Memories, stories, and traditions continue to bind people today to Montezuma Castle. The community surrounding it was one of related households, both familial and social units. The Hopi Parrot, Bear, Water, Cloud, Bearstrap, Bluebird, and Spider clans all have oral histories about residing at Montezuma Castle, and these Hopi clans are related to one another and traveled together during long migrations. The Zuni say their ancestors migrated through here as well. Ancestral Yavapai bands likely had interactions with these groups. Ancestors of the O'odham people of southern Arizona traded here, while the Tonto Apache and Yavapai consider nearby Montezuma Well their place of origin. The cultural connections to Montezuma Castle and other sites in the Verde Valley are rich and complex, and many indigenous peoples have long-held cultural restrictions against disturbing places inhabited by ancestors.