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California's
Native Americans
California encompasses a large and diverse geographical
area, causing the many Native American tribes to
develop very distinct cultures. Archeologists estimate
that Native Americans lived in California as many
as 15,000 years before the arrival of the first
European explorers, and by the time of European
arrival, over 300,000 Native Americans occupied
the state. In general, these Native Americans were
hunter-gatherers who also cultivated plants, trees,
and occasionally lit controlled ground fires to
replenish the soil. The main staple throughout most
of the state was the acorn, though they hunted deer,
antelope, elk, sheep, and bear. Nearly 150 different
languages were spoken, making California home to
the greatest variety of native cultures and languages
in the country. Unfortunately, only about half of
those languages are still spoken today.
The diversity of the tribes and the size of the
state required scholars to separate the state into
six geographic culture areas in order to help understand
and identify the tribes. The six California culture
areas are the Southern, Central, Northwestern, Northeastern,
Great Basin, and Colorado River.
The southern culture area was home to some of the
largest tribes. Villages along the coast depended
largely on sea life and had populations reaching
2,000 residents. The Kumeyaay, like other Southern
tribes, migrated annually during the spring and
summer months to follow the ripening of plants before
returning home for the winter. The Southern tribes
include the Chumash, Cahuilla, Kumeyaay, and the
Tongva.
The central culture area covered about half of the
state and housed three-fifths of the Native population.
Some of these tribes include the Yokuts, Miwok,
Maidu and the Pomo. The tribelet, containing several
small villages in the area, served as the basic
unit of organization. The chief usually lived in
the main village. Organization was necessary because
the tribes were very territorial. Trespassing upon
another tribe's land was a serious offense, although
tribes hardly ever engaged in large-scale warfare.
The central valley climate was mild, and plant and
wild life were abundant. The central tribes were
known for their simple tools and dress, as well
as their strikingly elaborate woven baskets.
The northwestern culture area was actually part
of another culture area that extended beyond California
into Alaska. Some of these tribes include the Shasta,
Yurok, and Hupa. The climate in this region was
drastically different from the central valley and
the south, consisting of a rocky coastline, dense
forests and more rainfall than anywhere in the state.
The tribes in this area were quite distinctive as
well. They placed an importance on material wealth
that determined a family's social status. They found
items such as obsidian blades, white deerskins,
woodpecker scalps, and certain shells as valuable,
and leadership was granted to the richest man.
Like the northwestern tribes, the northeastern tribes
are also part of a larger culture area, called the
Columbia-Fraser Plateau culture area. These tribes,
including the Achumawi and the Atsugewi, lived in
an area that had lesser amounts of resources. This
population was sparse and spent much of their time
foraging for seeds and hunting small game.
The Great Basin culture area contained the lands
along the eastern border of the state and the eastern
deserts in the southern part of the state. Food
and water were scarce in these areas, so the tribes
moved regularly in search of small game. The Tubatulabal
and the Owens Valley Paiute were part of this group.
The last of the six California culture areas is
the Colorado River culture area. These people hunted
and gathered as well as cultivated corn, beans,
and pumpkins. These tribes traveled as far as the
coast to trade with other tribes.
Today, more than 680,000 Native Americans live in
the state, the highest total of any state in the
country.
Spanish Exploration
Spanish exploration of Alta (Upper California, not
including Baja) California can be broken down into
three distinct efforts. The first was to locate
a passage to Asia, which they called the Straight
of Anian. The second effort was to create a supply
station for Spanish ships passing through from the
Philippines. Their third effort was to permanently
colonize the area in order to strengthen their claim
over the land. The Spanish explorers, influenced
by Garci Rodriguez de Montalvo's book describing
California as a mythical island inhabited by black
"Amazon women," expected California to be an island
inhabited by these strange and beautiful women.
The Spaniards did not find the Amazon women, and
instead suffered through harsh expeditions curtailed
by bad weather and lack of food.
In 1542, Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo was asked by the
government of New Spain to lead an expedition in
search of the Strait of Anian. He left New Spain
in June with two ships and a crew of 250 sailors
and soldiers. They sailed up the coast from Mexico,
discovering the San Diego Bay. They continued north
and discovered San Pedro Bay, near present day Los
Angeles, and sailed through the Santa Barbara Channel.
They reached as far north as the Russian River before
turning back. Although Cabrillo and his crew did
not find a passage to the east, his expedition was
very important because it resulted in the first
account of Alta California. After Cabrillo died
in 1543, Bartolomeo Ferrelo continued the search
for the Strait of Anian. This expedition, also consisting
of two ships, reached as far north as Oregon before
running into bad weather where several people died.
