Panhe

Last updated

Panhe ( Acjachemen : "the place at the water") was one of the largest Acjachemen villages confirmed to be over 9,600 years old, and a current sacred, ceremonial, cultural, and burial site for the Acjachemen people. [1] The site of Panhe is now within San Onofre State Beach, San Diego County, California, located at the mouth of San Mateo Canyon and Cristianitos Canyon, and approximately 3.7 miles (6.0 km) upstream from the Pacific Ocean. [2] [3] Mission's records have shown evidence of many Acjachemen's ancestry in Panhe. [4]

Contents

Panhe village site has received multiple official recognitions including Determination of Eligibility for the National Register of Historic Place by the National Park Service, recognition from the State Historic Preservation Office, and was integrated as part of the San Mateo Archeological Distric. [4] Additionally, Panhe was recognized as Sacred Lands by the California Native American Heritage Commission in 1989. [4] Serving as an additional layer of protection for Panhe, developers intending to intrude upon the site for construction purposes must undergo scrutiny through the Sacred Lands inventory as part of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) environmental review process. [5] These official acknowledgement serves as a protective mechanism for the Acjachemen in terms of legal issues. One significant recognition that Panhe village site has yet to obtain is the a Traditional Cultural Property, which will grant the Acjachemen tribe further legal protection over the area. [4] Conserving Panhe is part of a significance continuing effort in asserting sovereignty of the Acjachemen land.

The Acjachemen people fished in San Mateo Creek's extensive freshwater marshes, and practiced a hunter-gatherer lifestyle. The village of Panhe is estimated to have had a population of 300 or so before the first Spanish explorers came to the area, and is still a sacred site for the Acjachemen people. [6]

Panhe is the site of the first baptism in California, and in 1769 saw the first close contact between Spanish explorers, Catholic missionaries, and the Acjachemen people. The village had the greatest number of baptisms in the records of Mission San Juan Capistrano. [1]

Panhe was nearly destroyed by a planned toll road construction that was meant to connect to Interstate 5, but this was stopped by a coalition of Acjachemen people, environmentalists, and surfer groups. [1] [7]

There is a yearly festival held at the site by the Acjachemen people to honor their ancestors and to partake in their culture together. [8] The United Coalition to Protect Panhe and The City Project advocate for the preservation of the site. [9]

Nowaday

Panhe is currently under control of Camp Pendleton Marine Base, San Onofre State Beach in San Clemente . To this day, the tribe is a state-recognized Native American group, and is working on obtaining federal recognition that would eventually entail in exclusive rights and protection to their sacred land and obtain funding for tribe-related activities. [10]

Toll Road

Panhe village site was in danger when the proposal for a toll road with six lanes intended to link a recent development to Interstate 5 came out more than a decade ago. [5] Through effort by the Acjachemen Nation activists, environmentalists and surfers groups, in 2016, the decision to conserve the site was mutually reached. [5]

In 2002, local residents became aware of a plan put forth by the Foothill/Eastern Transportation Corridor Agency (TCA) to construct a six-lane toll road linking a proposed new development to Interstate 5. [4] Approximately two miles of this proposed route would closely parallel San Mateo Creek, situated just 20 feet from the existing Panhe site. Environmental organizations, such as the Sierra Club, were already expressing concerns about the toll road's proximity to environmentally sensitive zones within the San Mateo watershed. [5] The potential destruction of San Mateo Creek, which flows into Trestles surf beach, raised additional worries among environmentalists, as it could adversely impact the renowned wave quality of Trestles .

As word spread within the surfing community about the potential threat, a widespread movement emerged in San Clemente with "Save Trestles, Stop the Toll Road" bumper stickers, lawn signs, and t-shirts appearing throughout the area. [4] The international surfing community also took notice once the issue garnered significant concern among surfers.

In 2006, the California Native American Heritage Commission (CNAHC) initiated legal action against the TCA on behalf of the tribe. [5] The lawsuit contended that the destruction of Panhe would constitute a serious infringement on the religious freedom of the Acjachemen people. [5]

See also

Native American villages in Orange County, California:

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">San Clemente, California</span> City in California, United States

San Clemente is a city in Orange County, California, United States. Located in the Orange Coast region of the South Coast of California, San Clemente's population was 64,293 in at the 2020 census. Situated roughly midway between Los Angeles and San Diego, San Clemente is a popular tourist destination in Southern California, known for its beaches, Spanish Colonial Revival architecture, and hospitality industry. San Clemente's city slogan is "Spanish Village by the Sea".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kelly Slater</span> American surfer (born 1972)

Robert Kelly Slater is an American professional surfer, best known for being crowned World Surf League champion a record 11 times. Slater is widely regarded as the greatest professional surfer of all time, and holds 56 Championship Tour victories. Slater is also the oldest surfer still active on the World Surf League, winning his 8th Billabong Pipeline Masters title at age 49.

