Editor’s note: This article was originally published in The Madera Tribune on Aug. 22, 2006.
• • •
The study on the ethnohistory of the Northfork Mono Indians describes in detail the years 1851 to 1859, when the federal government operated several reservations in and near what is now known as the City of Madera.
In this part we will look at what the study shows of those years. Three treaty commissioners named McKee, Barbour and Wozencraft pushed to set up reservations in hopes of creating a more peaceful relationship between the native and nonnative populations. They also wanted to get natives out of the foothills so miners and grazers could go on with their business.
The Fresno River Farm was one of several Indian farms dotting the countryside that had been set aside in the treaties at Camp Barbour, Camp Belt, and Camp Keyes and reservation land.
By the mid-1850s, the Northfork Mono were under the jurisdiction of the Fresno River Sub-agency headquarters just southeast of what is now the city of Madera.
Administering the reservations was a difficult task, partly because of the distance between various farms. It was also complicated by disease, intrusion and disruption of aboriginal life.
The reservations were supposed to cover a large part of the San Joaquin Valley, including Madera, but were continuously being encroached upon by settlers because the government failed to ratify the treaties that created them.
Reservation borders were constantly changing; there are a variety of reports that state as much as 2,000 acres were planted and as little as 960 acres. The lands eventually shrunk until the federal government abandoned the reservation in 1859.
The land base had been placed under the control of one man, subagent Adam Johston and later Indian agent Martin B. Lewis. The federal government did not provide an adequate defense of the reservation borders and failed to ratify the treaties.
There was much violence during this time that agents for the federal government attributed to a severe lack of food. Settlers and livestock had forever changed the environment, eliminating much of the natural foods the natives depended on.
Disease continued to devastate the Indian population. Crops that were being grown on the reservation were supposed to help teach natives a more “civilized” method of survival, but many crops failed due to drought and poor growing conditions.
To help with the food problem, Lewis encouraged the natives to continue practicing their art of hunting, fishing and gathering to supplement what was grown on the farms. Once again, natives found themselves spending part of their time in the Valley and part in the foothills. Other natives worked in mines and for farmers and ranchers.
The reservation was closed primarily due to an investigation by special agents J. Ross Browne and George Bailey. According to the study, Browne and Bailey visited the reservation in 1857, while many of the native people were away hunting, fishing, or working jobs. When they didn’t find many natives on the reservation, they called the reservation a failure and recommended its closure.
The reservation was permanently shut down in 1859. That left the Northfork Mono and other Valley natives, who had become dependent on the farm and federal supplements, without a way to survive.
The California Indian Affairs office was organized and James McDuffie was appointed as superintendent of California Indian Affairs. McDuffie pushed to have all San Joaquin natives relocated to the Tejon Reservation where natives were used as laborers. Ancestors of the Northfork Mono stayed in the Valley instead of moving 100 to 300 miles away. They dispersed around the area, relying on family as they looked for work.
This pushed tribal ancestors and all tribes of the area into a new era, an era characterized by dispossession, violence and neglect.
The North Fork Rancheria and Madera: A shared history, a shared future
In 2004, the North Fork Rancheria of Mono Indians began one of the most thorough and extensive ethnohistorical studies ever conducted by a California tribe. The study entailed significant financial investment and nearly two years of primary and secondary research on behalf of the Tribe.
More than 7,000 local, state and federal documents were analyzed and scores of personal interviews were held with tribal citizens and non-Natives. This ambitious research project was conducted by James M. McClurken & Associates, a preeminent authority in the field of ethnohistory who has conducted numerous studies for tribes throughout Canada and the United States.
The report, entitled “Ethnohistory of the Northfork Mono in the Vicinity of the City of Madera, California,” was written by Ms. Heather A. Howard, Ph.D., and made available by the Tribe in the Summer of 2006. The research project and final report represent the North Fork Rancheria’s commitment to better understand and relate Northfork Mono history, culture and values to its own citizens as well as others within the community.
This series of articles appeared in The Madera Tribune newspaper and website in August 2006 and distill the 400-plus page report into a single story of the Northfork Mono, from pre-contact to the modern era. The author, Mr. Cal Tatum, captures unique hallmarks and recurring themes in the history of the North Fork Rancheria, most notably the Tribe’s exceptional efforts to co-exist and adapt to the changing landscape — politically, culturally, and geographically — of Madera County. This adaptability continues to be a trademark of the Tribe’s relationship with the surrounding communities to this day. Like our historical connection to the lands of Madera County, it is an enduring part of our history.
We hope these articles will provide valuable insight into the Northfork Mono and other Native peoples of the San Joaquin Valley region. As always, our Tribe’s goal remains to be good friends, relatives, and neighbors to all who share this special place now called Madera.
— On behalf of our nearly 1,400 tribal citizens, we are sincerely, the Tribal Council of the North Fork Rancheria, September 2006