Mesa Grande Cultural Park
Mesa Grande Cultural Park is a historic site in Arizona, at a modelled elevation of 381 m. East End stands 1,240 m to the north, 17 miles off. The nearest named place is Freedom Park, a park 0.6 miles away. Apache Trail Historic Road passes 17 miles off.
The story
Sce:dagĭ Mu:val Va’aki (formerly known as Mesa Grande Cultural Park), in Mesa, Arizona, preserves a group of Hohokam structures constructed during the Classic Period. The ruins were occupied between AD 1100 and 1400 (Pueblo II – Pueblo IV Era) and were a product of the Hohokam civilization that inhabited the Salt River Valley. There the Hohokam constructed an extensive system of water canals. It is one of only two Hohokam mounds remaining in the metro Phoenix area, with the other being the Pueblo Grande Museum Archaeological Park. The site's central feature is a massive ruin of adobe walls and platforms. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1978 when it was owned by B-movie actress Acquanetta and her husband Jack Ross. The site was acquired from them in 1988 by the city of Mesa. Since the 2013 completion of the Visitor Center, the site is seasonally open to the public from October through May. Sce:dagĭ Mu:val Va’aki is operated by the Arizona Museum of Natural History, which is undertaking archaeological studies there. The mound remains remarkably intact. The general site remains protected but undeveloped. The ruins are located to the west and across the street from the former Mesa Lutheran Hospital, which became a Banner Health corporate center housing billing and information technology employees. Artifacts presumably associated with the ruins have been found in the neighborhood to the west. Axe heads, arrow heads, and pottery sherds were regularly uncovered and collected by residents during the 1960s and 1970s just under the surface of the earth in private property there.
From Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Wikidata Q4291240, referenced by the OpenStreetMap record.
How to reach it
- 17.0 mi off the Apache Trail Historic Road
Named places within 25 miles
- Freedom Park: 0.6 mi
- Evergreen Park: 0.7 mi
- Whitman Park: 1.0 mi
- Washington Park: 1.1 mi
- Escobedo Park: 1.2 mi
- Mesa Monument: 0.9 mi
- Never Forget Garden: 3.2 mi
- Blue Star Memorial: 3.2 mi
- Peace Pole: 3.3 mi
- Peace Pole: 3.3 mi
- Scarizona Scaregrounds: 1.2 mi
- Engine 2355: 1.9 mi
- King Ben's Castle: 3.2 mi
- Simply Smashing: 4.1 mi
- Pillar of Knowledge: 5.3 mi
- Betty: 1.3 mi
- The Big Pink Chair: 1.3 mi
- Autosaurs: 1.3 mi
- Melting Mural: 1.3 mi
- Climb as High as Your Dreams: 1.3 mi
- Hayden Butte: 5.3 mi
- Hole in the Rock: 6.0 mi
- Papago Buttes: 6.5 mi
- Barnes Butte: 6.8 mi
- Bell Butte: 7.3 mi
- Mesa Urban Garden: 1.8 mi
- Pioneer Park Rose Garden: 1.9 mi
- Brinton Desert Botanical Garden: 1.9 mi
- Escalante Community Garden: 3.0 mi
- The Rose Garden at Mesa Community College: 3.2 mi
- Zarco Guerrero: 0.9 mi
- idea Museum: 1.3 mi
- Arizona Museum of Natural History: 1.3 mi
- Mesa Contemporary Arts Museum: 1.6 mi
- Mesa Historical Museum: 2.5 mi
- Elliot Ramada: 6.6 mi
- Ramada #2=: 6.8 mi
- Ramada #1: 6.8 mi
- Ramada #5: 6.8 mi
- Ramada #6: 6.8 mi
- Hayden Butte Preserve: 5.3 mi
- Echo Canyon Recreation Area: 9.1 mi
- Desert Breeze Hummingbird Habitat: 9.5 mi
- South Mountain Preserve: 11.5 mi
- South Mountain Preserve: 11.8 mi
- Chinese Wall: 13.3 mi
- Coon Bluff: 13.7 mi
- Gardeners Wall: 17.2 mi
- Morrells Wall: 17.6 mi
- Blue Point: 18.0 mi
- Mountain Spring: 16.5 mi
- Cottonwood Spring: 20.3 mi
- Agua Chiquita Spring: 23.3 mi
- Hackberry Spring: 23.6 mi
- Illinois: 6.9 mi
- Sandy Beach: 23.7 mi
- Goldfield Ghost Town: 20.6 mi
- Massacre Falls: 23.2 mi
Summits around it
The highest named summits within 17.9 miles of Mesa Grande Cultural Park. Elevation from each summit’s own record; bearing measured between the two coordinates.
| Summit | Bearing | Elevation | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|
| East End | N 9° | 1,240 m | 17.2 mi |
| McDowell Peak | N 6° | 1,230 m | 15.7 mi |
| Thompson Peak | N 7° | 1,214 m | 14.7 mi |
| Tom's Thumb | N 6° | 1,196 m | 17.2 mi |
| Drinkwater Peak | N 4° | 1,192 m | 15.7 mi |
| Dome Mountain | ENE 75° | 1,009 m | 17.9 mi |
| Pass Mountain | ENE 76° | 1,007 m | 14.7 mi |
| Sunrise Peak | NNE 17° | 935 m | 12.7 mi |
When to go
Light through the year
| Date | Sunrise | Golden hour | Sunset |
|---|---|---|---|
| March equinox | 06:32 | 18:07 | 18:39 |
| June solstice | 05:19 | 19:04 | 19:41 |
| September equinox | 06:16 | 17:53 | 18:26 |
| December solstice | 07:28 | 16:46 | 17:24 |
Local time (America/Phoenix).
Climate normals
Months averaging 50–80 °F: Oct–May.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Avg °F | 55 | 57 | 63 | 69 | 77 | 85 | 91 | 90 | 85 | 74 | 62 | 54 |
| Precip in | 1.0 | 1.1 | 1.0 | 0.2 | 0.2 | 0.1 | 1.0 | 1.3 | 0.7 | 0.6 | 0.6 | 0.9 |
1991–2020 U.S. Climate Normals, NOAA NCEI — Tempe ASU, 5 mi away.
Where this comes from
Location and category confirmed against OpenStreetMap.
OpenStreetMapWikidataOpenStreetMap element way/1097895518
Day trips start here
Take the scenic way to Mesa Grande Cultural Park.
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