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118-628: Averaging about 5,400 feet (1,600 m) in elevation, the park has a dry windy climate with temperatures that vary from summer highs of about 100 °F (38 °C) to winter lows well below freezing. More than 400 species of plants, dominated by grasses such as bunchgrass , blue grama, and sacaton , are found in the park. Fauna include larger animals such as pronghorns , coyotes , and bobcats ; many smaller animals, such as deer mice , snakes, lizards, and seven kinds of amphibians ; and more than 200 species of birds, some of which are permanent residents and many of which are migratory . About one third of

236-452: A Grama Bouteloua /Galleta Hilaria (plant) Steppe ( 53 ) potential vegetation type with a Desert Grassland ( 12 ) vegetation form and a Juniper / Pinyon pine (23) vegetation type with a Great Basin montane forest /Southwest Forest (4) vegetation form. A 2005 survey found that 447 species of flora, of which 57 species are invasive , occur in the park. Although the park is known for its fossils and eroded badlands, its main environment

354-563: A fire's spreading. Navajo Nation The Navajo Nation ( Navajo : Naabeehó Bináhásdzo ), also known as Navajoland , is an Indian reservation of Navajo people in the United States. It occupies portions of northeastern Arizona , northwestern New Mexico , and southeastern Utah . The seat of government is located in Window Rock, Arizona . At roughly 17,544,500 acres (71,000 km ; 27,413 sq mi),

472-427: A gift shop, a gas station, a post office open from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Monday through Friday, a postal drop box, and public restrooms. The Rainbow Forest Museum complex 2 miles (3.2 km) north of the park's south entrance offers services including information and "Timeless Impressions" showings once every half-hour. It has a bookstore, fossil exhibits, an interactive Triassic Virtual Tour, limited food service,

590-494: A gift shop, and public restrooms. The Painted Desert Inn, 2 miles (3.2 km) north of the Painted Desert Visitor Center, offers visitor information. It has a bookstore, museum exhibits (including the building itself), and public restrooms. No campgrounds or overnight lodging are available in the park, although nearby communities such as Holbrook offer motels and other accommodations. Overnight parking

708-472: A large lake basin covered much of northeastern Arizona. The older (lower) layers of the formation consist of fluvial and lacustrine (lake-related) deposits of silt, sand, and clay. The younger (upper) Bidahochi contains ash and lava from volcanoes that erupted nearby and as far away as southwestern Nevada. Although much of the Bidahochi has since eroded, a small part of it outcrops in the northern part of

826-639: A mediation-style process. While the people were held at Bosque Redondo, the U.S. Army handled severe crimes. Lesser crimes and disputes remained in the purview of the villages' chiefs. After the Navajo return from Bosque Redondo in 1868, listed criminal offenses were handled by the US Indian Agent of the Bureau of Indian Affairs with support of the U.S. Army, while lesser disputes remained under Navajo control. In 1892, BIA Agent David L. Shipley established

944-619: A patina known as desert varnish . Most of the petroglyphs in Petrified Forest National Park are thought to be between 650 and 2,000 years old. From the 16th through the 18th centuries, explorers looking for routes between Spanish colonies along the Rio Grande to the southeast and other Spanish colonies on the Pacific coast to the west passed near or through the area, which they called El Desierto Pintado ,

1062-481: A small fraction of the logs and most of the park's petrified animal bones have cells and other spaces that are mineral-filled but still retain much of their original organic structure. With these permineralized fossils, it is possible to study the cellular make-up of the original organisms with the aid of a microscope. Other organic matter—typically leaves, seeds, pine-cones, pollen grains, spores , small stems, and fish, insect, and animal remains—have been preserved in

1180-531: A small masonry structure built from petrified wood that is open to the public) signaling a greater degree of residential permanence. During the Late Pueblo II and Early Pueblo III periods 1050–1225 local population size grew rapidly. Similar to much of the Ancestral Pueblo world, population density increased rapidly at this time and nearly 1,000 sites dating to this period have been identified in

1298-484: A source of prestige. Also during this period, under the Indian Reorganization Act (IRA) of 1934, the federal government was encouraging tribes to revive their governments according to constitutional models shaped after that of the United States. Because of the outrage and discontent about the herd issues, the Navajo voters did not trust the language of the proposed initial constitution outlined in

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1416-593: A talk or walk along the Giant Logs Trail behind the museum, and a Puerco Pueblo guided walk. The park hosts special events related to Earth Science Week and National American Indian Heritage Month . On Saturdays from Memorial Day weekend through Labor Day at the Painted Desert Inn, artisans from the region give cultural demonstrations related to ancient peoples, intertribal relationships, and European-descent cultures. For students and teachers,

1534-533: A term used in many languages as an endonym . Among the Navajo populace, both terms are employed. In 2017, the Navajo Nation Council rejected legislation to change the name to "Diné Nation", citing potential "confusion and frustration among Navajo citizens and non-Navajos". In Navajo, the geographic entity with its legally defined borders is known as Naabeehó Bináhásdzo . This contrasts with Diné Bikéyah and Naabeehó Bikéyah for

1652-625: A voluntary basis, at market rates, through this program if their tribe participated. Through March 2017, under the Tribal Nations Buy-Back Program, individual Navajo members received $ 104 million for purchase of their interests in land; 155,503 acres were returned to the Navajo Nation for its territory by the Department of Interior under this program. In the traditional Navajo culture, local leadership

1770-495: Is allowed in the wilderness areas; water for horses is available at the service station near the Painted Desert Visitor Center. Riders and hikers are asked to travel along dry washes as much as possible to reduce the impact on fragile desert soils. Rangers offer a variety of programs about the park. Regularly scheduled events include a Painted Desert Inn tour, a Triassic program at the Rainbow Forest Museum sunroom,

