El Morro National Monument in New Mexico stands as a silent witness to centuries of human passage. Archaeological discoveries and countless inscriptions carved into the base of its towering sandstone bluff reveal that this location has been a vital and dependable water source for over a millennium. This remarkable site, situated on the eastern edge of the Colorado Plateau, serves as a unique historical record, bearing petroglyphs from the region’s original inhabitants alongside markings left by Spanish conquistadors and American cavalry soldiers. In essence, El Morro functions as a vast stone guest book, containing over 2,000 inscriptions and petroglyphs that narrate a compelling story of exploration, conquest, and the enduring human connection to this land.
The first recorded European visitor to leave his mark at El Morro was Don Juan de Oñate. In April 1605, while returning to San Gabriel from an expedition to the Pacific Ocean, Oñate stopped at El Morro and carved his name into the rock. This inscription predates the arrival of the Pilgrims at Plymouth Rock by fifteen years, marking a significant early chapter in the European exploration of North America. Oñate’s inscription, a testament to his journey and ambition, reads: “Pasó por aqui, el adelantado Don Juan de Oñate del descubrimiento de la mar del sur a 16 de Abril de 1605.” Translated into English, it proclaims: “Passed by here, the adelantado Don Juan de Oñate from the discovery of the sea of the south the 16th of April of 1605.”
Following Oñate, numerous travelers over the subsequent centuries continued the tradition of recording their passage at El Morro. Many left simple inscriptions, often just a name and date, marking their presence in this remote location. Others, however, provided more detailed accounts of their journeys and perspectives. Among these was Franciscan priest Father Nieto, who in 1629 inscribed a message reflecting the prevailing colonial attitude of the time. His inscription, translated from Spanish, boasts: “Here was the Señor and Governor Don Manuel de Silva Nieto, whose indubitable arm and valor have now overcome the impossible with the wagons of the King Our Lord, a thing which he alone put into effect, August 5, 1629, that one may well to Zuni pass and carry the faith.” Father Nieto’s words suggest a belief that the Zuni people had been subjugated by 1629, a notion that would soon be challenged.
Just a few years later, the complexities of Spanish-Zuni relations were further etched into the stone of El Morro. In 1632, a Spanish soldier passing through El Morro with his unit left an inscription that offered a starkly different perspective. This inscription, left on behalf of his unit, reads: “They passed on March 23, 1632, to avenge the death of Father Letrado — Lujan.” This somber message alludes to the ongoing resistance and conflict between the Spanish and the indigenous populations, correcting Father Nieto’s earlier optimistic, and ultimately premature, declaration of pacification.
The historical narrative of El Morro National Monument extends beyond the Spanish colonial period. Following the Mexican-American War in 1846, the American presence in the region grew significantly. In September 1849, Lt. James H. Simpson, a topographical engineer with the US Army, while surveying the Zuni and Navajo territories, encountered the remarkable inscriptions at El Morro. Recognizing the historical significance of the site, Simpson began meticulously documenting the symbols, signatures, and dates he found on the promontory, aptly naming the mesa “Inscription Rock.” Simpson and his party also added their own signatures to the rock, contributing two of the twenty Anglo-American names found at El Morro. By the 1850s, El Morro had become a crucial watering stop for the countless American wagon trains journeying westward towards California, further cementing its role as a landmark in the American West.
Recognizing the unique historical and cultural value of this site, the United States government established the 1278 acres surrounding Inscription Rock as El Morro National Monument in 1906. With the establishment of the National Monument, the National Park Service took on the responsibility of preserving this invaluable historical record, prohibiting any further carvings on the mesa to protect the existing inscriptions and petroglyphs for future generations. Today, El Morro National Monument continues to stand as a powerful testament to the diverse peoples and cultures that have traversed this landscape, leaving their indelible marks on its stone canvas.
