Within the national monument are perhaps 800 prehistoric and historic Indian village sites, representing various stages of Pueblo and later Navajo cultural development and spanning a period of about 1,800 years. The most interesting and important ruins are described below.
WHITE HOUSE
Located up the main canyon, about 6 miles from Park Service headquarters, White House is one of the largest, best preserved, and most accessible ruins in the monument.
A kiva at the White House ruin, where religious and other ceremonies were held.
Lt. J. H. Simpson described this ruin after his 1849 visit, calling it Casa Blanca (White House). It is also known by its Navajo name, Kini-na-e-kai. Both names derive from a conspicuous white-plastered wall in the upper portion.
White House was constructed in two sections; one stands against the base of the cliff on the canyon floor, and the other is in a small cave immediately above. Mindeleff estimated that at one time the whole ruin contained as many as 80 rooms. Much of the lower building has probably been washed away by the stream nearby (a retaining wall now helps to prevent this), but evidence of about 60 rooms and 4 kivas (special ceremonial chambers) still survives.
Behind the back walls of the lower ruin the smooth cliff face rises 35 feet to the floor of the cave above. Marks on the face indicate that at one time the rooms of the lower building stood several stories high, and its roof came to within 4 feet of the cave floor above.
This map shows only the principal ruins in the canyons that are open to visitors. Only some of these are discussed in the text. The rock formations of these canyons eroded easily, thus producing the steep cliffs and cave formations that provided protection for the Anasazi.