1888-691: Is available on the Navajo Nation Office of Legislative Services, as well as a section for amendments beginning from January 2014 to December 2022. There is a map that outlines the boundaries of the Navajo Nation, available on the Navajo Land Department's Website. Also, see Dine Land Use's website for the history of the Navajo Nation's land base. Lands within the boundaries of the Navajo Nation are composed of Public, Tribal Trust, Tribal Fee, Bureau of Land Management (BLM), Private, State, and BIA Indian Allotment Lands. Within

2006-400: Is called the "checkerboard area". It resulted in the loss of much Navajo land. In the southeastern area of the reservation, the Navajo Nation has purchased some ranches, which it refers to as its Nahata Dził , or New Lands. These lands are leased to Navajo individuals, livestock companies, and grazing associations. In 1996, Elouise Cobell ( Blackfeet ) filed a class action lawsuit against

2124-449: Is not allowed except in the case of backpackers with wilderness hiking permits. Sightseeing is available by private automobile, motorcycle, commercial tour, bicycle, and hiking. The park road, parking lots, and turn-outs are big enough to accommodate large recreational vehicles. Off-road vehicle travel, including by mountain bike , is not allowed. With a few exceptions such as unpaved Old Highway 66, bicycles must stay on paved roads such as

2242-649: Is now deposited at the University of California Museum of Paleontology . In 1919, a phytosaur skull was discovered near Blue Mesa in the Petrified Forest by Ynez Mexia and sent to the Museum of Paleontology in Berkeley. In 1921, Annie Alexander , founder of the museum, visited Blue Mesa to collect more of the phytosaur and other specimens; this led to further excavations by paleontologist Charles Camp . Camp

2360-814: Is rooted in their clans and oral history. The clan system of the Diné is integral to their society. The system has rules of behavior that extend to the manner of refined culture that the Navajo people call "walking in beauty". The philosophy and clan system were established long before the Spanish colonial occupation of Dinétah, through to July 25, 1868, when Congress ratified the Navajo Treaty with President Andrew Johnson , signed by Barboncito , Armijo , and other chiefs and headmen present at Bosque Redondo , New Mexico. The Navajo people have continued to transform their conceptual understandings of government since signing

2478-568: Is semi-desert shrub steppe. Protected from development and overgrazing for many years, the park has some of the best grassland in northeastern Arizona. In the northern part of the park, the volcanic soils of the Bidahochi Formation support abundant plant life along the Painted Desert rim. In contrast to the relatively bare badlands below, the rim is covered with shrubs, small trees, grasses, and herbs. The dominant plants in

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2596-448: Is still a problem. Despite a guard force of seven National Park Service rangers , fences, warning signs, and the threat of a $ 325  fine , an estimated 12 short tons (11,000  kg ) of the fossil wood is stolen from the Petrified Forest every year. Jessee Walter Fewkes , the first archeologist to visit Puerco Ruin, predicted in the late 19th century that it would yield many artifacts. Conservationist John Muir conducted

2714-415: Is the golden eagle , with a wingspan of up to 7 feet (2 m). The park is open every day except Christmas on a schedule that varies slightly with the seasons. In 2010, it and its Painted Desert Visitor Center and Rainbow Forest Museum were open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. from May 9 through September 6 but opened as early as 8 a.m. and closed as late as 5 p.m. during other parts of

2832-400: Is the largest and most often seen. Plateau striped whiptails , a species consisting entirely of females, prefer grasslands and developed areas. Side-blotched lizards live in rocky areas of the park but are seldom seen. Gopher snakes , which sometimes imitate rattlesnakes when disturbed, are among the most common snakes in the park. The Prairie rattlesnake , the only venomous snake found in

2950-401: The 37th parallel in the north; the southern border as a line running through Fort Defiance ; the eastern border as a line running through Fort Lyon ; and in the west as longitude 109° 30′. As drafted in 1868, the boundaries were defined as: the following district of country, to wit: bounded on the north by the 37th degree of north latitude, south by an east and west line passing through

3068-587: The Archaic Period , nomadic groups established seasonal camps in the Petrified Forest from which they hunted game such as rabbits, pronghorn antelope, and deer and harvested seeds from Indian ricegrass and other wild plants. By at least 1000  BCE and through the Basketmaker II period (400  BCE –500  CE )Ancestral Puebloan farmers began to grow corn. Between 200–500  CE population size grew rapidly. Many families built houses in

3186-597: The BNSF Railway , and the Puerco River bisect the park generally east–west along a similar route. Adamana , a ghost town , is about 1 mile (1.6 km) west of the park along the BNSF tracks. Holbrook , about 26 miles (40 km) west of park headquarters along I-40, is the nearest city. Bisecting the park north–south is Park Road, which runs between I-40 near park headquarters on the north and U.S. Route 180 on

3304-524: The Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) attempted to mitigate environmental damage due to over-grazing on reservations. Significant pushback was given by the Navajo, who did not feel that they had been sufficiently consulted before the measures were implemented. BIA Superintendent John Collier 's attempt to reduce livestock herd size affected responses to his other efforts to improve conditions for Native Americans. The herds had been central to Navajo culture, and were

3422-467: The Bureau of Land Management , and private land, much of it used for cattle ranching, adjoin the other borders. The park's elevation above sea level varies from a low of 5,340 feet (1,630 m) along the Puerco River to a high of 6,230 feet (1,900 m) at Pilot Rock; the average elevation is about 5,400 feet (1,650 m). The terrain varies from gentle hills and major petrified wood deposits in

3540-677: The Colorado Plateau , of which the park is part, was pushed upward by tectonic forces and exposed to increased erosion. All of the park's rock layers above the Chinle, except geologically recent ones found in parts of the park, have been removed by wind and water. In addition to petrified logs, fossils found in the park have included Late Triassic ferns, cycads , ginkgoes , and many other plants as well as fauna including giant reptiles called phytosaurs , large amphibians, and early dinosaurs. Paleontologists have been unearthing and studying

