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The Huatabampo tradition was first defined by Gordon Ekholm, in 1938, and refers to those sites in the coastal plain in northern Sinaloa and southern Sonora lacking architecture but containing well-manufactured plain ceramics with complex shapes. Recent investigations in the region are helping to refine the chronology, geographical extension, cultural attributes, and ethnicity. With 20 radiocarbon dates, we can place this tradition as spanning from 200 BC to AD 1450. The maximum geographical extension ranges from the Middle Rio Yaqui in the north to the Rio San Lorenzo in Sinaloa. The associated sites of this complex are represented by dispersed houses, indicative of ranchería-type settlements, funerary mounds, shell middens, and petroglyph sites. At about AD 1150, Aztatlán pottery and other commodities from southern Sinaloa were incorporated mostly as mortuary offerings. We also provide evidence that the Huatabampo archaeological tradition is a local culture representing the occupation of the Cahitan-speaking groups, Yoremem/Mayos and Yoemem/Yaquis, of the coastal plain. 

This article revises the spatial and temporal boundaries of the Casas Grandes tradition associated with northwest Chihuahua, Mexico, based on new data collected in neighboring northeastern Sonora. The Casas Grandes tradition attained its greatest extent during the Medio period (AD 1200–1450/1500) followed by a dramatic demographic and political collapse. Hunter-gatherer groups subsequently occupied most of northwest Chihuahua. Data from the Fronteras Valley, Sonora, presents an alternative scenario, with a clear pattern of cultural continuity from the eleventh century to the colonial period in which sedentary farmers occupied the same landscapes and occasionally the same villages. These observations contribute to our understanding of the spread and subsequent demise of the Casas Grandes tradition in hinterland regions. For the Fronteras Valley, we infer that immigrant groups originally introduced Casas Grandes traditions and that uneven participation in a suite of shared religious beliefs and practices was common to all the hinterlands. 

This article summarizes research conducted in the Sahuaripa and Bacanora valleys of Sonora, Mexico. Located in the Serrana culture area of the Sierra Madre Occidental, data from this region speaks to several prevalent debates regarding the precolonial era of Northwest Mexico. Radiocarbon dates support demographic reconstructions for sizeable populations post-1000 AD; a time when other regions of the Northwest/Southwest (NW/SW) experienced significant demographic changes. Material cultural patterns reflect substantial local and regional connections with neighboring Río Sonora groups and Huatabampo. Recovered polychrome ceramics demonstrate long-distance connections with Casas Grandes, and obsidian data reflect connections to the Sonora and other neighboring valleys. These data indicate the Sahuaripa Valley participated in a corridor of exchange, which potentially included interaction between Casas Grandes and West Mexico. These observations are relevant to macro-scale patterns of interaction in the late-precolonial NW/SW. Este trabajo resume las investigaciones realizadas en los valles de Sahuaripa y Bacanora de Sonora, México. Estos valles están localizados en el área cultural Serrana de la Sierra Madre Occidental. La información sirve para entender las interacciones culturales en la época prehispánica del noroeste de México. Los fechamientos indican que existían poblaciones considerables posteriores al año 1000 d. C. periodo histórico donde ocurrieron cambios demográficos significativos. Los materiales reflejan conexiones locales y regionales con los grupos de Río Sonora y Huatabampo. Las cerámicas policromadas demuestran vínculos culturales con Casas Grandes, y los datos de obsidiana reflejan su interacción con el valle de Sonora así como con otras regiones. Los datos indican que el valle de Sahuaripa sirvió como un corredor de intercambio, que incluía Casas Grandes y al occidente de México. Estas observaciones son relevantes para entender los patrones de interacción de mayor escala en el NW/SW.