Culture and Ecology of Chaco Canyon and the San Juan Basin

Explaining Pueblo Social Organization 287The construction of big-room suites and large kivasthat are the beginning units in great houses during themiddle A.D. 800s is thought to represent constructionthat functioned to increase storage capacity for multifamily,or cooperating, groups. (However, theMcElmo-style construction that begins at the end ofthe A.D. 1000s and is more marked during the earlyA.D. 1100s falls into a different precipitation patternand requires additional explanation.)Within this period, spatial variability in precipitationis low, but there are some fluctuations thatoccur in approximately 50-year segments that wouldpromote both fission and fusion (see correlation chartin Lekson 2005; and at http://www.srifoundation.org/Chaco/Chaco/html).During periods withhigher spatial variability in precipitation, those whoremained in place and continued to use areas withbetter soils and water availability would haveadvantages; establishing the rights of these foundingsegments would become important. Over time, thiswould strengthen the importance of founding familiesand lineages, and, eventually, clans.The first period of increased spatial variabilityof precipitation in Chaco Canyon occurs betweenA.D. 775 and 825. Increased interlocal reliance andexchange are expected, but no one family or leaderwould have a lasting advantage.Between A.D. 825 and 875, a slight decrease inspatial variability would encourage planting in severalzones within the local area and/or the dispersion ofsmall groups into new lands. The construction ofearly components at Pueblo Bonito and two other greathouses in better watered areas of Chaco Canyon(Judge et al. 1981) probably occurred during thewetter interval between A.D. 850 and 864 (WindesandD. Ford 1996:309). Big-room suites, courtkivas,and larger storage capacity suggest suprafamily use bythose possibly living and working at some distancefrom their central place. Based on the analysis of laterrooms at Pueblo Alto (Windes 1987[1]), it is assumedthat some suites were probably for habitation bymembers of the segments who constructed them.Additional space for kinsmen and associates duringfeasts would strengthen ties between those in the greathouse and those living at some distance, even if itwere only at a small site located in Chaco Canyon, theChaco halo, or elsewhere in the San Juan Basin.Increased spatial variability in rainfall betweenA.D. 875 to 900 would again foster increasedinteraction. At both 29SJ1360 (McKenna 1984) and29SJ629 (Windes 1993), there is evidence for use ofkivas by more than one family around this time.Architectural studies by Truell (1986) and Lekson(1984a) suggest continuity in form between small sitesand great houses; great houses probably functioned aspublic space for members in the local community, aswell as for those coming from more distant locationsfor short-term events. The great house settlementswould have the space and the surplus to host largernumbers during scheduled events. The few settlementswith great houses, and their size, during thisperiod suggest that most interaction was still amongfamilies or households. A small number of settlementsthat include later great houses-e.g., the greathouse at Skunk Springs in the Chuska Valley (Windesand D. Ford 1992)-suggest similar responsesthroughout the region. This is also the period whenpeople from the northern San Juan were moving south(Windes 2006a). Communities farther away from thecanyon, especially those situated around the marginsof the San Juan Basin, would take advantage of bettersoils, but rainfall patterns would affect them in thesame way, and cooperation among segments at levelsabove the household would have been advantageous.Previously established relationships would affectwhere different people settled; sodalities and moietieswould become increasingly important to ease thetensions among various groups who were now livingcloser together; e.g., at Pueblo Pintado (Windes1999).Between A.D. 900 or 950 and 1000, channelcuttingin Chaco Canyon (Force et al. 2002) wouldlower water tables; the canyon may not have been asdesirable a place to farm. M. Toll (2000) found aninverse relationship between perennials and comduring the Red Mesa period; com was at its lowestratio in the macrobotanical samples she analyzed. Oneway to alleviate stress is to spread out across the land.Six construction episodes at great houses in the canyonwere carried out during this period, including the firstconstruction stage at Hungo Pavi (Lekson 1984a: 152,Figure 5.1; Windes and D. Ford 1996:Figure 5).Early construction dates (A.D. 9OOs) are assigned togreat houses at Pueblo Pintado, the Chaco Eastcommunity, Padilla Well, Kin Bineola, and Casa delRio (Windes and D. Ford 1992), all located in better