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44-806: The Plains and Sierra Miwok traditionally lived in the western Sierra Nevada between the Fresno River and Cosumnes River , in the eastern Central Valley of California . As well as in the northern Sacramento–San Joaquin River Delta region at the confluences of the Cosumnes River, Mokelumne River , and Sacramento River . In the present day, many Sierra Miwok live in or close to their traditional territories and Indian rancherias , including at: The Plains and Sierra Miwok lived by hunting and gathering , and lived in small local tribes, without centralized political authority. They are skilled at basketry and continue

88-651: A crow. As they were flying they came upon a duck and asked the duck to bring up mud from the water so there can be land again. The duck did as he was asked and this mud became the land of the Yokuts, more specifically the Sierra Nevada and the Coast Mountains . To this day the crow and the eagle continue to be symbolic figures in Yokuts religious ceremonies. Yokuts life was rather peaceful. There were more than 60 tribes with an estimated 400-600 or more people in each tribe at

132-563: A gaping mouth." Those living in awahni were known as the Awahnichi (also spelled Awani , Ahwahnechee , and similar variants), meaning "people who live in awahni". The naming of the Ahwahnee Hotel was derived from the Miwok word. The authenticated Southern Sierra Miwok villages are: After Euro-Americans entered Yosemite Valley and the adjacent Sierras, and established Yosemite National Park ,

176-722: A portion of the Central Valley's Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta and adjacent plains in modern southern Sacramento County , eastern Solano County , and northern San Joaquin County . They spoke Plains Miwok , a language of the Miwokan branch of the Utian language family. Classical anthropologists recorded a number of specific Plains Miwok villages, but it remained for work by Bennyhoff in the 1950s and 1960s to recognize multi-village territorial local tribes as

220-559: A variety of local animals, such as game birds, waterfowl, rabbits, turtles, various fish, mussels, and wasp grubs. Big game was hunted less frequently, but included deer, elk, and antelope. Their staple food was derived from acorn mash, though they also gathered tule roots and iris bulbs to make flour. Other foraged food includes manzanita berries, pine nuts, and seeds. They used a form of horticulture to cultivate tobacco. Salt came from salt grass . The contemporary Wukchumni and Choinumni communities do not yet have federal recognition. As of

264-476: Is flood control, but it is also used to regulate flows for irrigation and groundwater recharge . In 1978, the lake was opened to the public for recreation and is a popular boating and fishing destination for locals. Below Hidden Dam, the Fresno River provides water to Madera Lake via an unnamed distributary. Excess flow from the lake is returned to the Fresno River by the lake's dam. Further downstream, on

308-578: Is when water levels are high enough to spill over the dam. West of Road 17 in Madera County , the Fresno River's natural riverbed has been subject to much intervention by man and as a result, the natural riverbed has many gaps in it, which are now connected by man-made canals. At Road 17, the natural riverbed has been modified to divert most flows into a manmade canal, which leads to the Eastside Bypass . Water can also be allowed to continue flowing down

352-463: The 2010 census there are a total of 6,273 people who identify as Yokuts. Many of them live on reservations that have casinos, these casinos have been essential to providing the Yokuts with jobs, money, and healthcare. The Yokuts tribe of California are known to have engaged in trading with other California tribes of Native Americans in the United States including coastal peoples like, for example,

396-484: The Eastside Bypass . The river exits the bypass then flows generally northwest to its confluence with the San Joaquin River, just north of Highway 152 . Hidden Dam is the only major storage dam on the Fresno River. The dam forms Hensley Lake , a 90,000 acre-foot (110,000,000 m ) reservoir . The United States Army Corps of Engineers built the earth-fill dam, which was completed in 1974. Its primary purpose

440-607: The Mono Lake Basin, and entered Yosemite from the east. The Mono name for the Southern Miwok was qohsoo?moho. Miwoks occupied the lower western foothills of the Sierras and entered from the west. Disputes between the two tribes were violent, and the residents of the valley, in defense of their territory, were considered to be among the most aggressive of any tribes in the area. When encountered by immigrants of European descent ,

