Summary and Ethnographic Report on the Elders in Residence Program, Jemez Historic Site, Jemez Springs, New Mexico

Barbour, Matthew; Garcia, Mary

From administrative summary: "Jemez Historic Site protects and interprets the archaeological remains of Giusewa Pueblo and San Jose de los Jemez Mission. The site, designated LA 679, was first opened to the public in 1935. It was listed on the New Mexico State Register of Cultural Properties on March 20, 1969, and the National Register of Historic Places on March 14, 1973. Recently, on October 16, 2012, it was designated a National Historic Landmark. The site contains a small museum and interpretative trail which explores the history of the Jemez People and the impacts of the arrival of the Franciscan Missionaries in the seventeenth century. Between June 4 and July 13 2014, Jemez Historic Site conducted the Elders in Residence Program. This program sought to offer a Native American voice in the interpretation and preservation of Jemez Historic Site while fostering a variety of public education opportunities which were available to all site visitors. The program was funded through a Small Historic Preservation Grant from the New Mexico Historic Preservation Division. This grant allowed Jemez Historic Site to contract with five Jemez Pueblo elders to visit the site for a week long residency. During each elder's visit, he or she provided tours to the general public and consulted with staff on the general management of Jemez Historic Site. This report examines the Elders in Residence Program in detail. It begins with a historical overview of Jemez Historic Site. This is followed by a description of the program from its inception to completion. Next each elder' s history and perspective on their culture and Jemez Historic Site is presented. The report concludes with an examination of the lasting impacts such a program may have on the Historic Site and the elders who participated in the program." Project funding was provided in part by a 2013 Historic Preservation Fund grant to Jemez Historic Site (project number NM-13-033) administered by the New Mexico State Historic Preservation Office (grant number 35-13-51938) and the State, Tribal, and Local Plans and Grants Division, National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior.

Summary and Ethnographic Report on the Elders in Residence Program, Jemez Historic Site, Jemez Springs, New Mexico

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