3658-592: The Mesozoic era, about 225-207 million years ago. During this epoch, the region that is now the park was near the equator on the southwestern edge of the supercontinent Pangaea , and its climate was humid and sub-tropical. What later became northeastern Arizona was a low plain flanked by mountains to the south and southeast and a sea to the west. Streams flowing across the plain from the highlands deposited inorganic sediment and organic matter, including trees as well as other plants and animals that had entered or fallen into

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3776-866: The National Register of Historic Places . Eight other sites within the park are also on the National Register, including the Painted Desert Inn and associated cabins, the Agate House Pueblo , the Painted Desert Petroglyphs and Ruins Archeological District, Newspaper Rock Petroglyphs Archeological District , Puerco Ruin and Petroglyphs , the Flattop Site (an archeological site), the Twin Buttes Archeological District , and

3894-684: The Painted Desert gets its name, is up to 800 feet (240 m) thick in the park. It consists of a variety of sedimentary rocks including beds of soft, fine-grained mudstone , siltstone , and claystone —much of which is bentonite —as well as harder sandstone and conglomerate , and limestone . Exposed to wind and water, the Chinle usually erodes differentially into badlands made up of cliffs, gullies, mesas , buttes , and rounded hills. Its bentonite clay, which swells when wet and shrinks while drying, causes surface movement and cracking that discourages plant growth. Lack of plant cover makes

4012-530: The Placerias Quarry near St. Johns . Fossil invertebrates include freshwater snails and clams . The oldest fossil crayfish , Enoploclytia porteri , was also described from the park, although it is not considered a crayfish proper (instead placed in Erymidae ). New animal species that were first identified from localities within the current park boundaries, some of which remain known only from

4130-582: The U.S. Congress to create a petrified forest national park. Although this first attempt failed, in 1906 the Antiquities Act signed by President Theodore Roosevelt was used to create the Petrified Forest National Monument as the second national monument . Between 1934 and 1942, the federal Civilian Conservation Corps built road, trails, and structures in the monument, and the government acquired additional land in

4248-698: The "Navajo Nation Supreme Court", and redefined "Trial Courts of the Navajo Tribe" as "District Courts of the Navajo Nation". Navajo courts are governed by Title 7, "Courts and Procedures", of the Navajo Tribal Code. From 1988 to 2006, there were seven judicial districts and two satellite courts. As of 2010 , there are ten judicial districts, centered respectively in Alamo (Alamo/Tó'hajiilee) , Aneth , Chinle , Crownpoint , Dilkon , Kayenta , Ramah , Shiprock , Tuba City and Window Rock . All of

4366-645: The "Navajo Nation", which is displayed on its seal. In 1994, the Tribal Council rejected a proposal to change the official designation from "Navajo" to "Diné" , a traditional name for the people. Some people said that Diné represented the people in their time of suffering before the Long Walk , and that Navajo is the appropriate designation for the future. In the Navajo language , Diné means "the People",

4484-519: The 10-mile-per-hour (16 km/h) average wind causes frequent sandstorms and dust devils , some of which reach altitudes of several thousand feet. Rain is heaviest from July through September, when 42 percent of the park's annual average precipitation falls. August is the wettest month. At an elevation of more than 5,000 feet (1,500 m), Petrified Forest National Park has a chance of light snow from October through March, although snow cover rarely persists. The annual average relative humidity of

4602-531: The 28-mile (45 km) main park road and stay off trails and unpaved surfaces. The park's seven maintained hiking trails, some paved, vary in length from less than 0.5 miles (0.8 km) to nearly 3 miles (4.8 km). Pets are allowed on these trails if kept on a leash, but bicycles are not. These named trails are Painted Desert Rim, Puerco Pueblo, Blue Mesa, Crystal Forest, Giant Logs, Long Logs, and Agate House. There are also nine recently developed day-hike routes on unpaved and largely unmarked routes called "Off

4720-472: The 35th Parallel Route (also known as the Beale Camel Trail). The Painted Desert Inn was upgraded to a National Historic Landmark in 1987. The visitor center, which is near the north entrance to the park, offers visitor information and shows a 20-minute orientation movie, "Timeless Impressions", once every half-hour. It has a bookstore, exhibits, a restaurant open from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.,

4838-698: The Adamana train station, book a hotel room, and take a tour of what was then called the Chalcedony Forest. Over the years, the line changed hands, becoming the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway , and then the BNSF. More than 60 BNSF trains, mostly carrying freight, pass through the park every day. U.S. Route 66, a former transcontinental auto highway developed in 1926 from part of the National Old Trails Road , ran parallel to

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4956-629: The Arizona and Utah portions of the Navajo Nation, there are a few private and BIA Indian Allotments in comparison to New Mexico's portion, which consists of a checkerboard pattern of all the aforementioned lands. The Eastern Agency, as it is referred to, consists of primarily Tribal Fee, BIA Indian Allotments, and BLM Lands. Although there are more Tribal Fee Lands in New Mexico, the Navajo Nation government intends to convert most or all Tribal Fee Lands to Tribal Trust, which has some benefits according to

5074-542: The Arizona–New Mexico border in 1912, when the states were admitted to the union. Unlike many reservations in the U.S., it has since expanded several times since its formation, reaching its current boundaries in 1934. In English , the official name for the area was "Navajo Indian Reservation", as outlined in Article II of the 1868 Treaty of Bosque Redondo . On April 15, 1969, the tribe changed its official name to

5192-498: The Beaten Path" hikes. Hikers and backpackers may also visit the park's wilderness areas. Free permits are required for overnight stays; they are issued from the Painted Desert Visitor Center, Painted Desert Inn, and Rainbow Forest Museum. Most backpackers enter the wilderness at the north end of the park, where parking and an access trail are available at Painted Desert Inn. Group camping is limited to eight people. Horseback riding

