

IV. OATH OF DISINTERESTEDNESS

V. BIDS

I

II

III

IV

V

PLATE CXXII

SUGGESTED PLAN OF ROOF AND SUPPORT

VI. INDORSEMENTS

Contract for the repair and preservation of the Casa Grande ruin,
Arizona, 1891

PLATE CXXIII

SECTION THROUGH A-B OF ROOF PLAN. SHOWING SUGGESTED ROOF SUPPORT

VII. REPORT OF MR H. C. RIZER

PLATE CXXIV

SECTION THROUGH C-D OF ROOF PLAN, SHOWING SUGGESTED ROOF SUPPORT

SUPPLEMENT

CORRESPONDENCE AND REPORT RELATING TO THE CONDITION OF CASA GRANDE
IN 1895, WITH RECOMMENDATIONS CONCERNING ITS FURTHER PROTECTION

I. Letter of Reverend Isaac T. Whittemore, custodian of Casa
Grande, to the Secretary of the Interior, recommending an appropriation
for further protecting the ruin

II. Indorsement of the Mr Whittemore’s by the Acting Secretary of
the Interior

III. Letter of the Acting Director of the Bureau of American
Ethnology to the Secretary of the Interior suggesting an examination of
Casa Grande with a view of its further protection

IV. Letter of the Acting Secretary of the Interior to the
Director of the Bureau of American Ethnology, approving the suggestion
that Casa Grande be visited with a view of determining the desirability
of its further protection

V. Letter of the Director of the Bureau of American Ethnology to
the Secretary of the Interior regarding the examination of Casa Grande
by Mr W J McGee

VI. Report of the Director of the Bureau of American Ethnology to
the Secretary of the Interior on the examination of the condition of
Casa Grande by Mr W J McGee, with a recommendation concerning its
further protection

FOOTNOTES

PLATE CXXV

MAP OF TOWNSHIP 5 SOUTH, RANGE 8 EAST, GILA AND SALT RIVER BASE AND MERIDIAN (6 MILES SQUARE), SHOWING LOCATION OF CASA GRANDE RESERVATION AND RUIN

INDEX