Pinoleville Pomo Nation

Last updated
Pinoleville Pomo Nation
Pinoleville Rancheria Pomo girl.jpg
Pat, a young Pomo girl at the grape harvest at Pinoleville Rancheria, 1938
Total population
280 [1]
Regions with significant populations
United States (California)
Languages
English, Pomoan languages
Religion
Roundhouse religion, Christianity, Kuksu
Related ethnic groups
Pomo tribes

The Pinoleville Pomo Nation is a federally recognized tribe of Pomo people in Mendocino County, California. [2] Leona Williams serves as Tribal Chairperson. [3]

Contents

History

The Pinoleville Pomo Nation is a small band of the greater Pomo Tribe of Northern California. The Pinoleville Pomo Nation is originally from Potter Valley, California, located eighteen miles (29 km) north-northeast of Ukiah, California where the Pinoleville Pomo Nation currently resides. [4]

Prior to the arrival of the European colonizers, there were three main villages in Potter Valley called Pomo, Sedam (or Tse tum) and Canel (or Shanel, Sanel), and several smaller villages and camps. These villages remained connected and cooperative with each other through marriage, and ceremonies. They were governed by councilmen called tca ka-li in Northern Pomo, also sometimes known as captains. [5]

The arrival of the Spanish, Russians, and fur traders in the early 1800s was devastating for Native Californians and their way of life. In the first half of the century, the Pomos suffered from forced removal, disease and servitude from the settlers. [6]

This domination continued into the second half of the 17th century with the discovery of gold in California. By 1850 thousands of Europeans had arrived in northern California hoping to strike rich. Treaties were proposed to guarantee land for most California Natives, including the Pomos, but the treaties never reached ratification. Thus the California government declared that all land that was not claimed was public land, meaning the land the Pomos and many of Native Californians lived on was allowed to be settled on by non-Native peoples. [6]

The Pomos were forced off their land as the new settlers began using the land for ranching. The Pomos were left to settle on non-fertile lands in the periphery of the land they once lived on and struggled to find enough food to survive. [6]

Bloody Run – 1871

The majority of the remaining Pomos living in Potter Valley were brutally forced by the militia to leave Potter Valley and walk to Round Valley Reservation, 65 miles north of Ukiah. This event is called “Ba-lay-Ba-lin” or “Bloody Run” because the Eel River ran red with the blood of the deceased for three days. [6] [7] This history is not widely cited, but has been recounted by Pinoleville Pomo Nation members whose ancestors experienced this atrocity. One member recounted the Bloody Run, stating, “the white men herded all the Indians like cattle, and if you were too slow you were shot from behind and thrown in the river.” There were many young and elderly people who were unable to keep up and thus killed. Those who were not murdered were forced to walk to Round Valley Reservation. [7]

Purchasing of Pinoleville – 1878–1893

In 1878, a large group of Potter Valley Pomos left the Round Valley Reservation and purchased 51 acres of land on the north side of Ukiah. This land was known as ke-buk ke-bul, but soon was known as Pinoleville. [6]

In 1893 the Pinoleville captains joined with other Northern Pomo captains and traded their land at $10 for 100 acres between Ackerman Creek (ya-mo-bida – wind hole creek), and Orr springs Road. This is where the Pinoleville Pomo people settled. The captains allowed displaced families and tribelets to live in Pinoleville.

Pinoleville Rancheria – 1905–1966

In 1905, a Bureau of Indian Affairs survey stated the land was overcrowded, and through the Homeless, Landless Indian Act, a Rancheria was purchased next to the original piece of land in 1911. This land came to be called the Pinoleville Rancheria. [6]

The status of the Pinoleville Rancheria changed in 1958 when the US government began to implement integration policies throughout the United States. In 1966 the Pinoleville Rancheria was terminated. [6]

Tillie Hardwick v. US – 1983

Despite this, in 1983 Pinoleville became a part of Tillie Hardwick v. US, a class action suit against the federal government for the termination of Indian Rancherias. Tillie Hardwick was successful and seventeen tribes which were formally terminated won formal recognition from the US government. [6] [8]

Federal recognition of Pinoleville Pomo Nation – 2005–2006

On June 26, 2005 Pinoleville Pomo Nation adopted their own constitution and elected seven officials to serve as the tribal council with four year terms. In 2006, Pinoleville Pomo Nation signed a Title IV compact with the US government and was recognized as a Self-Governance Tribe. [6]