5310-404: The Bureau of Indian Affairs. The Title II Amendment of 1989 established the Navajo Nation government as a three-part system (changes to the judicial branch had already begun in 1958). Two branches are independent of the council (where all government decision making was centralized before the change). The president and vice-president are elected every four years. The Executive nominates judges of

5428-585: The Chinle and Bidahochi. Older dunes range in age from 500,000 years at higher elevations in the northern part of the park to about 10,000 years in sandy drainage areas such as Lithodendron Wash. Stabilized by grasses and other vegetation, young dunes of about 1,000 years old are found throughout the park. During the Late Triassic, downed trees accumulating in river channels in what became the park were buried periodically by sediment containing volcanic ash . Groundwater dissolved silica (silicon dioxide) from

5546-470: The Chinle especially susceptible to weathering. About 60 million years ago, tectonic movements of the Earth's crust began to uplift the Colorado Plateau , of which the Painted Desert is part. Eventually parts of the plateau rose to 10,000 feet (3,000 m) above sea level. This warping of the Earth's surface led to the gradual and continuing destruction of the plateau by erosion. An unconformity (break in

5664-536: The District Courts, and the Supreme Court. The nation consists of several divisions, departments, offices, and programs as established by law. In 2006, a committee for a "Navajo Constitution" began advocating for a Navajo constitutional convention. The committee's goal was to have representation from every chapter on the Navajo Nation represented at a constitutional convention. The committee proposed

5782-665: The Hopi Mesas in Northern Arizona and at the Pueblo of Zuni in northern New Mexico, where the descendants of the ancient Petrified Forest farmers still live today. Some researchers have argued that a persistently dry climate led to out-migration, and the last residents left Puerco Pueblo in about 1380 CE. At Puerco Pueblo and many other sites within the park, petroglyphs —images, symbols, or designs—have been scratched, pecked, carved, or incised on rock surfaces, often on

5900-661: The Intergovernmental Relations Committee of the council. As of 2006, 44 chapters were LGA certified. The Navajo Nation is divided into five agencies. The seat of government is located at the Navajo Governmental Campus in Window Rock/ Tségháhoodzání . These agencies are composed of several chapters each, and reflect the five Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) agencies created in the early formation of

6018-656: The Interior for Secretarial Review , through the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA). Most conflicts and controversies between the federal government of the United States and the Nation are settled by negotiations outlined in political agreements. The Navajo Nation Code consists of codified rules and laws of the Navajo Nation. The Navajo Nation Code has 26 titles, covering subjects from the Navajo Nation Government to Commerce and Trade to Water. The 2010 version

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6136-660: The Navajo Court of Indian Offenses and appointed judges. Previously, judicial authority was exercised by the Indian Agent. In 1950, the Navajo Tribal Council decided that judges should be elected. By the time of the judicial reorganization of 1958, the council had determined that, due to problems with delayed decisions and partisan politics, appointment was a better method of selecting judges. The president makes appointments, subject to confirmation by

6254-405: The Navajo Nation Council consisted of 88 representatives. The Navajo voted for the change in an effort to have a more efficient government and to curb tribal government corruption associated with council members who established secure seats. In 1927, agents of the U.S. federal government initiated a new form of local government entities called Chapters , modeled after jurisdictional governments in

6372-493: The Navajo Nation Council; however, the president is limited to the list of names vetted by the Judiciary Committee of the council. The current judicial system for the Navajo Nation was created by the Navajo Tribal Council on 16 October 1958. It established a separate branch of government, the "Judicial Branch of the Navajo Nation Government", which became effective 1 April 1959. The Navajo Court of Indian Offenses

6490-414: The Navajo Nation is the largest Indian reservation in the United States, exceeding that of ten U.S. states . It is one of the few reservations whose lands overlap the nation's traditional homelands. In 2010, the reservation was home to 173,667 out of 332,129 Navajo tribal members; the remaining 158,462 tribal members lived outside the reservation, in urban areas (26%), border towns (10%), and elsewhere in

6608-740: The Navajo Nation. The five agencies within the Navajo Nation are Chinle Agency in Chinle, Arizona; Eastern Navajo Agency in Crownpoint, New Mexico; Western Navajo Agency in Tuba City, Arizona ; Fort Defiance Agency in Fort Defiance, Arizona ; and Shiprock Agency in Shiprock, New Mexico . The BIA agencies provide various technical services under direction of the BIA's Navajo Area Office at Gallup, New Mexico . Agencies are divided into chapters as

6726-619: The Navajo Tribal Court of Appeals. Subsequently, the Supreme Judicial Council was criticized for bringing politics directly into the judicial system and undermining "impartiality, fairness and equal protection". In December 1985, the Navajo Tribal Council passed the Judicial Reform Act of 1985, which eliminated the Supreme Judicial Council. It redefined the "Navajo Tribal Court of Appeals" as

6844-549: The Painted Desert section. The monument became a national park in 1962. Six years after the signing of the Wilderness Act in 1964 by President Lyndon B. Johnson , wilderness areas (where human activity is limited), were designated in the park. In 2004, President George W. Bush signed a bill authorizing the eventual expansion of the park from 93,353 acres (about 146 mi or 378 km) to 218,533 acres (about 341 mi or 884 km). Theft of petrified wood

6962-458: The Painted Desert. However, the park's oldest Spanish inscriptions, left by descendants of the region's early Spanish colonists, date only to the late 19th century. After the Southwest became part of the U.S. , explorers continued to look for good east–west routes along the 35th parallel . In 1853, a crew led by U.S. Army Lieutenant Amiel Whipple surveyed along a sandy wash in