Putuidem, alternative spelling Putiidhem or Putuidhem, was a large native village of the Acjachemen people, also known as Juaneño since their relocation to Mission San Juan Capistrano. Putuidem was a mother village, a community that spawned other villages of the tribe.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">California State Route 241</span> Highway in California

State Route 241 is a state highway in Orange County, California that is a toll road for its entire length. Its southern half from near Las Flores to near Irvine is the Foothill Transportation Corridor, while its northern half to SR 91 on the Anaheim–Yorba Linda border forms part of the Eastern Transportation Corridor system with SR 133 and SR 261.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">San Onofre State Beach</span> State park in California, United States

San Onofre State Beach is a 3,000-acre (1,214 ha) state park in San Diego County, California. The beach is 3 miles (5 km) south of San Clemente on Interstate 5 at Basilone Road. The state park is leased to the state of California by the United States Marine Corps. Governor Ronald Reagan established San Onofre State Beach in 1971. With over 2.5 million visitors per year, it is one of the five most-visited state parks in California, hosting swimmers, campers, kayakers, birders, fishermen, bicyclists, sunbathers, surfers, and the sacred Native American site of Panhe.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wildcoast</span>

Wildcoast is an international non-profit environmental organization that conserves coastal and marine ecosystems and wildlife.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Half Moon Bay State Beach</span> Group of beaches in San Mateo County, California

Half Moon Bay State Beach is a 4-mile (6 km) stretch of protected beaches in the state park system of California, United States, on Half Moon Bay. From north to south it comprises Roosevelt, Dunes, Venice, and Francis Beaches. The 181-acre (73 ha) park was established in 1956.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Doheny State Beach</span> State park in California, United States

Doheny State Beach is known as the first state beach in the California state park system. Located on the Pacific Ocean in the city of Dana Point, the beach is adjacent to several surf spots and scenic beaches including Salt Creek Beach, Baby Beach, and Capistrano Beach. Along with its neighbors, Doheny beach is a popular surf spot located at the mouth of San Juan Creek, which flows from the Santa Ana Mountains southwest to the beach, where it forms a fresh-water lagoon.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Trestles (surfing)</span> Surfing breaks in San Clemente, California

Trestles is a collection of surfing spots between northern San Onofre State Beach in San Diego County and southern San Clemente in Orange County in California. Trestles consists of, from north to south, Upper Trestles (Uppers), Lower Trestles (Lowers), and Middle Trestles (Middles). North of Upper Trestles is the surf spot called Cottons. South of Middles is the surf spot called The Church. Middles gets its name because it was a middle area between Trestles and The Church (sometimes just called "Church". It is named after Trestles Bridge, a wooden trestle bridge that surfers must walk under to reach the beach, replaced in 2012 by a concrete viaduct.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Puvunga</span> Indigenous sacred site in Long Beach, California, US

Puvunga is an ancient village and sacred site of the Tongva nation, the Indigenous people of the Los Angeles Basin, and the Acjachemen, the Indigenous people of Orange County. The site is now located within California State University, Long Beach and the surrounding area. The Tongva know Puvunga as the "place of emergence" and it is where they believed "their world and their lives began." Puvunga is an important ceremonial site and is the end to an annual pilgrimage for the Tongva, Acjachemen, and Chumash.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Acjachemen</span> Native American people in California

The Acjachemen are an Indigenous people of California. Published maps often identify their ancestral lands as extending from the beach to the mountains, south from what is now known as Aliso Creek in Orange County to the Las Pulgas Canyon in the northwestern part of San Diego County. However, sources also show that Acjachemen people shared sites with other indigenous nations as far north as Puvunga in contemporary Long Beach.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">La Casa Pacifica</span> Historic house in California, United States

La Casa Pacifica is a classic California beachfront mansion located in the gated community of Cottons Point Estates/Cypress Shores in the South Orange County beach town of San Clemente, California, and overlooks the Pacific Ocean from its blufftop position. This estate is also known as President Richard Nixon's Western White House, used while living and working outside of the official presidential residence, the White House in Washington, D.C.