484-509: The 'Fresno' River, it is one of the largest and longest river systems in Madera County. Headwaters: The Fresno River forms in the Oakhurst valley, near the western border of city limits. The primary source of the Fresno River is Lewis Fork Creek, which gathers water far northeastward into the hills adjacent to Fish Camp. Lewis Fork Creek itself has a major tributary from Nelder Creek, coming from

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528-584: The Chumash tribe of the Central California coast, and they are known to have traded plant and animal products. Other items part of Yokuts trade included salts, soap stones, and obsidian. They used marine shells as a form of money showing they had a functional monetary system in place. On April 5, 2015, it was reported that members of the Chukchansi tribe near Yosemite had been disenrolling other members from

572-468: The Foothill Yokuts, Northern Valley Yokuts, and Southern Valley Yokuts . Another name used to refer to the Yokuts was Mariposans. The endonym "Yokuts" itself means "people." There are many stories, depending on the tribe, on how the Yokuts and their land came to be but most follow a similar form. Their creation story is such: Once the world was completely covered in water. Then came an eagle and

616-415: The Fresno River gets out of the foothills, it creates a gently sloped river valley down to the border of the Central Valley. At one of the widest sections of the river, Hidden Dam was constructed and Hensley Lake created. Now a popular recreation spot, the lake covers a considerable area when full from late spring snow melts. Central Valley: Below the lake, the river flows southwest to Madera , then west to

660-477: The Fresno River receives the water from the following streams: Towns along the Fresno River include: There are numerous crossings over the Fresno River in Madera and Merced Counties. Crossings are listed here beginning at the source and working downstream: Yokuts The Yokuts (previously known as Mariposas ) are an ethnic group of Native Americans native to central California . Before European contact,

704-660: The Indian people at that mission, and by 1830 they had reached 42% of the mission's population. In 1834 and 1835, hundreds of Plains Miwok survivors of the Central Valley's 1833 malaria epidemic were baptized at Mission San José. By the end of 1835, Plains Miwok was the native language of 60% of the Indian people at the mission. Between 1834 and 1838 the Alta California missions were secularized (closed as religious and agricultural communes). Many Plains Miwoks moved back to their home areas, where between 1839 and 1841 John Sutter played

748-630: The Plains and Sierra Miwok is one of the most extensive in the state. These groups participate in the general cultural pattern of Central California. Miwok mythology is similar to other natives of Central and Northern California. The Plains and Sierra Miwok believe in animal and human spirits, and see the animal spirits as their ancestors. Coyote is seen as their ancestor and creator god . There were four definite regional and linguistic sub-divisions: Plains Miwok, Northern Sierra Miwok, Central Sierra Miwok, and Southern Sierra Miwok. The Plains Miwok inhabited

792-547: The Yokuts consisted of up to 60 tribes speaking several related languages. Yokuts is both plural and singular; Yokut , while common, is erroneous. 'Yokut' should only be used when referring specifically to the Tachi Yokut Tribe of Lemoore . Some of their descendants prefer to refer to themselves by their respective tribal names; they reject the term Yokuts, saying that it is an exonym invented by English-speaking settlers and historians. Conventional sub-groupings include

836-554: The Yokuts tribe were forced to move to the Fort Tejon Reservation. A few years later, the reservation was attacked by white vigilantes, leaving most of the inhabitants dead. By 1859, the reservation was completely abandoned. The Tule reservation was established in 1873 and many Yokuts moved to that reservation. Disease, violence, and relocation severely diminished the Yokuts population so much that today their numbers do not even come close to what they once were. Estimates for

880-813: The adjacent foothills of the Sierra Nevada mountain range, which lies to the east. In the northern half of the Yokuts region, some tribes inhabited the foothills of the Coast Range to the west. There is evidence of Yokuts inhabiting the Carrizo Plain and creating rock art in the Painted Rock area. According to San Diego State University , the Yokutsan languages are members of the Penutian language family . Yokuts used spears, basket traps, and assorted other tools to hunt

924-617: The course of the next 50 years, settlers and eventually the California State Militia would wage war on the Yokuts and other native tribes in what became known as the California genocide . The Yokuts were reduced by around 93% between 1850 and 1900, with many of the survivors being forced into indentured servitude sanctioned by the so-called "California State Act for the Government and Protection of Indians ". A few Valley Yokuts remain,

