Sharing the Sheepherding: Landscape of El Segundo Mine
This video is an outgrowth of a long-term, multifaceted historic study on El Segundo Mine, a coal mine straddling the Continental Divide in western New Mexico. Before World War II, Laguna and Navajo families were still practicing a more traditional life way, which included herding sheep over vast areas. The archaeology on El Segundo Mine is a window into that past. Because sheepherding is no longer practiced at Laguna Pueblo and is greatly reduced on the Navajo Reservation, the purpose of this film is to preserve the fading memories of herding as a way of life. The video also is intended as a way for herders to share those memories with their descendants, community members and the general public.