people of snowy mountain, people of the river

Pacific West Region: Social Science Series Publication Number 2012-01

National Park Service U.S. Department of the Interior

PEOPLE OF SNOWY MOUNTAIN, PEOPLE OF THE RIVER: A MULTI-AGENCY ETHNOGRAPHIC OVERVIEW AND COMPENDIUM RELATING TO TRIBES ASSOCIATED WITH CLARK COUNTY, NEVADA 2012

Douglas Deur, Ph.D. and Deborah Confer

LAKE MEAD AND BLACK CANYON Doc Searls Photo, Courtesy Wikimedia Commons

PEOPLE OF SNOWY MOUNTAIN, PEOPLE OF THE RIVER: A MULTI-AGENCY ETHNOGRAPHIC OVERVIEW AND COMPENDIUM RELATING TO TRIBES ASSOCIATED WITH CLARK COUNTY, NEVADA 2012

Douglas Deur, Ph.D. and Deborah Confer School of Environmental and Forest Sciences University of Washington and

PNW Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit National Park Service, Pacific West Region Seattle, Washington

Research and report production done under a Cooperative Agreement between the Pacific West Region, National Park Serice and the School of Environment and Forest Sciences, University of Washington: Cooperative Agreement No. H8W07060001, and Task Agreement No. J8W07070004.

Pacific West Region: Social Science Series Publication Number 2012-01 Frederick F. York, Ph.D., Regional Anthrolologist and Social Science Series Editor

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Introduction Study Background and Objectives Methods The Natural Environments of Clark County The Archaeological Context of Clark County (Roberts and Ahlstrom) The Tribes of the Clark County Region at Contact Southern Paiute Southern Paiute Bands Moapa and Shivwits Las Vegas and Pahrump Chmehuevi Mohave Western Shoshone Hualapai and Other Tribes with Colorado River Connections Enduring Traditions: Creation and Salt Song Cycles Nineteenth Century Transitions The Emergence of States and Indian Superintendencies Southern Paiutes of Clark County Mormon Missions Conflicts, Militarization, and the Call for Reservations Reservations and Resistance: Moapa, Las Vegas and Pahrump Southern Paiutes Beyond Clark County The Bands of the Paiute Indian Tribe of Utah Kaibab Band of Paiute Indians Mohave Transitions Chemehuevi Transitions Western Shoshone Transitions Twentieth Century Influences The Indian Claims Commission Western Shoshone Land Claims The Growing Importance of Urban Indians

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Contemporary Tribes: An Overview Clark County Tribes California Tribes Arizona Tribes Utah Tribes New Mexico Tribes Other Nevada Tribes Federally Unrecognized Tribes and Tribal Organizations Potential Traditional Cultural Properties Spring Mountains/Charleston Peak Salt Song Sites and Pathways Colorado River Riparian Corridor Mohave Creation Sites and Revisiting Spirit Mountain Salt Caves and Spirit Caves Red Rock Canyon Resource Procurement Sites Other Settlement Sites Other Ritual Sites Conclusions Bibliography Appendices Appendix A: Legal Mechanisms related to the Establishment of Indian Reservations in Clark County Appendix B: Treaties with Tribes proximate to Clark County Appendix C: Selected Federal Law, Policy, and Other Legal Instruments related to Cultural Resources and Tribal Consultation Appendix D: NAGPRA Notices of Inventory Completion in and around Clark County Appendix E: Select National Register Listed Sites in Clark County Appendix F: Current Contact Information for Tribal Historic Preservation Offices associated with Clark County, 2012 Appendix G: Introductory Sections of the Draft Consultation Template for Lake Mead NRA Notes

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209 213 218 233 244 247 248 255 262 268 270 272 274 275 277 278 280 281 283 289 370 371 377 392 398 405 409 412 423

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MAPS AND GRAPHS Map 1: Map 2: Map 3: Map 4:

Clark County Federal Lands Elevation and Terrain of Southern Nevada Ecological Regions of Southern Nevada Traditional Tribal Territories in Clark County, Nevada as depicted in the Handbook of North American Indians Map 5: Southern Paiute Band Territories as shown in the Handbook of North American Indians and Recent Works by the University of Arizona Bureau of Applied Research in Anthropology Map 6: Southern Paiute Band Territories as shown in the works of William Palmer Map 7: Alternative Depictions of Western Shoshone Territory Map 8: Alternative Depictions of Western Shoshone Territory in Clark County Map 9: Indian Land Cessions in Southern Nevada and Vicinity (from Royce) Map 10: Indian Land Cessions in Clark County, Nevada (from Royce) Map 11: Modern Western Shoshone Communities and Lands Claimed by Western Shoshone Map 12: Judicially Established Indian Claims Commission Indian Lands Map 13: Judicially Established ICC Indian Lands in Clark County, Nevada Map 14: Alternative Depictions of Western Shoshone Territory by Tribal Organizations, 1986-Present Graph 1: Las Vegas Metro Area American Indian & Alaska Native Population in U.S. Census Records, 1960-2010 Map 15: Selected Tribes in the Greater Southern Nevada Region Map 16: Selected Tribes of Clark County, Nevada