The Strait of Anian was never found.
Spain's next exploratory mission was in order to
find an area suitable for a supply station to service
the Manila Galleons that sailed by California from
the Philippines. While exploring Alta California
in search of such a place in 1857, Pedro de Unamuno
made contact with Native Americans near Morro Bay,
but was attacked and forced to return to Acapulco.
In 1595, Sebastian Rodriguez Cermeno, sailed from
the Philippines in search of a location for the
supply station. His exploration reached Eureka and
Drake's Bay where he camped for nearly a month before
being attacked by Indians and forced to leave. The
next man to explore Alta California, Sebastian Vizcaino,
carefully planned the expedition to help insure
his success. He assembled a crew of 130 men and
three ships. They sailed from Acapulco in May of
1602, but experienced a difficult expedition despite
such preparation. They eventually landed in Monterey
Bay and continued to sail north to Oregon. Vizcaino
did not find a suitable bay that would be a good
site for a supply station. (Due to fog and inclement
weather, explorers continually passed by the San
Francisco Bay without seeing it). In order to make
his trip appear successful, Vizcaino embellished
his reports about the Monterey Bay, making it seem
like a better bay than it actually was. But, despite
his enhanced description of Monterey, Spain called
off plans to build a supply station, and Spanish
exploration of Alta California ceased for over 150
years.
Spain was not the only supplier of explorers to
Alta California. In the late 1750s, Queen Elizabeth
I commissioned Sir Francis Drake to raid Spanish
ships and settlements in the Americas and look for
the Northwest Passage (the English version of the
Strait of Anian) . Beginning in 1757, Drake attacked
Spanish ships and took their riches, but his pirating
greed got the best of him. By the time he reached
Alta California, his ship, the Golden Hind, was
overloaded with stolen goods and was forced ashore.
The exact spot where Drake came ashore is unknown.
Accounts of the voyage report that Drake entered
a bay on June 17, 1759, where he and his crew remained
for over a month. Drake and his crew reportedly
erected a fortification, mingled with the local
Indians, and erected a brass plate which claimed
the land in the name of Queen Elizabeth. The plate
was later found at Point San Quentin, though the
location has since been debated because of conflicting
evidence. The most accepted location for Drake's
landing is at Drake's Estero, an arm of the Drake's
Bay on the Point Reyes Peninsula.
The Creation of Spanish California
Interest in the exploration and colonization of
Alta California was rekindled when the Spanish found
out that the Russians were planning on extending
their fur trading enterprise south along the Pacific
coast. To counter the Russians' encroachment upon
Alta California, the government of New Spain employed
Visitor-General Jose de Galvez to reform the government
of New Spain and establish a colony in Alta California.
Galvez decided to carry out a government coordinated,
military, civilian, and religious conquest of Alta
California, which had already worked to secure Texas,
New Mexico, Sonora, Arizona, and Baja. This approach
centered on the creation of presidios, missions,
ranchos, and pueblos. The purpose of the presidios
was to control Native American resistance, the missions
were to Christianize the Native Americans, the pueblos
were to be the center of civilian activity, and
the ranchos were to sustain the colony through livestock
and agriculture. Galvez chose Father Junipero Serra
to lead the missionary branch of the expedition,
and Gaspar de Portola to serve as the governor of
the colony.
The colonization of Alta California was difficult,
and the expedition quickly ran into trouble. On
the journey from Mexico to San Diego, 300 members
of the colonization party died. They remained low
on supplies and behind schedule, but were able to
erect some fortifications and send a ship back to
Mexico for supplies. Father Serra began the mission
process in San Diego while Portola traveled north
to Monterey. After a hard journey and being constantly
harassed by Native Americans, Portola reached Monterey.
To his consternation, he did not find the expansive
bay that Vizcaino had embellished 150 years before,
so he returned to San Diego. Here he met up with
Father Serra and headed north again. They established
missions along the way and named Monterey the capital
of Alta California. Father Serra continued to build
missions and Portola continued to travel north,
eventually finding the San Francisco Bay. The colony
persevered, but remained weak during the 1770s.
By
Rickie Lazzerini
Historian
BA History
University of California, Santa Barbara
Index
of Historical Reviews
© 2006 Rickie Lazzerini,
All Rights Reserved
This page may be freely linked to but may not
be reproduced
in any form without prior written consent from
the author.
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