The Goodman Point Unit: An Archaeological "First"

In 1889, the 42 sites contained within the Goodman Point Unit of Hovenweep National Monument became the first archaeological sites in the United States to be set aside for protection by the federal government. As a result of this early intervention and the continued protection of the sites by the National Park Service, the 142-acre unit comprises one of the best-preserved archaeological landscapes in the Mesa Verde region.

Goodman Point Pueblo, the largest site in the unit and one of the largest in the entire region, is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The village served as the focal point of the greater Goodman Point community, which included nearby smaller sites in addition to the village itself. The presence of public architecture—including a great kiva, multiple plazas, and a large, multistory, D-shaped building—points toward an important and central role for Goodman Point Pueblo in the social landscape of the Mesa Verde region.