9. Tuzigoot National Monument 34°46'13.34"N , 112° 1'37.12"W

Our ninth stop of the virtual tour of places of interest in the Verde Valley is Tuzigoot National Monument, which is located just outside the city of Clarkdale, Arizona. Tuzigoot means “crooked water” and was so named by the local Native Americans. The Verdi River runs nearby and is crooked in shape. Tuzigoot was a restoration project of the Sinagua Indian Ruins that was discovered by archeology students who were looking for a project. This project was begun in the 1930’s The land was owned by a copper smelting company. The area still has copper tailings in the land adjacent to the park proper. The students approached the copper company about doing an excavation project. The copper company agreed to the project, but was unable to fund the project. They donated the land to the school. Because it was now was state owned land the government funded the labor to unearth the ruins through the WPA in the 1930’s. Tuzigoot National Monument is now home to those found artifacts and park visitors are able to tour the ruins of the ancient Sinagua that sit on top of the hill overlooking the Verdi River. It is part of the Montezuma National Monument and Montezuma’s Well National Monument Park Group and is maintained by the National Park Service.