Culture

Housing

Winter shelters (tca) were hemispherical, with floors sunken a foot or so into the ground and walls woven of willow, thatched with thick grass, tules, or willow. These might house anywhere from one to five families. They also built small sweat houses (tca-ne), which also served as meeting places or warm winter quarters for men. The main villages had large meeting houses, or roundhouses, some of which could hold several hundred people for ceremonies and dances. In the summer camps, a brush shelter sufficed. [6]

Nomadic Food Collection

Rather than an agricultural tribe, the Pomo were nomadic people who moved throughout Northern California depending on the season. They moved with the seasons, gathering what they needed where it was abundant. In spring, they walked to the coast to collect seaweed, abalone and shellfish. These were dried and brought back to be stored for winter. Hunting of small game, using ingenious traps, spears, or arrows, was done throughout the year. [6]

The most important staple food of the Pomo people was acorns, gathered in the fall and carefully stored for winter. Fish, deer and elk meat were also dried for winter stores. [6]

Baskets

The Pomo people excelled in making baskets. Learn more about the Pomo's baskets on the main Pomo Wikipedia page.

Tribal services and projects

Pinoleville Pomo Nation currently operates a housing program to support low income residents, and encourage the construction of sustainable housing through a partnership with the housing committee and environmental department. Thus far, two houses constructed by the Pinoleville Pomo Nation with guidance by architects and engineers from UC Berkeley have been completed.

Through their environmental department the Pinoleville Pomo Nation has created a horticultural program, which focuses on tribal youth — educating them about plants, to improve self-esteem and provide skills. These skills and knowledge is also aimed to improve diets and the local environment. In addition to this, Pinole Nation Gardens include a greenhouse, orchards, two gardens, and native plant restoration areas which are located in Ukiah. [9]

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ History of the Pinoleville Band. Pinoleville.org. (retrieved 2 August 2009)
  2. ↑ California Indians and Their Reservations. Archived 2010-07-26 at the Wayback Machine San Diego State University Library and Information Access. 2009 (retrieved 2 August 2009)
  3. ↑ Pinoleville Pomo Nation Contact Page. Pinoleville Tribal Government. (retrieved 2 August 2009)
  4. ↑ Durham, David (1998). California's Geographic Names: A Gazetteer of Historic and Modern Names of the State. Word Dancer Press. ISBN   1-884995-14-4.
  5. ↑ "Pomo Indians of Northern California". Mendocino Coast Model Railroad & Historical Society.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 "Pinoleville Pomo Nation - Pinoleville Pomo Nation". Pinoleville Pomo Nation. Retrieved 2018-02-21.
  7. 1 2 James, Angela. "N/A" (PDF). ryanlshelby.com.
  8. ↑ "National Indian Law Library, Native American Rights Fund (NARF)". www.narf.org. Retrieved 2018-03-14.
  9. ↑ Pinoleville Pomo Nation: Horticultural Initiative. Gardens Project: The Real Dirt. (retrieved 2 Aug 2009)

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mendocino County, California</span> County in the United States

Mendocino County is a county located on the North Coast of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 91,601. The county seat is Ukiah.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pomo</span> Indigenous Californians

The Pomo are a Native American people of California. Historical Pomo territory in Northern California was large, bordered by the Pacific Coast to the west, extending inland to Clear Lake, and mainly between Cleone and Duncans Point. One small group, the Tceefoka, lived in the vicinity of present-day Stonyford in Colusa County, separated from the core Pomo area by lands inhabited by Yuki and Wintuan speakers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kashia Band of Pomo Indians of the Stewarts Point Rancheria</span> Indian reservation in California, United States

The Kashia Band of Pomo Indians of the Stewarts Point Rancheria is a federally recognized tribe of Pomo people in Sonoma County, California. They are also known as the Kashaya Pomo.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Guidiville Rancheria of California</span> Indian reservation in United States, Pomo

The Guidiville Rancheria of California are a federally recognized Pomo tribe located in Mendocino County, California.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Round Valley Indian Tribes of the Round Valley Reservation</span>

The Round Valley Indian Reservation is a federally recognized Indian reservation lying primarily in northern Mendocino County, California, United States. A small part of it extends northward into southern Trinity County. The total land area, including off-reservation trust land, is 93.939 km2. More than two-thirds of this area is off-reservation trust land, including about 405 acres (1.64 km2) in the community of Covelo. The total resident population as of the 2000 census was 300 persons, of whom 99 lived in Covelo.

The Hopland Band of Pomo Indians of the Hopland Rancheria is a federally recognized tribe of Pomo people in Mendocino County, California, south of Ukiah. The Hopland Band Pomos traditionally lived in the Sanel Valley.

