06/13/2026
One of the most sacred places in North America just got emergency protection.
Chaco Canyon has been added to the endangered historic places list (Crazy Horse Memorial) — a major victory for the tribal nations who have fought for years to protect this irreplaceable sacred site from oil and gas development.
Chaco Canyon is not just ancient ruins. It is a living sacred place — home to astronomical alignments, ceremonial architecture, and over 1,000 years of Pueblo, Navajo, and ancestral Indigenous spiritual life. Its structures are so precisely aligned with the sun and moon that modern engineers still cannot fully explain how they were built.
And someone wanted to drill for oil next to it.
Tribal nations said no. Advocates said no. 70,000 public comments said no.
Today — the list agrees.
