Red Pueblo Museum: preserving Native American culture

The Red Pueblo Mu­seum in Fredonia, Arizona, is an extraor­dinary representation of Native American history and culture, but the museum has quite a history itself. The building, origi­nally owned by the federal government until 2004, was then taken over by the city of Fredonia and used as a rest stop for travel­ers exploring Arizona and Southern Utah. The rest stop remained fully operational until 2010, when it suddenly became too expensive to manage. At risk of being abandoned, the building found new purpose when Dixon Spendlove had the brilliant idea to take it over and share his passion locally and now globally.

Photos by Cassie Bradshaw.

Dixon has been a collector of historical items since he was eight years old. With his family living in the Kanab/Fredonia area since 1958, he has had plenty of time to ex­plore and find ancient artifacts left by the people who lived here before us. Dixon’s col­lection became so large and impactful that he initially showcased it in his own home. As interest grew, the tim­ing of the rest stop’s closing felt like fate. In 2010, Dixon took over the building and gathered a group of 60 volunteers from Kanab and Fredonia to help jumpstart the museum. The museum is a non-profit organi­zation that emphasizes and recognizes histori­cal Native American cultures.

Not only does the mu­seum display Dixon’s fascinating array of artifacts, but it also showcases donations from people all over the world, many given by Indigenous individu­als wishing for their culture to be represent­ed and respected. The museum attracts visi­tors globally, and even during my interview with him, Dixon made sure to ask guests where they were from. The museum heavily relies on the commu­nity and the generosity of donors. While Dixon has a few volunteers who help run things, he mostly manages everything himself. When I asked Dixon what surprised him most about running a non-profit, he said that he was mostly sur­prised about how many people appreciate the history of indigenous communities. He is proud of how much this non-profit has grown and how many people it has reached.

The museum’s trove of items includes unique Anasazi pot­tery, weapons, toys, cooking utensils, me­dicinal tools, historic firearms, and much more. Dixon personally gives tours to anyone who desires, explain­ing how old each piece is, what it was used for, or whether it was traded between tribes. There is also an out­door attraction featur­ing an old-fashioned cabin, hut, and wagon. Additionally, the mu­seum has a gift shop with Native American jewelry, art, informa­tion packets, books and more.

The museum is closed during the win­ter months and open during the summer months.

If you are interested in visiting the museum the hours of operation are

Wednesday-Satur­day 9 a.m. - 5 p.m.

Address: 900 N 86022, US-89, Fredo­nia, AZ 86022.

Phone Number: (928) 643- 7777