6 17 21 45

48 67 85 92 132 138 177 190 194 200 206 210 214

TABLES Table 1: Federal Land Ownership in Clark County by Agency Table 2: Chronological Sequence for Southern Nevada Archaeological Sites Table 3: Non-Reservation American Indian & Alaska Native Population of Clark County and Metro Las Vegas, U.S. Census, 1960-2010 Table 4: Distribution of Non-Reservation American Indian & Alaska Native Population in Clark County, U.S. Census, 2010

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5 27 205 207

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Introduction Clark County, Nevada, has always been a unique place, sitting at a crossroads of varied cultures and environments. Here, the sprawling Great Basin to the north meets the rugged Colorado River canyonlands along the county’s eastern margins. At this intersection, Great Basin peoples – Southern Paiutes especially, but also Western Shoshones – have long lived in close proximity to river peoples – Mohaves in particular – while the ethnic diversity of the region ensured that many other tribes – Hualapais and other Yuman speakers among them – also were present at various times on the land. Many tribes have viewed landmarks within the area, such as Spirit Mountain, as sacred but did not frequently venture into Clark County. Others resided almost entirely in what is today Clark County, or made frequent use of this area for countless generations. And if this did not suggest a sufficiently complex ethnic map of Clark County, one needs only to look into the archaeological record and the oral traditions of area tribes to realize that this map has been changing, with peoples passing through, and moving from place to place within this southern corner of Nevada for a very long time indeed. Today, Clark County encompasses roughly 5.12 million acres of land in the southern corner of Nevada, of which over 4.6 million acres (or 90 percent) are managed by the five federal agencies of the Southern Nevada Agency Partnership (SNAP). This partnership comprises the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), Bureau of Reclamation (BOR), National Park Service (NPS), U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) and U.S. Forest Service (USFS). These agencies are charged with managing the cultural resources on these lands, and to regularly consult with those tribes who are historically associated with the lands and resources in their care. A diverse range of federal laws, policies and regulations prescribe certain levels of consultation; compliance is critical to agency operations and to the upholding of federal obligations to American Indian tribes. This is not always an easy task. The agencies that manage lands in Clark County must sort through the complex history and territorial associations of numerous modern tribes – some living in Clark County and some living some distance away. This requires frequent review of the historical and ethnographic record, and direct communication with the tribes regarding places and resources that are of interest to them. The current document represents one component of this larger effort.

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The current document has been undertaken to assist agencies in meeting their obligations for federally mandated compliance and consultation with Indian tribes that have historical associations with Clark County. The document has been designed in part to provide an overview of the territorial associations of various tribes with ties to this area. This is accomplished using ethnohistorical documentation as well key legal documents, such as treaty language and Indian Claims Commission findings, that establish parameters for agency consultation responsibilities. Managers of Clark County’s federal lands have been eager to identify those tribes that are tied to the area in various ways – from those tribes who have long resided on these lands, to those who value this place but seldom if ever visit. Cumulatively, this research suggests ties between particular tribes and particular agency lands that may serve as a background reference for tribal and agency staff alike as they seek to understand Clark County’s tribal history and to protect cultural resources of mutual concern. The current report represents one piece of a singly funded, three-tiered effort supported by SNAP and its participating agencies, which has involved 1) The National Park Service Pacific-West Region Anthropologist and the UW Principal Investigator providing technical assistance in the process of repatriating human remains and associated funerary objects that were historically excavated from lands along the Colorado River that are now in the management of the National Park Service and the Bureau of Reclamation; 2) A multidisciplinary team, led by the UW Principal Investigator, developing the following ethnographic overview and compendium that identifies historical ties between particular modern tribes and lands now managed by SNAP agencies in Clark County, Nevada, to be used as an aid to future tribal consultation efforts by these agencies; and 3) The National Park Service Pacific-West Regional Anthropologist and the UW PI collaboratively developing a consultation template to help guide tribal consultation at Lake Mead National Recreation Area, which also may be adapted and used by other SNAP agencies at their discretion.

