Square Tower

While you can’t get close to Square Tower’s base, the structure is still impressive from the rim.

NPS photo

Quick Facts

Location:

Square Tower Group

Significance:

Unique ancestral Puebloan structure.

Amenities

1 listed

Scenic View/Photo Spot

The two-story-tall Square Tower stands at the canyon head. Situated on a large sandstone boulder, it was built in a slight spiral shape, perhaps for added strength or for aesthetics. The large hackberry trees growing beside the tower tell of the seep that trickles under the alcove. It was the presence of this precious permanent water source that held the Square Tower settlement together.The tower’s single T-shaped doorway faces southwest, although there is evidence of an earlier doorway facing the spring. A kiva was excavated beside Square Tower. Unlike many tower-kiva associations elsewhere, Square Tower and its kiva were not connected by a tunnel.

We do not know what Square Tower’s purpose was – marking or protecting the spring, conducting ceremonies, or studying the stars? Maybe all or none of the above. Why do you think the ancestral Puebloans who lived here built this tower

The unique stone towers and other buildings at Hovenweep are extremely fragile. To help preserve them, observe proper site etiquette.

• Remain on marked trails.

• Do not enter or touch any structure.

• Do not touch or disturb any artifacts, including pottery sherds, arrow points, or rock art. Once removed from context, the story they tell is gone forever.