In the early 1600s, Spaniards from Mexico colonized what is now southern Colorado at the northernmost reaches of New Spain. Isolated on the far frontier of a vast empire, these hardy colonists developed a complex relationship with Native Americans and a unique culture. Even after becoming part of the United States in 1848, the area retained its Hispanic character and remains today a vocal part of the Hispanic population of Colorado.
Archaeologist Bonnie Clark of the University of Denver has spent many years studying Hispanic Colorado, particularly the Purgatoiré River Valley between Trinidad and La Junta. In this volume she examines the everyday lives of this population over a period of nearly 400 years. Much of this history is unrecorded, so historical archaeology is a critical part of the investigation.
On the Edge of Purgatory provides new insights into the development of an ethnic identity in the American West. It is also a study in the archaeology of places, especially the abandoned Hispanic plaza village of La Placita that the author excavated for a number of seasons. This volume is an important contribution to the study of early Hispanic America, and a good read as well. —Mark Michel