7080-487: The Petrified Forest and for the first time began to stay there year-round. During the Basketmaker III period, 500–700  CE , families occupied shallow subterranean pit structures, at first on mesas or other vantage points and later at the base of bluffs and in lowlands, where the soil was better. Settlement patterns shifted and population size grew during the Pueblo I era between 700 and 900 CE and for

7198-522: The Petrified Forest in the early 1940s identified most of the large sites with stone ruins, and subsequent surveys since 1978 have identified a total of more than 600 artifact sites, many of them small. The earliest paleontological exploration of the region that is now the park was made in 1899 by paleobotanist Lester Ward , material of which is now deposited in the Smithsonian Institution . Muir also collected some fossil material, which

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7316-434: The Petrified Forest migrated to join rapidly growing communities on the Hopi Mesas to the northwest and the Pueblo of Zuni to the east–these locations are still home to thousands of descendant community members today. More than 1000 archeological sites, including petroglyphs , have been discovered in the park. These ancestral places remain important to descendant communities. In the 16th century, Spanish explorers visited

7434-474: The Treaty of 1868. Social, cultural, and political academics continue to debate the nature of modern Navajo governance and how it has evolved to include the systems and economies of the "western world". In the mid-19th century, primarily in the 1860s, most of the Navajo were forced to abandon their homes due to a series of military campaigns by the U.S. Army conducted with a scorched-earth policy and sanctioned by

7552-456: The Tribal Council to establish the current judicial, legislative, and executive model. This was a departure from the system of "Council and Chairmanship" from the previous government body. Conceptual additions were made to the language of Navajo Nation Code Title II, and the acts expanded the new government on April 1, 1990. Qualifications for the position of president include fluency in the Navajo language (this has seldom been enforced and in 2015

7670-641: The U.S. (17%). In 2020, the number of tribal members increased to 399,494, surpassing the Cherokee Nation as the largest tribal group by enrollment. The U.S. gained ownership of what is today Navajoland in 1848 following the Mexican-American War. The reservation was first established in 1868 within New Mexico Territory , initially spanning roughly 3,300,000 acres (13,000 km ); it subsequently straddled what became

7788-471: The U.S. government. The Army burned their homes and agricultural fields, and stole or killed livestock, to weaken and starve the Navajo into submission. In 1864, the main body of Navajo, numbering 8,000 adults and children, were marched 300 miles (500 km) on the Long Walk to imprisonment in Bosque Redondo. The Treaty of 1868 established the "Navajo Indian Reservation" and the Navajo people left Bosque Redondo for this territory. The borders were defined as

7906-402: The US such as counties or townships. Each chapter elected officers and followed parliamentary procedures. By 1933, more than 100 chapters operated across the Navajo Nation. The chapters served as liaisons between the Navajo and the federal governments, respectively. They also acted as voting precincts for the election of tribal council delegates. They served as forums for local tribal leaders but

8024-430: The University of Chicago (Michael Parrish), the Field Museum of Natural History (John Bolt), and Yale University (Paul Olsen). Since then, more than 300 fossil sites have been documented in the park. Research in paleontology and archeology continues at the park in the 21st century. According to the A. W. Kuchler U.S. Potential natural vegetation Types, Petrified Forest National Park encompasses two classifications;

8142-443: The area is below 50 percent and at times less than 15 percent. More than 1200 archeological sites have been found inside the boundaries of Petrified Forest National Park. Evidence suggests that the earliest inhabitants of the park arrived over 12,000 years ago. Clovis and Folsom-type spear points made from petrified wood are among the earliest artifacts of Paleoindians found in the park. Between 8,000 and 1,000  BCE ,

8260-421: The area, and by the mid-19th century a U.S. team had surveyed an east–west route through the area where the park is now located and noted the petrified wood. Later, roads and a railway followed similar routes and gave rise to tourism and, before the park was protected, to large-scale removal of fossils. Theft of petrified wood remains a problem in the 21st century. Petrified Forest National Park straddles

8378-402: The ash and carried it into the logs, where it formed quartz crystals that gradually replaced the organic matter. Traces of iron oxide and other substances combined with the silica to create varied colors in the petrified wood. In Petrified Forest National Park, most of the logs in the park retained their original external form during petrification but lost their internal structure. However,

8496-423: The border between Apache County and Navajo County in northeastern Arizona. The park is about 30 miles (50 km) long from north to south, and its width varies from a maximum of about 12 miles (20 km) in the north to a minimum of about 1 mile (1.6 km) along a narrow corridor between the north and south, where the park widens again to about 4 to 5 miles (6 to 8 km). I-40 , former U.S. Route 66 ,

8614-509: The chapters had no authority within the structure of the Navajo Nation government. In 1998, the Navajo Tribal Council passed the "Local Governance Act" (LGA), which expanded the political roles of the existing 110 chapters. It authorized them to make decisions on behalf of the chapter members and to take over certain roles previously delegated to the council and executive branches. This included entering into intergovernmental agreements with federal, state and tribal entities, subject to approval by

8732-471: The convention be held in the traditional naachid /modern chapter house format, where every member of the nation wishing to participate may do so through their home chapters. The committee was formed by former Navajo leaders Kelsey Begaye , Peterson Zah , Peter MacDonald , Ivan Gamble (a writer/social activist), and other local political activists. Prior to Long Walk of the Navajo , judicial powers were exercised by peace chiefs ( Hózhǫ́ǫ́jí Naatʼááh ) in

8850-459: The council changed the law to repeal this requirement). Term limits allow only two consecutive terms. The Navajo Nation Council, formerly the Navajo Tribal Council, is the legislative branch of the Navajo Nation. As of 2010 , the Navajo Nation Council consists of 24 delegates, representing the 110 chapters, elected every four years by registered Navajo voters. Prior to the November 2010 election,

