Before 1880
PREHISTORIC INDIANS
Traces
of Paleo Indians in Mesa County date to 11,000 B.C., and Archaic Indians
to 8,000 B.C. Fremont Indians were here about 700 to 1200 A.D. They lived in
rock shelters and pit houses, which have yielded archaeological
material. Rock art was etched or painted on cliffs and boulders. This
example from the Fremont tradition is on a Mesa County ranch. The Fremonts
eventually moved away, probably to the Rio Grande Valley and its pueblos.
(Sissi Savoya Williams Photo)