Zuni Mountains
Encyclopedia
The Zuni Mountains are a mountain range
in Cibola County
of northwestern New Mexico
. (A small portion extends into McKinley County
.) The range is located largely in the Cibola National Forest
, lying south of Interstate 40
from southeast of Gallup
to southwest of Grants
. The range is about sixty miles long and forty miles wide. The highest point is Mount Sedgwick, 9,256 feet (2,821 m); elevations in the range go down to 6,400 feet (1,950 m).
The Zuni Mountains are located at 35°10′4"N 108°19′0"W, surrounded by the Zuni Indian Reservation
, the Ramah Navajo Indian Reservation
, and El Morro National Monument
to the southwest, El Malpais National Monument
to the south, Acoma Pueblo
to the east, and the Navajo Nation
to the north.
Geologically, the Zuni Mountains form a northwest-southeast trending uplift with a core of Precambrian
granite
and metamorphic rock
s, surrounded by red sandstone. A total of 20000 ft (6,096 m) of previously overlying layers of Cretaceous
and older sedimentary rock
s have been eroded away from the highest part of the range, but appear in outlying areas. The range was part of the ancestral Rocky Mountains in the Pennsylvanian
epoch. There are no dramatic peaks, but there are plateau
s, cliff
s, and canyon
s. The Zuni Mountains sit on the Continental Divide
and form part of the southern edge of the Colorado Plateau
.
The history of the range includes ancient and continuing use of the mountains by local native peoples, including the Zuni, Acoma
, and Navajo
; extensive logging
in the early half of the 20th century; and agriculture
and mining
(including copper
and fluorspar) in the mid-20th century.
Mountain range
A mountain range is a single, large mass consisting of a succession of mountains or narrowly spaced mountain ridges, with or without peaks, closely related in position, direction, formation, and age; a component part of a mountain system or of a mountain chain...
in Cibola County
Cibola County, New Mexico
-2010:Whereas according to the 2010 U.S. Census Bureau:*41.8% White*1.0% Black*41.0% Native American*0.5% Asian*0.1% Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander*3.1% Two or more races*12.5% Other races*36.5% Hispanic or Latino -2000:...
of northwestern New Mexico
New Mexico
New Mexico is a state located in the southwest and western regions of the United States. New Mexico is also usually considered one of the Mountain States. With a population density of 16 per square mile, New Mexico is the sixth-most sparsely inhabited U.S...
. (A small portion extends into McKinley County
McKinley County, New Mexico
-2010:Whereas according to the 2010 U.S. Census Bureau:*15.2% White*0.5% Black*75.5% Native American*0.8% Asian*0.0% Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander*3.1% Two or more races*4.6% Other races*13.3% Hispanic or Latino -2000:...
.) The range is located largely in the Cibola National Forest
Cibola National Forest
The Cibola National Forest is a United States National Forest in western and central New Mexico, USA. The forest also manages four National Grasslands that stretch from northeastern New Mexico eastward into the Texas Panhandle and western Oklahoma. It is administered by the United States Forest...
, lying south of Interstate 40
Interstate 40
Interstate 40 is the third-longest major east–west Interstate Highway in the United States, after I-90 and I-80. Its western end is at Interstate 15 in Barstow, California; its eastern end is at a concurrency of U.S. Route 117 and North Carolina Highway 132 in Wilmington, North Carolina...
from southeast of Gallup
Gallup, New Mexico
- Demographics :As of the census of 2000, there were 20,209 people, 6,810 households, and 4,869 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,513.7 people per square mile...
to southwest of Grants
Grants, New Mexico
Grants is a city in Cibola County, New Mexico, United States. The population was 9,182 at the 2010 Census. It is the county seat of Cibola County....
. The range is about sixty miles long and forty miles wide. The highest point is Mount Sedgwick, 9,256 feet (2,821 m); elevations in the range go down to 6,400 feet (1,950 m).
The Zuni Mountains are located at 35°10′4"N 108°19′0"W, surrounded by the Zuni Indian Reservation
Zuni Indian Reservation
The Zuni Indian Reservation is the homeland of the Zuni tribe of Native Americans. It lies in the Zuni River valley and is located primarily in McKinley and Cibola counties in western New Mexico, about west of Albuquerque. There are also several smaller non-contiguous sections in Apache County,...
, the Ramah Navajo Indian Reservation
Ramah Navajo Indian Reservation
The Ramah Navajo Indian Reservation is a non-contiguous section of the Navajo Nation lying in parts of west-central Cibola and southern McKinley counties in New Mexico, USA, just east and southeast of the Zuni Indian Reservation. It has a land area of 230.675 sq mi , over 95 percent of which is...
, and El Morro National Monument
El Morro National Monument
El Morro National Monument is located on an ancient east-west trail in western New Mexico. The main feature of this National Monument is a great sandstone promontory with a pool of water at its base. As a shaded oasis in the western U.S. desert, this site has seen many centuries of travelers...
to the southwest, El Malpais National Monument
El Malpais National Monument
El Malpais National Monument is a National Monument located in western New Mexico, in the Southwestern United States. The name El Malpais is from the Spanish term Malpaís, meaning badlands, due to the extremely barren and dramatic volcanic field that covers much of the park's area.-Geography:The El...
to the south, Acoma Pueblo
Acoma Pueblo
Acoma Pueblo is a Native American pueblo approximately 60 miles west of Albuquerque, New Mexico in the United States. Three reservations make up Acoma Pueblo: Sky City , Acomita, and McCartys. The Acoma Pueblo tribe is a federally recognized tribal entity...
to the east, and the Navajo Nation
Navajo Nation
The Navajo Nation is a semi-autonomous Native American-governed territory covering , occupying all of northeastern Arizona, the southeastern portion of Utah, and northwestern New Mexico...
to the north.