The 70-acre (280,000 m2) Coyote Valley Reservation in Redwood Valley, California is home to about 170 members of the Coyote Valley tribe of the Native American Pomo people, who descend from the Shodakai Pomo. They are a federally recognized tribe, who were formerly known as the Coyote Valley Band of Pomo Indians of California.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Redwood Valley Rancheria</span>

The Redwood Valley Rancheria is a federally recognized Indian tribe located in Redwood Valley, Mendocino County, California. The tribe is primarily composed of Pomo Indians. Redwood Valley Rancheria is a sovereign Indian tribe with the powers of self-governance.

The Pit River Tribe is a federally recognized tribe of eleven bands of indigenous peoples of California. They primarily live along the Pit River in the northeast corner of California. Their name also is spelled as "Pitt River" in some historical records.

The Cloverdale Rancheria of Pomo Indians of California is a federally recognized tribe of Pomo Indians in California. The tribe is currently considered "landless", as they do not have any land that is in Federal Trust. In 2008 they acquired approximately 80 acres (32 ha) of property on the southern end of Cloverdale, California. The property is currently going through the Fee to Trust process to become the tribe's landbase.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sherwood Valley Rancheria of Pomo Indians of California</span>

The Sherwood Valley Rancheria of Pomo Indians of California is a federally recognized tribe of Pomo Indians in California.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Habematolel Pomo of Upper Lake</span>

The Habematolel Pomo of Upper Lake is a federally recognized tribe of Pomo Indians in Lake County, California. The tribe's reservation, the Upper Lake Rancheria, is 119 acres (0.48 km2) large and located near the town of Upper Lake in northwestern California.

The Scotts Valley Band of Pomo Indians of California, also known as the Scott's Valley Band of Pomo Indians of the Sugar Bowl Rancheria is a federally recognized tribe of Pomo and Wailaki Indians in Lake County.

The Potter Valley Tribe is a federally recognized tribe of Pomo people in Mendocino County, California. They were previously known as the Little River Band of Pomo Indians and Potter Valley Rancheria of Pomo Indians of California. The tribe is descended from the first-known inhabitants of the valley, which the Pomo called Ba-lo Kai. Europeans first settled there, at the headwaters of the East Fork of the Russian River, in 1852.

Tillie Hardwick was a Pomo Indian woman who was instrumental in reversing the California Indian Rancheria termination policy of the U.S. government.

The California Rancheria Termination Acts refer to three acts of Congress and an amendment passed in the 1950s and 1960s as part of the US Indian termination policy. The three Acts, passed in 1956, 1957, and 1958 targeted 41 Rancherias for termination. An additional seven were added via an amendment in 1964. Including three previous terminations, 46 of the 51 targeted Rancherias were successfully terminated. Through litigation and legislation, over 30 Rancherias have been restored and at least five are still working to be.

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

Luwana Quitiquit was a Native American administrator, activist, and basket weaver. During the Occupation of Alcatraz she worked as one of the cooks who provided food to those living on the island. Her career was as an administrator for various California Indian organizations. Subsequently, she became a well-known doll maker, basketweaver, jeweler, and teacher of Pomo handicrafts. In 2008, she and her family were disenrolled from the Robinson Rancheria of Pomo Indians of California. She fought the action claiming it was politically motivated until her death. Posthumously, in 2017, her membership, as well as for her other family members, was reinstated in the first known case where a tribe reversed its decision on membership termination without a court ruling.

The InterTribal Sinkyone Wilderness Council is a consortium of Northern California tribal nations focused on environmental and cultural preservation. The council, which includes members of 10 federally recognized tribes in Mendocino and Lake counties, has worked to protect lands of cultural importance along the North Coast within the traditional Sinkyone tribal territory since it was established in 1986. Nonprofit and governmental organizations have cooperated with the council in the restoration of property to descendants of its original inhabitants which is part of an effort to return Indigenous lands and autonomy to Indigenous communities. After the invasion of the traditional Sinkyone tribal territory by multitudes of Euro-American settlers in the mid-1850s, Sinkyone people eventually became enrolled members at several tribes located throughout the region. The council is made up of the Cahto Indian Tribe of the Laytonville Rancheria, Coyote Valley Band of Pomo Indians, Hopland Band of Pomo Indians, Pinoleville Pomo Nation, Potter Valley Tribe, Redwood Valley Rancheria of Pomo Indians, Robinson Rancheria of Pomo Indians, Round Valley Indian Tribes, Scotts Valley Band of Pomo Indians and Sherwood Valley Rancheria of Pomo Indians.

References

39°10′49″N123°13′04″W / 39.18028°N 123.21778°W / 39.18028; -123.21778

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.