However, the Ancestral Puebloans also had extensive communities at ground level, such as this kiva and rooms
And the earlier groups built pit houses, which were dug partially into the earth with a pole structure above
The later groups also built towers, usually associated with kivas, but the purpose is not known
The earliest people came to the area around 600. They lived on the land and were probably drawn by the weather and sufficient rainfall and snowfall to grow crops. They had been wanderers before arriving in this location, but saw some advantages to settling in one area and became farmers instead of hunters. The first group are known as Basketmakers for their skills at this craft. These baskets were used for carrying, storing, and even cooking. The baskets were tightly woven and could hold water, though they sometimes used pitch to seal them. They could cook in the baskets by filling them with water, placing the item to be cooked in the water, and then placing a heated stone into the water to heat it.
At some point they started to build pit houses, created by digging a pit a few feet deep, setting four corner posts, building a frame around the top of the posts, running poles over the top to support a roof, and then leaning poles up against the frame. This frame was then covered to provide an enclosure to protect the inhabitants.These pit houses were probably very smoky to live in, even though they developed a means of ventilating them. And they were subject to burning because of fire near dry woods and other fuels. They learned how to make pottery and acquired the bow and arrow, an efficient hunting tool. We saw several pit houses that had been opened up for research and display. The pit area was probably 15-20 feet across and 2-3 feet deep, and this pit was excavated with simple small hand tools - no shovels! We were impressed with the amount of effort this required.
Around 750 they started building above ground, using upright walls made from poles and adobe mud. These houses were linked together in long, curving rows so that each house shared walls with their neighbors. There were often pit houses in front of these houses, and the pit houses were probably used for common meetings and ceremonies. These later evolved into more formal kivas. These generations were known as Pueblos, a Spanish word for "village dwellers".
By around 1000 the people had advanced to stone masonry buildings. Remember - this happened over a 250-year period, and the earlier people had been there for about 150 years before that! The stone walls were made from concrete-block-sized stones that were shaped to make a better fit. Some walls were single-course, some double-course. These stone buildings were 2-3 stories tall in some cases. Think of the effort to haul stones in, chip at them to make rectangular shapes, and then haul them up three stories to place them in a wall. We were very impressed with the quality of the stonework. The stones were shaped well and uniform in many cases, and the masonry lines were straight and the walls true. We saw several examples of stone walls, some had been reduced to just a few feet high, while some others were still several stories high.
Between 1000 and 1300 the communities grew and there were several thousand people living in the Mesa Verde area. It seems that they congregated into compact villages rather than scattered dwellings. There were usually community facilities such as kivas and storage rooms that the community shared. From the remains that have been found, it seems that the basketmaking skills deteriorated over time, probably because their pottery skills improved and they had less need for baskets.
Around 1200 people began moving from the communities on the top of the mesas into communities built into caves and alcoves in the rock walls of the canyons. Why they moved is not known. but 500-700 years prior some of the people lived in the stone walls as well as on top. Elaborate communities were constructed in these holes in the walls and these are the dwellings we had first thought of when we thought of Mesa Verde. We saw several examples of these cliff dwelling communities but from a distance. There are tours where you can get closer but that requires strenuous climbing and long hikes. The quality of stonework in these communities varies, with rough work next to quality work. Some of these houses had plastered walls inside. These cliff dwellings were built from the late 1190s to the late 1270s.
But the Ancestral Puebloans lived in these cliff dwellings for less than 100 years, and by around 1300 the whole Mesa Verde area was deserted. Why this move no one knows. The populace moved southward into New Mexico and Arizona, to move in with kin who were already there. So some of today's pueblo people and perhaps tribes elswhere are descendants of these Ancestral Puebloans.
By the way, the term Anasazi was used to identify these people at Mesa Verde for many years, but the term Ancestral Puebloans has since replaced it.
The Ancestral Puebloans lived in the Mesa Verde area for a total of about 700 years. When you remember that the oldest non-Native communities in what we call the US are only about 400 years old you get a better idea of how long this group was in the area. I cannot imagine what must have happened to cause them to leave Mesa Verde after such a long history and such continued construction, nor can I imagine that such a decision was taken lightly. Can you imagine the white population abandoning the US continent and moving to somewhere else? Or even the population of a region?