At the onset of this research, the research team met with agency staff to ascertain their needs and interests. They also met with representatives of many of the tribes with Deur and Confer - People of Snowy Mountain, People of the River

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historical ties to Clark County. The document that follows was developed in response to those conversations. Researchers were given the task of identifying traditionally associated tribes and providing some historical context for the understanding of their traditional uses of federal lands and resources in Clark County – including not only Southern Paiute tribes, who have profound and enduring ties to this area, but many other tribes who are tied to the lands and resources within the county as well. The researchers were asked to provide basic information regarding the organization of area tribes today, so as to facilitate agencies’ participation in the consultation process. And the researchers were encouraged to note places of particular cultural and historical importance mentioned in the course of the research that might warrant further investigation as potential Traditional Cultural Properties. On the basis of these findings, the researchers also were asked to develop a template Programmatic Agreement that would guide future National Park Service consultation with tribes associated with Lake Mead National Recreation Area, and provide guidance on its implementation. This template also was to be made available to the other agencies’ staff, who are at liberty to use it as they see fit within their own consultation planning process. All of these elements are reflected in the document that follows. Recognizing that SNAP has funded a number of other ambitious cultural resource studies in recent years, the research team has been cautious to avoid potential overlap with these efforts. Each of these efforts is meant to provide valuable and distinctive contributions to the corpus of cultural resource writings addressing Clark County, which - taken together – will support federal tribal consultation and cultural resource management for many years to come. These other efforts include an archaeological overview of Clark County, directed by Heidi Roberts and Dr. Richard Ahlstrom. Though these two researchers contribute to the current report, providing an archaeological context statement, it is important to note that this report does not attempt to grapple with the vast archaeological documentation for the region. Instead, this report focuses principally on tribal associations with Clark County during the period from European contact to the present day. These other SNAP sponsored research efforts include a reworking of the rich fieldnotes of Isabel Kelly by the eminent cultural anthropologist, Dr. Catherine Fowler. Here too, Kelly’s data is included throughout the current report, but the research team has made an effort to keep references to this work general, in anticipation of the Fowler reports. And, SNAP has supported tribal consultation events and ethnographic interviewing regarding U.S. Forest Service and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service lands through an unrelated project directed by Dr. Jeremy Spoon. In light of that work, those lands are discussed in only Deur and Confer - People of Snowy Mountain, People of the River

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general terms in the current document. While tribal representatives’ comments have informed the current report in many ways, the report sticks principally to the written record available in published and unpublished ethnographic, historical, and legal sources. It is our sincere hope that this impressive batch of studies will be of value to agencies and tribes alike, and that the current report will complement the larger SNAP effort of which it is a part. The resulting document is at once an ethnohistory of tribes with ties to Clark County, as well as a compendium of information relevant to the consultation process – complete with detailed maps and appendices meant to illuminate the foundations of modern tribes’ connections to the lands and resources of southern Nevada. We wish the partnership’s member agencies every success in their efforts to protect the cultural heritage of southern Nevada with this information at their disposal. We also wish the tribes every success in documenting and protecting their cultural legacy in southern Nevada, a task in which we hope these materials will be of some value. These goals are at the very heart of the current study and reflected in the content of the document that follows.

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Study Background and Objectives The Southern Nevada Agency Partnership (SNAP) comprises the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), Bureau of Reclamation (BOR), National Park Service (NPS), U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) and U.S. Forest Service (USFS). Each agency manages federal lands in the Clark County area of southern Nevada. SNAP was formed in 1997 as an interagency partnership to address issues of mutual concern, including natural and cultural resource protection, recreation, science and research, law enforcement and the like. The partnership benefits from funds made available through the implementation of the Southern Nevada Public Land Management Act that authorized the sale of certain federal lands within a specific boundary encompassing Las Vegas, Nevada. Clark County is located on the southern tip of the State of Nevada. The population center for Clark County is the Las Vegas Valley, one of the fastest growing urban areas in the United States. Clark County consists of approximately 5.12 million acres of land. Of this, about 4.6 million acres (approximately 90 percent) are managed by six federal agencies, five of which are SNAP partners. The six federal agencies include the SNAP partner agencies as well as the U.S. Air Force (including Nellis Air Force Base and Nellis Air Force Range). Of these, the Bureau of Land Management owns by far the largest amount of land, totaling 2.9 million acres, or roughly 57 percent of Clark County’s land mass (see Table 1, Map 1).

Table 1: Federal Land Ownership in Clark County, by Agency Agency BLM NPS USFWS USFWS/Nellis AFR USFS BOR Nellis Air Force Base Total

Approximate Acreage 2,900,000 587,000

% of County 57% 12%

493,000 327,000 252,000 50,700 13,500

9% 6% 5%