The Repair of Casa Grande Ruin, Arizona, in 1891 | Page 6

general features, but the means provided
for its execution were found insufficient. A further complication arose
from the fact that a few months later Mr Mindeleff severed his
connection with the Bureau of Ethnology and his knowledge became
no longer available.
November 20, 1890, the writer was ordered to proceed to the ruin and
inaugurate the work of repair, following, so far as practicable, the plans

already approved. He left Washington soon afterward and reached the
ruin late in December. It was found necessary to make a detailed survey
of the ruin and of the group of which it forms a part, and to make plans
and sections showing the probable amount of excavation for the use of
those who were invited to bid on the work. Furthermore, the amount
appropriated was so well known to be inadequate that great difficulty
was experienced in obtaining bids, and it was only through the efficient
cooperation of the Reverend I. T. Whittemore at Florence and of Mr C.
A. Garlick at Phoenix that success was finally achieved. Two bids were
received from the former place and one from the latter; but this was not
accomplished until March 17, 1891, the date when the last bid was
received. In the meantime the writer, having completed his work at
Casa Grande, so far as he could, had entered, in January, on an
archeologic investigation of the valley of the Rio Verde, in compliance
with his orders to that effect.
It was found impossible to execute all the work deemed requisite for
the preservation of the ruin within the limits of the appropriation. A
selection of items became necessary, therefore, and those which were
of most importance were chosen. Even in this, however, it was found
that a maximum limit on the amount of work to be done on each item
must be set, and this limit was considerably below the amount of work
estimated to be necessary.
The first thing to be done was, of course, the clearing out of the rubbish
and debris. The item next in importance was the underpinning of the
walls with brick wherever it was needed. The third item was the
restoration of the lintels and the filling of the cavities above them. The
fourth item was the tying in of the south wall, or of the several parts of
it, with braces. This was the only feature of the plan which would
appreciably disfigure the ruin, but some such device was deemed
essential for the preservation of the south wall.
These four items consumed practically all of the amount appropriated,
and the other items of the original plan were therefore omitted. The bid
of T. L. Stouffer and F. E. White, of Florence, Arizona, covering the
four items, was accepted, and a contract was made with them, under

date of May 9, 1891, for the execution of the work for the sum of
$1,985. This contract, together with the specifications, plans, and other
drawings which formed part of it, accompany this report. It was
transmitted to the Director of the Geological Survey, and by him
approved and forwarded to the Secretary of the Interior June 6, 1891. It
was approved by the Acting Secretary June 20, 1891. Finally, on July
20, 1891, it was placed on file, together "with the bids, proposals, and
all the original papers."
A time limit of two months was made in the contract, expiring August
20, 1891, but it was changed to four months from July 1, 1891,
expiring October 31, 1891. Before the time expired, however, Mr H. G.
Rizer, then chief clerk of the Bureau of Ethnology, was ordered to
proceed to Casa Grande ruin to examine the work done and, if in
accord with the terms of the contract and the specifications, to certify
the amount due the contractors. He submitted a report, under date of
November 24, 1891, which is appended hereto. He also obtained six
photographic negatives of the work as it stood a short time before its
completion, and two of these (reproduced in plates CXX and CXXI)
have been utilized in the preparation of this report.
Mr Rizer found that a considerable amount of work had been done by
the contractors in excess of that authorized, and also that not sufficient
work had been done to render the repairs permanently effective. Under
the terms of the contract, no amount in excess of that stated ($1,985)
could be paid, and payment of this amount was made late in 1891. On
January 7, 1892, the contractors filed a claim for extra work on the ruin
amounting to $600.40. The work was actually performed, but the terms
of the contract were clear, and the claim was therefore disapproved
January 28, 1892.
It would have been desirable to have had a supervisor