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968-410: The death of many Yokuts. With their work force dwindling the missions moved further inland forcing those they encountered to convert and work. In 1833, malaria was brought by British fur traders, spreading through the native population through their use of the sweat houses. This decrease in population left the Yokuts weak in numbers when gold was discovered, bringing with it more foreigners. Gold

1012-490: The eighteen treaties in a secret vote cast on July 8, 1852, with every member either abstaining or voting no. The result of the vote was not made public until 1905. The newly organized state government took a different approach. In 1851, California Governor Peter Burnett said that unless the Indians were moved east of the Sierras, "a war of extermination would continue to be waged until the Indian race should become extinct". Over

1056-499: The highest regional population densities in pre-contact North America. The federal government, which had recently acquired California after defeating Mexico in the Mexican–American War , signed a treaty (one of eighteen such treaties signed state-wide, setting aside seven and a half percent of California's land area) defining a proposed reservation and two hundred head of cattle per year. The US Senate failed to ratify any of

1100-578: The local groups off against one another in order to gain control of the lower Sacramento Valley. Other Plains Miwok families remained in the San Francisco Bay area, intermarried with Ohlone , Patwin , and Yokuts peoples, and found work on local Mexican ranchos . The Northern Miwok inhabited the upper watersheds of the Mokelumne River and the Calaveras River . One settlement site is within

1144-690: The lower banks of the Merced River and the Chowchilla River , as well as Mariposa Creek . They spoke Southern Sierra Miwok , a language in the Utian linguistic group. The Merced River flows from the High Sierras , through Yosemite Valley , and into the San Joaquin Valley near present-day near Livingston . The Mono tribe people (considered Northern Paiute ) occupied the higher eastern Sierras and

1188-602: The lower-montane Nelder Grove area and Speckerman Mountain (7,600 ft). The other major tributary is China Creek, which acts as a drainage for the ridges around the Teaford Saddle. After Oakhurst, the Fresno River runs northwest until it reaches the end of the sloped valley at the calm topography of the Fresno Flats. There the valley and hills start to meet, and the Fresno crosses Potter Ridge at around 2,000 feet. Foothills: As

1232-550: The main river channel (north of the man-made canal), but that water now ends up in the bypass as well. Once in the bypass, water can exit via a small channel at a diversion dam and continue west along the natural riverbed the rest of the way to the San Joaquin River. Between the Eastside Bypass and the San Joaquin River, the riverbed (which is almost always dry) has been subject to straightening, but more or less follows its natural course. In addition to many small unnamed streams,

1276-534: The most prominent tribe among them being the Tachi Yokut. Kroeber estimated the population of the Yokuts in 1910 as 600. Today about 2,000 Yokuts are enrolled in the federally recognized tribe. An estimated 600 Yokuts are said to belong to unrecognized tribes. Yokuts tribes populated the San Joaquin Valley , from the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta ("the delta") south to Bakersfield and

1320-506: The neighboring Southern Sierra Miwok tribe referred to the Yosemite Valley residents as "killers". It is from this reference and a confusion over the word for "grizzly bear" that Bunnell named the valley Yosemite. The native residents called the valley awahni . Today, there is some debate about the original meaning of the word, since the Southern Miwok language is virtually extinct, but recent Southern Miwok speakers defined it as "place like

1364-661: The northeast edge of Madera, is the John Franchi Diversion Dam , a 15-foot (4.6 m) high, 263-foot (80 m)-wide earth and steel dam that is used to divert water into the Big Main Canal. The dam was built by the United States Bureau of Reclamation in 1964 and is operated by the Madera Irrigation District. From this point, the river is normally dry. The only time water is released past here

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1408-651: The population was estimated at 670. Fresno River The Fresno River ( Spanish for "ash tree") is a river in Central California and a major tributary of the San Joaquin River . It runs approximately 83 miles (134 km) from the Sierra Nevada Range to the San Joaquin River if measured from the source of Rainier Creek, near Raymond Mountain in Yosemite National Park. Although called

1452-472: The pre-contact populations of most native groups in California have varied substantially (See Population of Native California ). Alfred L. Kroeber in 1925 put the 1770 population of the Yokuts at 18,000. Several subsequent investigations suggested that the total should be substantially higher. Robert F. Heizer and Albert B. Elsasser 1980 suggested that the Yokuts had numbered about 70,000. They had one of

