The Mogollon Indians were one of four major prehistoric archaeological culture areas of the American Southwest and Northern Mexico. The Mogollon lived in the Southwest from approximately 150 A.D. until about 1450 A.D.

The name Mogollon comes from the Mogollon Mountains, named after Don Juan Ignacio Flores Mogollón, the Spanish Governor of New Mexico from 1712-1715.

They are thought to be the first of the southwestern peoples to farm, build shelters, and make pottery. They also harvested wild plants and hunted small game to supplement their diet. Hunting became more common when they adopted the bow and arrow around 500 A.D. They lived a sedentary village lifestyle near streams, often in canyons or other easily defensible locations. Their homes were similar to Hohokam pit houses, though smaller and taller. The most prominent structure, called a kiva, served as the village’s social and ceremonial center.

The nature and density of Mogollon residential villages changed over time. The earliest Mogollon villages were small hamlets composed of several pithouses; however, by the 11th Century, surface pueblos became common. By the 13th and 14th Centuries, they were also building cliff dwellings.

Archaeological sites attributed to the Mogollon culture are in the Gila Wilderness, Upper Gila River, and the Mimbres River Valley in New Mexico and at Hueco Tanks northwest of El Paso, Texas. Gila Cliff Dwellings National Monument in southwestern New Mexico, established as a National Monument in 1907, contains several archaeological sites.

 

© Kathy Alexander/Legends of America, updated October 2026.

Also See:

Native American Archaeological Periods

Native Americans – First Owners of America

Native American Photo Galleries

Native American Tribes

See Sources.