8968-614: The design of the Navajo Nation's flag by a dark-brown rectangle. As no physical boundaries or signposts were set in place, many Navajo ignored these formal boundaries and returned to where they had been living prior to the U.S. occupation. A significant number of Navajo had never lived in the Hwéeldi (near Fort Sumner). They remained or moved near the Little Colorado and Colorado rivers, on Naatsisʼáán ( Navajo Mountain ), and some lived with Apache bands. The first expansion of

9086-424: The districts also have family courts, which have jurisdiction over domestic relations, civil relief in domestic violence, child custody and protection, name changes, quiet title, and probate. As of 2010 , there were 17 trial judges presiding in the Navajo district and family courts. The Navajo Nation Presidency, in its current form, was created on December 15, 1989, after directives from the federal government guided

9204-789: The fastest land animals in North America, are capable of 60-mile-per-hour (97 km/h) sprints. They are the second fastest land animal on Earth. The blood vessels in the huge, thin-walled ears of the jackrabbits act as heat exchangers. These hares are known for their bursts of speed, long leaps, and zigzag routes, all of which protect them from being eaten by golden eagles and other predators. The prairie dogs live in large colonies or "towns", near which many other species find food and shelter. Coyotes dine largely on rodents but also eat fruits, reptiles, insects, small mammals, birds, and carrion . Bobcats and bullsnakes hunt smaller animals, such as deer mice and white-tailed antelope squirrels in

9322-462: The federal government on behalf of an estimated 250,000–500,000 plaintiffs, Native Americans whose trust accounts did not reflect an accurate accounting of money owed them under leases or fees on trust lands. The settlement of Cobell v. Salazar in 2009 included a provision for a nearly $ 2 billion fund for the government to buy fractionated interests and restore land to tribal reservations. Individuals could sell their fractionated land interests on

9440-540: The first excavations of the ruin in 1905–06. Although he did not publish his findings, he urged the federal government to preserve Petrified Forest. Professional archeological work in the park began in the early 20th century when Walter Hough conducted excavations at Puerco Ruin and other sites. In the 1930s, the Civil Works Administration funded research in the park by archeologists H.P. Mera and C.B. Cosgrove. A National Park Service resurvey of

9558-542: The first time large groups of families aggregated together and formed large villages. During this period, each household built large well-insulated subterranean residential pit structures to keep warm during the cold winter months and several adjacent above ground rooms made from stone and jacal similar to adobe—used for food storage and daily activities during the warmer months. During the early Pueblo II period (900–1050  CE ) Ancestral Pueblo farmers began constructing above-ground masonry architecture (for example Agate House,

9676-441: The general idea of "Navajoland". Neither of these terms should be confused with Dinétah , the term used for the traditional homeland of the Navajo. This is located in the area among the four sacred Navajo mountains of Dookʼoʼoosłííd ( San Francisco Peaks ), Dibé Ntsaa ( Hesperus Mountain ), Sisnaajiní ( Blanca Peak ), and Tsoodził ( Mount Taylor ). The Navajo people 's tradition of governance

9794-508: The late 19th century, settlers and private stagecoach companies followed similar east–west routes. Homesteaders who stayed in the area developed cattle ranches on the grasslands, and cattle grazed in the Petrified Forest until the mid-20th century. Also close to the 35th parallel was the Atlantic and Pacific Railroad . Its opening in the early 1880s led to the founding of towns like Holbrook and Adamana. Visitors could stop at

9912-413: The legislation. This contributed to their rejection of the first version of a proposed tribal constitution. In the various attempts since, members found the process to be too cumbersome and a potential threat to tribal self-determination. The constitution was supposed to be reviewed and approved by BIA. The earliest efforts were rejected primarily because segments of the tribe did not find enough freedom in

10030-557: The northern part of the Petrified Forest. So impressed was Whipple by the petrified wood along the banks of the arroyo that he named it Lithodendron Creek (Stone Tree Creek). Geologist Jules Marcou , a member of the Whipple expedition, observed that the petrified trees were from the Triassic. A slightly later route along the parallel was a wagon road, built between 1857 and 1860, that involved experimental use of camels as transport. In

10148-456: The orders of the President, shall ever be permitted to pass over, settle upon, or reside in, the territory described in this article. Though the treaty had provided for one hundred miles by one hundred miles in the New Mexico Territory , the size of the territory was 3,328,302 acres (13,470 km ; 5,200 sq mi) —slightly more than half. This initial piece of land is represented in

10266-526: The park as compression fossils , flattened by the weight of the sediments above until only a thin film remains in the rock. Much of the park's petrified wood is from Araucarioxylon arizonicum , an extinct conifer tree, while some found in the northern part of the park is from Woodworthia arizonica and Schilderia adamanica trees. At least nine species of fossil trees from the park have been identified; all are extinct. The park has many other kinds of fossils besides trees. The Chinle, considered to be one of

10384-522: The park at a wide variety of locations—at the mouths of washes , near seeps , and on moisture-holding sand dunes. Between 1250 and 1450 CE Ancestral Pueblo families gathered into large apartment building-like masonry structures (also known as pueblos) with several hundred people living together in close quarters These large villages were often located near important water sources. Ancestral Pueblo people constructed more than two of these large pueblos, one called Stone Axe, about 0.5 miles (0.8 km) east of

10502-559: The park include more than 100 grass species, many native to the region. Growing among the grasses are flowering species such as evening primrose , mariposa lily , and blue flax , and shrubs such as sagebrush , saltbush , and rabbitbrush . Among the wide variety of grasses are native perennial bunchgrass , blue grama , sacaton , sideoats grama , bearded sprangletop , and bush muhly . Invasive species that crowd out slower-spreading natives include annual lovegrass and brome (cheat grass). Trees and shrubs grow in riparian zones along

