Current Research

THE LOWE RANCH SURVEY. The LOWE RANCH SITE (LA 43553) in Carlsbad Caverns National Park Canyon of southeastern New Mexico is presently being inventoried and reevaluated by a Carlsbad Caverns National Park team consisting of Jeff Denny, Museum Curator, and David Kayser, Museum Technician. New information gathered by the team indicates that the site covers 40+ acres of the valley bottom in Upper Walnut Canyon within the Guadalupe Ridge area of southeastern New Mexico. Physical remains include the stone foundations of a Late Territorial–Early Statehood period ranching complex and Prehistoric to Historic period Native American components. Native American features include an extensive complex of ring middens (15+), other large fire-cracked-rock middens (20+), numerous hearths, lithic debitage locales, and good potential for subsurface structural remains. The Lowe Ranch site is one of the larger concentration of Native American features known at Carlsbad Caverns National Park. The Historic period components will provide useful information on the Late Territorial–Early Statehood period of sheep-, goat-, and cattle-ranching operations in the Guadalupe Ridge area. Continuing and future work at Lowe Ranch include producing a detailed GPS/GIS map, a volunteer non-surface-disturbing remote-sensing survey, and reevaluation of the site as to significance in local, regional, and southeastern New Mexico prehistory and history.

Upcoming proposed cultural resource projects within Carlsbad Caverns National Park include a NPS Intermountain Office–conducted sampling survey of Walnut Canyon in FY 1999, the recovery of isolated historical-period materials from cave interior locations, and continuing in-house review and update of sites throughout the park. Institutions and researchers interested in long-term research opportunities may contact Mr. Jeffery Denny, Museum Curator, at Carlsbad Caverns National Park.