Andrea Joy Campbell: “today, I am introducing a very simple and important bill that will aid in our Nation's understanding of an ancient time.…”

“today, I am introducing a very simple and important bill that will aid in our Nation's understanding of an ancient time. The 52,000 acre Mesa Verde National Park in southwestern Colorado holds one of the most unique archaeological sites in the world. The culture represented at Mesa Verde reflects more than 700 years of history. People lived and flourished in communities in the area from around 400 A.D. through 1300 A.D. Eventually, the people there built elaborate stone villages in the sheltered alcoves of the canyon walls that are today regarded as 'cliff dwellings.' The villagers lived in the cliff dwellings during the last 100 to 125 years of occupation at Mesa Verde. Within the span of two generations, in the late 1200s, the people left their homes and moved away. However, they left behind a literal treasure trove of artifacts in the ruins, artifacts that are still being collected and studied to this day. Our Nation's first conservationist and fellow Republican, President Theodore Roosevelt established the Mesa Verde National Park in 1906. Since that time, countless artifacts have been carefully excavated and catalogued. Unfortunately, those priceless treasures have not had a suitable home, and instead have been housed in what effectively is a tin shed built in the 1950s, which has since become infested with mice.…”