10620-492: The park is designated wilderness —50,260 acres (79 sq mi; 203 km). The Petrified Forest is known for its fossils, especially fallen trees that lived in the Late Triassic Epoch , about 225 million years ago. The sediments containing the fossil logs are part of the widespread and colorful Chinle Formation , from which the Painted Desert gets its name. Beginning about 60 million years ago,

10738-530: The park's fossils since the early 20th century. The park's earliest human inhabitants arrived 13,000 years ago. These Clovis-era people are the ancestors of Native Americans. By about 2,500 years ago Ancestral Pueblo farmers were growing corn and living in subterranean pit houses in what would become the park. By one-thousand years ago Ancestral Pueblo farmers lived in above-ground, masonry dwellings called pueblos and gathered in large communal buildings called great kivas. By AD 1450 Ancestral Pueblo farmers in

10856-549: The park's riparian zones. Western pipistrelle bats feast on insects, and pallid bats eat beetles, centipedes , cicadas , praying mantises , scorpions , and other arthropods . On the Painted Desert rim, small animals find food and shelter among the denser foliage, and mule deer sometimes frequent the area. More than 16 kinds of lizards and snakes live in various habitats in the park and consume large quantities of insects, spiders, scorpions, other reptiles, and small mammals. The collared lizard , which occurs in every habitat,

10974-478: The park's washes. Willows and cottonwoods are the larger plants, joined by rushes and sedges. Here the invasive Eurasian tamarisk , also known as saltcedar, threatens native plants by crowding, using most of the available water, and increasing soil salinity by exuding salt through its leaves. Some of the larger animals roaming the grasslands include pronghorns , black-tailed jackrabbits (hares), Gunnison's prairie dogs , coyotes , bobcats and foxes. Pronghorns,

11092-515: The park, 6 other species probably do, and 18 species live in the park year-round. Thirty-five species live in the park only during the summer and 11 species only during the winter. The greatest diversity of birds occurs during fall and winter migrations. Raptors , songbirds, and ground birds are found in the park's grassland, while the Puerco River's riparian corridor is a good place for year-round residents as well as migrants such as warblers , vireos , avocets , and killdeer . Developed areas around

11210-437: The park, and the other at Puerco Pueblo, which overlooks the Puerco River near the middle of the park. There they built roughly 200 rooms around an open plaza. Some rooms had no windows or doors and could be entered by climbing a ladder and descending through a hole in the roof. At its peak, perhaps 200 people lived in this pueblo. Over time, however, Ancestral Pueblo families undertook migrations and joined rapidly growing towns on

11328-615: The park, are listed below. According to the Köppen climate classification system, Petrified Forest National Park has a cold semi-arid climate ( BSk ). According to the United States Department of Agriculture , the plant hardiness zone at the Painted Desert Visitor Center 5,764 feet (1,757 m) is 7a with an average annual extreme minimum temperature of 3.1 °F (−16.1 °C). Winter winds can reach 60 miles per hour (97 km/h). Summer breezes are lighter, but

11446-492: The park, prefers grasslands and shrub areas. Seven kinds of amphibians , which drink no water but absorb it through their permeable skins, have been identified in Petrified Forest National Park. Tiger salamanders , found in grassland and near major drainages, are the only salamander species known in Arizona. Woodhouse's toads , which are seldom seen, are the largest toads in the park. They like grasslands, riparian corridors, and developed areas. Red-spotted toads , most active in

11564-588: The park—on Pilot Rock in the park's wilderness section and along the rim of the Painted Desert between Pintado and Tawa points. Exposed by erosion of the Bidahochi are volcanic landforms called maars (flat-bottomed, roughly circular volcanic craters of explosive origin). A maar vent can be seen from the Pintado Point lookout. During the Quaternary Period (2.6 million years ago up to today), deposits of windblown sand and alluvium covered much of

11682-529: The pattern of small family farms common among Americans. This was intended to extinguish tribal land claims for such territory. The land allocated to these Navajo heads of household was initially not considered part of the reservation. Further, the federal government determined that land "left over" after all members had received allotments was to be considered "surplus" and available for sale to non-Native Americans. The allotment program continued until 1934. Today, this patchwork of reservation and non-reservation land

11800-483: The proposed forms of government. In 1935 they feared that the proposed government would hinder development and recovery of their livestock industries; in 1953 they worried about restrictions on development of mineral resources. They continued a government based on traditional models, with headmen chosen by clan groups. The Navajo Nation must submit all proposed laws to the United States Secretary of

11918-487: The railroad tracks until it was decommissioned in 1985. The park has preserved within its boundaries a small grassy section of the road. Interstate 40 , which crosses the park, replaced the older highway. Increasing tourist and commercial interest in petrified wood during the late 19th century began to alarm residents of the region. In 1895, the Arizona Territorial Legislature asked

12036-456: The rainy season, July through September, are found in rocky areas near streams and in canyons. The Great Plains toad , the most common toad in the park, prefers grasslands. Resident spadefoot toads include the New Mexico, plains, and Couch's varieties. A survey conducted in 2006 identified 216 species of birds known to have occurred in Petrified Forest National Park since the park became a protected area in 1906. Of those, 33 species breed within

12154-666: The rangers offer educational materials and field-trip talks. In some years during the summer months, artists-in-residence work in the park. Tussock (grass) Tussock grasses or bunch grasses are a group of grass species in the family Poaceae . They usually grow as singular plants in clumps, tufts, hummocks, or bunches, rather than forming a sod or lawn , in meadows , grasslands , and prairies. As perennial plants , most species live more than one season. Tussock grasses are often found as forage in pastures and ornamental grasses in gardens. Many species have long roots that may reach 2 meters (6.6 ft) or more into

12272-518: The region around Aneth, Utah in 1905 was confirmed by Congress in 1933. The eastern border was shaped primarily as a result of allotments of land to individual Navajo households under the Dawes Act of 1887. This experiment was designed to assimilate Native Americans into mainstream American culture. The federal government proposed to divide communal lands into plots assignable to heads of household – tribal members – for their subsistence farming, in

