Wupatki was settled by Sinaqua Anasazi people from around 1110 to 1300 A.D. Fertile soils from volcanic activity of nearby Sunset Crater may have contributed to the reason early people populated the area. The area is a stark, but beautiful rolling plain dotted with small shrubs. The natives used the abundant flat red stones held together with mortar to build their dwellings. The park was put on the National Registry of Historic Places in 1966.