1496-599: The present day Indian Grinding Rock State Historic Park near Volcano . They spoke Northern Sierra Miwok, a language in the Utian linguistic group. The authenticated Northern Sierra Miwok villages are: The Central Sierra Miwok inhabited the upper watersheds of the Stanislaus River and the Tuolumne River . They spoke Central Sierra Miwok , a language in the Utian linguistic group. The authenticated Central Sierra Miwok villages are: The Southern Miwok inhabited

1540-435: The residents were of both Paiute-Mono and Miwok origin. They had either fought to a stalemate or agreed to peaceful coexistence and had intermixed to a limited extent. Alfred L. Kroeber estimated there to be 9,000 Plains and Sierra Miwok combined in 1770, but this is an arguably low estimate. Richard Levy estimated there were 17,800. In 1848 their population was estimated at 6,000, in 1852 at 4,500, in 1880 at 100, and in 1910

1584-597: The river carves its way through the ridge, it creates several windy canyons and gulches. This area was mildly popular during the Central Sierra era of the Gold Rush, throughout the early to mid-1850s. Past the ridge, the Fresno River descends the foothills mildly. The harsh canyons ease up and start to widen. It crosses Road 415 at around 1,000 feet elevation, an intersection known as the Fresno Crossing. Hensley Lake: Once

1628-525: The sick. However, shamans were able to use their power for good or evil, and depending on how they used their power they could be executed. The first time the Yokuts encountered Europeans was in 1772, when Spanish troops were in the area searching for soldiers. In the 19th century, missions were introduced by the Spaniards and as they expanded they forced the Yokuts to work the land for farming. The harsh working conditions along with disease and abuse led to

1672-502: The signature land-use organization of the Plains Miwok. The published specific village locations were: Among the important landholding local tribes at the time of Spanish colonization in California were: The majority of the members of the Plains Miwok local tribes moved to colonial Franciscan Mission San José , in some cases through attraction and in other cases through intimidation, between 1812 and 1833. By 1815 they represented 14% of

1716-514: The time of contact with the Spaniards in 1770. In Yokuts culture, men and women had different responsibilities. Men usually did the hunting, fishing, and building while the women gathered, maintained the home, and cared for the children. Divorce was not difficult to achieve and could be done for a number of reasons, including affairs, laziness, and infertility. Artistic expression among the Yokuts included music, singing, and painting. Basket making

1760-544: The traditions today. The original Plains and Sierra Miwok people world view included Shamanism . One form this took was the Kuksu religion that was evident in Central and Northern California, which included elaborate acting and dancing ceremonies in traditional costume, an annual morning ceremony, puberty rites of passage , shamanic intervention with the spirit world, and an all-male society that met in subterranean dance rooms. Kuksu

1804-477: The tribe for decades, so that the tribe's casino profits would go to fewer people. In the autumn of 2014, several disenrolled Chukchansi tribe members (who were no longer receiving a share of casino profits) arrived at the Chukchansi Gold Resort & Casino armed with guns, and violence ensued. As a result, a federal judge ordered that the casino be shut down. The casino reopened on December 31, 2015, and

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1848-455: Was also a way for the Yokuts to show their artistic skills by weaving designs and images into the baskets. Other forms of expression were done on the bodies of the Yokuts, such as tattoos and piercings. The Yokuts partook in two important religious ceremonies, the annual mourning rite and the first fruit rite. Shamans were important to the Yokuts as they were believed to have supernatural powers, helped conduct ceremonies, and were able to treat

1892-407: Was discovered in California in 19th century. The 1850s were a devastating time for California Indians due to the incursion of European settlers into their homelands, who enslaved or killed the natives in great number. The gold rush left the Yokuts with no land and a large decrease in their population. In 1853 malaria spread once again among the Yokuts, killing more natives. By 1854 what was left of

1936-496: Was shared with other indigenous ethnic groups of Central California, such as the Pomo , Maidu , Ohlone , Esselen , and northernmost Yokuts . However, Kroeber observed less "specialized cosmogony " in the Miwok, which he termed one of the "southern Kuksu-dancing groups", in comparison to the Maidu and other northern California tribes. The record of myths, legends, tales, and histories from

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