Where does the name Bandelier come from?
Adolph Francis Bandelier was a Swiss-born scholar who grew up in Illinois and came to the Southwest at age forty to pursue a life-long dream of exploring the ancient sites of the Pueblo Indians. By mastering foreign languages easily, Bandelier communicated with the native peoples and in 1880 became the first to study and report on the dwelling sites in Frijoles Canyon. Along with scientific reports, he also published The Delight Makers, a fictionalized version of Pueblo life before the arrival of the Spanish. With the aid of more prominent archeologists, Bandelier illuminated the importance of preserving the heritage in Frijoles Canyon and was recognized by President Woodrow Wilson who established the area as a national monument and named it after him. Always the adventurer, Bandelier’s life ended in Spain; however his ashes were spread here in the canyon in 1980.