12390-625: The richest Late Triassic fossil-plant deposits in the world, contains more than 200 fossil plant taxa . Plant groups represented in the park include lycophytes , ferns , cycads , conifers, ginkgoes , as well as unclassified forms. The park has also produced one of the most diverse assemblages of fossil vertebrates from the Late Triassic. Among the groups represented are early theropod dinosaurs, crocodile-line archosaurs, temnospondyl amphibians, lissamphibians, non-archosauromorph diapsids, and other dinosauromorphs and archosauromorphs. Dicynodonts are extremely rare despite being abundantly represented at

12508-516: The rock record) of about 200 million years occurs within the park, where erosion has removed all the rock layers above the Chinle except geologically recent ones. The Bidahochi Formation , laid down only 4 to 8 million years ago, rests directly atop the Chinle, and rocks laid down in the Jurassic , Cretaceous , and much of the Tertiary are absent. During the period of the Bidahochi deposition ,

12626-605: The site of old Fort Defiance, in Canon Bonito, east by the parallel of longitude which, if prolonged south, would pass through old Fort Lyon, or the Ojo-de-oso, Bear Spring, and west by a parallel of longitude about 109º 30' west of Greenwich, provided it embraces the outlet of the Canon-de-Chilly [Canyon de Chelly], which canyon is to be all included in this reservation, shall be, and the same hereby, set apart for

12744-987: The soil, which can aid slope stabilization, erosion control , and soil porosity for precipitation absorption. Also, their roots can reach moisture more deeply than other grasses and annual plants during seasonal or climatic droughts. The plants provide habitat and food for insects (including Lepidoptera ), birds, small animals and larger herbivores , and support beneficial soil mycorrhiza . The leaves supply material, such as for basket weaving , for indigenous peoples and contemporary artists . Tussock and bunch grasses occur in almost any habitat where other grasses are found, including: grasslands , savannas and prairies , wetlands and estuaries , riparian zones , shrublands and scrublands , woodlands and forests , montane and alpine zones, tundra and dunes , and deserts . In western North American wildfires , bunch grasses tend to smolder and not ignite into flames, unlike invasive species of annual grasses that contribute to

12862-559: The south to eroded badlands in the north. Most of the park's intermittent streams—including Lithodendron Wash, Dead Wash, Ninemile Wash, and Dry Wash—empty into the Puerco River. In the southern part of the park, Cottonwood Wash and Jim Camp Wash flow into the Little Colorado River . Petrified Forest National Park is known for its fossils , especially of fallen trees that lived in the Late Triassic Epoch of

12980-461: The south. Historic Highway 180, an earlier alignment of the modern route, crosses the southern edge of the park. Like Route 66, it has deteriorated and is closed. Many unpaved maintenance roads, closed to the public, intersect Park Road at various points. The fee area of the park owned by NPS covers about 230 square miles (600 km). The Navajo Nation borders the park on the north and northeast. State-owned land, federal land controlled by

13098-441: The territory occurred on October 28, 1878, when President Rutherford Hayes signed an executive order pushing the reservation boundary 20 miles (32 km) to the west. Further additions followed throughout the late 19th and early 20th century (see map). Most of these additions were achieved through executive orders, some of which were confirmed by acts of Congress. For example, President Theodore Roosevelt 's executive order to add

13216-605: The use and occupation of the Navajo tribe of Indians, and for such other friendly tribes or individual Indians as from time to time they may be willing, with the consent of the United States, to admit among them; and the United States agrees that no persons except those herein so authorized to do, and except such officers, soldiers agents, and employees of the Government, or of the Indians, as may be authorized to enter upon Indian reservations in discharge of duties imposed by law, or

13334-416: The visitor center and museum attract western tanagers , hermit warblers , house finches , and others. Occasional shorebirds and eastern birds also visit the park. Birds commonly seen in the park include the common raven and the western meadowlark , known for its charming song. Anna's hummingbird , which can hover and fly backwards as well as forwards, is among the smallest birds in the park. The largest

13452-465: The water. Although most organic matter decays rapidly or is eaten by other organisms, some is buried so quickly that it remains intact and may become fossilized. Within the park, the sediments containing the fossil logs for which the park is named are part of the Chinle Formation . The colorful Chinle, which appears on the surface in many parts of the southwestern United States and from which

13570-584: The year. The Painted Desert Inn (a historic museum and bookstore) is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. year-round except Christmas. Park clocks are always set to Mountain Standard Time , as Arizona does not observe Daylight Saving Time . The Painted Desert Visitor Center, designed by modernist architect Richard Neutra , is part of the Painted Desert Community Complex Historic District listed on

13688-406: Was eliminated; the sitting judges became judges in the new system. The resolution established "Trial Courts of the Navajo Tribe" and the "Navajo Tribal Court of Appeals", which was the highest tribal court and its only appellate court. In 1978, the Navajo Tribal Council established a "Supreme Judicial Council", a political body rather than a court. On a discretionary basis, it could hear appeals from

13806-468: Was organized around clans , which are matrilineal kinship groups. Children are considered born into the mother's family and gain their social status from her and her clan. Her eldest brother traditionally has a strong influence on rearing the children. The clan leadership have served as a de facto government on the local level of the Navajo Nation. In 1933, during the Great Depression ,

13924-614: Was the most prolific collector in the early 20th century, but collections were also made by Maurice Mehl (University of Missouri), Edwin Colbert (American Museum of Natural History), and park naturalists like Myrl Walker. In the latter half of the 20th century, the park was inventoried by staff at the Museum of Northern Arizona (Richard Cifelli, Will Downs), with renewed collection made by researchers from Berkeley (Robert Long, Kevin Padian),

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