This volume presents a synthesis or overview of the archaeology of the Central High Plains. The area is bounded on the north by 41 latitude, on the east by the 99th meridian, on the south by 35 latitude in New Mexico, Texas and Oklahoma and by 37 latitude in Colorado, on the west by the Continental Divide in Colorado and by the eastern foothills of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains in New Mexico. Since relatively little archaeology has been done in this area, and most of that on the perimeters, it has been necessary to draw upon work done just beyond the borders to round out a synthesis, and even so, the treatment of complexes and periods is uneven. In some cases, enough information is available for a general summary of a complex. In other instances, where a complex is represented by limited work at perhaps only one site, a detailed description of material recovered is given to provide comparative data should future workers find similar material. Detailed descriptions of diagnostic artifacts, primarily projectile points and pottery, are included in Appendices and are often copied in their entirety. Although the bibliography is not exhaustive, it is extensive, containing many potentially useful items not cited. In some cases entire bibliographies from other works, including annotations, have been reproduced, with credit: references cited are so identified, although not all of the cited references were personally examined (e.g., when they were included in reproduced tables). The major gap in the bibliography is the absence of reports of contract archaeology that were prepared in limited numbers and deposited only with appropriate agencies. An effort should be made to compile and publish a list of such reports.