Geologically, the Zuni Mountains form a northwest-southeast trending uplift with a core of Precambrian
Precambrian
The Precambrian is the name which describes the large span of time in Earth's history before the current Phanerozoic Eon, and is a Supereon divided into several eons of the geologic time scale...
granite
Granite
Granite is a common and widely occurring type of intrusive, felsic, igneous rock. Granite usually has a medium- to coarse-grained texture. Occasionally some individual crystals are larger than the groundmass, in which case the texture is known as porphyritic. A granitic rock with a porphyritic...
and metamorphic rock
Metamorphic rock
Metamorphic rock is the transformation of an existing rock type, the protolith, in a process called metamorphism, which means "change in form". The protolith is subjected to heat and pressure causing profound physical and/or chemical change...
s, surrounded by red sandstone. A total of 20000 ft (6,096 m) of previously overlying layers of Cretaceous
Cretaceous
The Cretaceous , derived from the Latin "creta" , usually abbreviated K for its German translation Kreide , is a geologic period and system from circa to million years ago. In the geologic timescale, the Cretaceous follows the Jurassic period and is followed by the Paleogene period of the...
and older sedimentary rock
Sedimentary rock
Sedimentary rock are types of rock that are formed by the deposition of material at the Earth's surface and within bodies of water. Sedimentation is the collective name for processes that cause mineral and/or organic particles to settle and accumulate or minerals to precipitate from a solution....
s have been eroded away from the highest part of the range, but appear in outlying areas. The range was part of the ancestral Rocky Mountains in the Pennsylvanian
Pennsylvanian
The Pennsylvanian is, in the ICS geologic timescale, the younger of two subperiods of the Carboniferous Period. It lasted from roughly . As with most other geochronologic units, the rock beds that define the Pennsylvanian are well identified, but the exact date of the start and end are uncertain...
epoch. There are no dramatic peaks, but there are plateau
Plateau
In geology and earth science, a plateau , also called a high plain or tableland, is an area of highland, usually consisting of relatively flat terrain. A highly eroded plateau is called a dissected plateau...
s, cliff
Cliff
In geography and geology, a cliff is a significant vertical, or near vertical, rock exposure. Cliffs are formed as erosion landforms due to the processes of erosion and weathering that produce them. Cliffs are common on coasts, in mountainous areas, escarpments and along rivers. Cliffs are usually...
s, and canyon
Canyon
A canyon or gorge is a deep ravine between cliffs often carved from the landscape by a river. Rivers have a natural tendency to reach a baseline elevation, which is the same elevation as the body of water it will eventually drain into. This forms a canyon. Most canyons were formed by a process of...
s. The Zuni Mountains sit on the Continental Divide
Continental Divide
The Continental Divide of the Americas, or merely the Continental Gulf of Division or Great Divide, is the name given to the principal, and largely mountainous, hydrological divide of the Americas that separates the watersheds that drain into the Pacific Ocean from those river systems that drain...
and form part of the southern edge of the Colorado Plateau
Colorado Plateau
The Colorado Plateau, also called the Colorado Plateau Province, is a physiographic region of the Intermontane Plateaus, roughly centered on the Four Corners region of the southwestern United States. The province covers an area of 337,000 km2 within western Colorado, northwestern New Mexico,...
.
The history of the range includes ancient and continuing use of the mountains by local native peoples, including the Zuni, Acoma
Acoma Indian Reservation
The Acoma Indian Reservation is located in parts of Cibola, Socorro, and Catron counties, New Mexico, USA, and covers 594.996 sq mi . The number of tribal members is about 6000. The reservation borders the Laguna Indian Reservation to the east and is near El Malpais National Monument due west...
, and Navajo
Navajo people
The Navajo of the Southwestern United States are the largest single federally recognized tribe of the United States of America. The Navajo Nation has 300,048 enrolled tribal members. The Navajo Nation constitutes an independent governmental body which manages the Navajo Indian reservation in the...
; extensive logging
Logging
Logging is the cutting, skidding, on-site processing, and loading of trees or logs onto trucks.In forestry, the term logging is sometimes used in a narrow sense concerning the logistics of moving wood from the stump to somewhere outside the forest, usually a sawmill or a lumber yard...
in the early half of the 20th century; and agriculture
Agriculture
Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...
and mining
Mining
Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the earth, from an ore body, vein or seam. The term also includes the removal of soil. Materials recovered by mining include base metals, precious metals, iron, uranium, coal, diamonds, limestone, oil shale, rock...
(including copper
Copper
Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu and atomic number 29. It is a ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. Pure copper is soft and malleable; an exposed surface has a reddish-orange tarnish...
and fluorspar) in the mid-20th century.