Statement of Significance (as of designation - October 9, 1960):
This sizeable Pueblo community on the edge of the Plains was occupied for over 400 years. It was important in the history of the Spanish arrival in New Mexico, and the Spanish built and occupied a mission at the site for about 200 of those years. The site was abandoned in the 19th century by its last Pueblo residents.

Condition:
Pecos Pueblo remains in an open, natural environment in its historic location and suffers from the continual impact of weathering. The structures comprising Pecos Pueblo once had a sizeable Native American puebloan occupation spanning 400+ years and a concurrent Spanish mission occupation for about 200 years. The ruins are fragile and are mostly constructed of adobe bricks that are extremely vulnerable to exposure. Each year the structures, landscape, and archeological deposits of Pecos Pueblo are systematically evaluated in terms of condition, monitored, repaired, and stabilized to mitigate immediate impacts. The condition of the complex directly relates to resources of the park available for preservation work. Because of the vulnerability of the adobe in an open setting, the condition of the complex deteriorates over the winter. By spring time the condition of the Spanish Mission is poor. Annual preservation treatments are the goal of the work is to bring the structures into good condition. The area is open daily to visitor use. Visitor use appears to have little impact on the resource. Pecos National Historical Park (NHP) manages this resource

The cultural resource staff at Pecos NHP has had a longer list of high priority tasks to tackle than in 2004, and the 2004 list was higher than in years past due to continuing job vacancies on the permanent preservation crew. The permanent preservation crew has two continuing vacancies with no base funding to fill these positions and the cultural resource program received a 4% decrease in base funding in 2005. For the second year in a row, the park received no project funding for preservation treatment at Pecos Pueblo. Currently the preservation crew has the fewest number of staff and work hours since the late 1960s. These circumstances resulted in the greatest carryover of backlogged high priority projects in our ruins preservation program that the park has ever experienced. At the start of 2005 summer season, 47 high priority repairs needed were identified within the NHL complex. Of these, the park completed 25. According to the professional consensus judgment of the staff, the designation of “high priority” means there is a likelihood of unacceptable loss of original fabric if the repairs are not conducted during the current year. It is uncertain how much original fabric will be lost by the start of the 2006 ruins preservation treatment program. Whatever loss occurs will be largely due to lack of resources for an adequate labor crew and materials used in conducting the work.

Recommendation/Change since last report:
Annual preservation treatments must rigorously resume in order address critical repair needs. It is recommended that requests to increase base funding for the park’s preservation program be approved. The increases would create an equitable relationship between our abilities and our most urgent needs with regard to the preservation of Pecos Pueblo NHL. Funding increases will allow for a full-time preservation crew, existing permanent vacancies filled, four new essential positions created/filled, and the purchase of appropriate supplies/equipment to do the work.