Mark Massara is an American surfer, attorney, and environmental conservationist. He first gained a reputation in the surfing and environmental communities when he won a $5.6 million Clean Water Act violation, the second largest ever collected. Since that case, he has assisted nonprofit organizations, including Surfrider Foundation and Sierra Club, government agencies, and private sector enterprises in several high-profile coastal and ocean protection, restoration, education and development campaigns that highlight and achieve coastal conservation and amenities for wildlife and future generations.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">San Juan Creek</span> River in Orange County, California, United States

San Juan Creek, also called the San Juan River, is a 29-mile (47 km) long stream in Orange and Riverside Counties, draining a watershed of 133.9 square miles (347 km2). Its mainstem begins in the southern Santa Ana Mountains in the Cleveland National Forest. It winds west and south through San Juan Canyon, and is joined by Arroyo Trabuco as it passes through San Juan Capistrano. It flows into the Pacific Ocean at Doheny State Beach. San Juan Canyon provides a major part of the route for California State Route 74.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">San Mateo Creek (Southern California)</span> River in California, United States

San Mateo Creek is a stream in Southern California in the United States, whose watershed mostly straddles the border of Orange and San Diego Counties. It is about 22 miles (35 km) long, flowing in a generally southwesterly direction. Draining a broad valley bounded by the Santa Ana Mountains and Santa Margarita Mountains, San Mateo Creek is notable for being one of the last unchannelized streams in Southern California.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Trestles Bridge</span> Bridge in northern San Diego County, California

Trestles Bridge, more formally known as Railroad Bridge 207.6 or the San Mateo Creek Bridge, is a low railroad viaduct on the coast of Southern California, in northern San Diego County near its border with Orange County. The bridge lies within San Onofre State Beach and gave its nickname to the famed Trestles surfing site at that beach.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Surfing in the United States</span>

Surfing in the United States is a popular hobby in coastal areas, and more recently due to the invention of wave pools, inland regions of the country. It contributes to a lifestyle and culture in which millions participate and which millions more have an interest. USA surfing is the governing body for the sport of surfing in the United States, with surf leagues such as the World Surf League available in the country. Surfing can be traced back to 17th Century Hawaii and has evolved over time into the professional sport it is today, with surfing being included for the first time in the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo.

<i>As Long as Grass Grows</i> 2019 book by Dina Gilio-Whitaker

As Long as Grass Grows: The Indigenous Fight for Environmental Justice, from Colonization to Standing Rock is a 2019 non-fiction book by Dina Gilio-Whitaker. The author details the history of Native Americans in the United States since European colonization, including criticisms of the modern conservation movement as exclusionary to indigenous concepts of land and environmental stewardship, and coverage of the 2010s Dakota Access Pipeline protests at Standing Rock.

Dina Gilio-Whitaker is an American academic, journalist and author, who studies Native Americans in the United States, decolonization and environmental justice. She is a member of the Colville Confederated Tribes. In 2019, she published As Long as Grass Grows.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Acjacheme</span> Former Acjachemen village at Mission San Juan Capistrano

Acjacheme was an Acjachemen village that was closely situated to the mother village of Putuidem in what is now San Juan Capistrano, California. The Spanish missionaries constructed Mission San Juan Capistrano less than 60 yards from the village in 1776. Acjachemen is a pluralization of the word Acjacheme, and became the moniker for the people overall after the mission period.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Gilio-Whitaker, Dina (2019). As long as grass grows : the indigenous fight for environmental justice, from colonization to Standing Rock. Boston, Massachusetts. p. 132. ISBN   978-0-8070-7378-0. OCLC   1044542033.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  2. ↑ "San Mateo Creek Watershed Profile". Southern California Wetlands Recovery Project. wrpinfo.scc.ca.gov. Archived from the original on 2009-10-11. Retrieved 2009-09-19.
  3. ↑ "San Mateo Creek: An Overview" (PDF). San Mateo Creek Conservancy. trestleswetlands.org. Retrieved 2013-04-04.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Gilio, Dina (2012-02-01). "Panhe at the Crossroads: Toward an Indigenized Environmental Justice Theory". American Studies ETDs.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Panhe". Sacred Land. Retrieved 2024-01-30.
  6. ↑ Donaldson, Milford Wayne (February 6, 2008). "Testimony regarding the Consistency Certification for the Foothill South Toll Road" (PDF). ohv.parks.ca.gov. Retrieved 2009-09-20.
  7. ↑ Weikel, Dan (November 10, 2016). "Settlement ends the threat of a toll road through San Onofre State Beach". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on March 12, 2019. Retrieved November 12, 2021.
  8. ↑ "Panhe Lives On: Annual Festival Celebrates Culture, History of Native People". San Clemente Times. 2019-03-21. Retrieved 2021-11-12.
  9. ↑ Save San Onofre and Native American Sacred Site Panhe
  10. ↑ Congressional Research Service (January 2024). "The 574 Federally Recognized Indian Tribes in the United States". The 574 Federally Recognized Indian Tribes in the United States. Retrieved 2024-01-30.

33°23′50″N117°35′27″W / 33.39722°N 117.59083°W / 33.39722; -117.59083

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.