Killing for Land in Early California

Sound Bite

The California frontier wars gave land and gold to Whites and reservations to the few surviving Native Americans. Through eyewitness accounts this highly researched work brings to light the graft, greed, and conflicting roles played by the US Army, the State Legislature and the US Congress.

About the Book

The Round Valley wars of California were an ugly episode in the history of the Westward Expansion, in which Native Americans lost far more than land. Baumgardner presents a highly researched account of the California frontier wars that gave rise to a stable and permanent ranch economy for whites and a reservation system for the few surviving Native Americans, with a focus on the Ã??'Nome Cult FarmÃ??' in remote northeastern Mendocino County, California. Congress seemed to be on a different track in dealing with the California Indians than both the California state legislature and the Indian Affairs Department. The author emphasizes the vital role played by the US Army and how lack of funding and poor coordination of various levels of government resulted in disaster for the Indians. The book contains primary material in the form of documents, reports, letters, and depositions or testimony of participants, quoted from the California State Archives and other sources, and numerous eyewitness accounts by participants.

Table content

CHAPTER 1. THE YUKIS MEET WHITE MEN 18Ã??'Nearly the Whole Number DestroyedÃ??': Patterns of Violence in Northern California 19Ã??'Their Own Name for ThemselvesÃ??': The Original Inhabitants 21A Ã??'Just and Equitable TitleÃ??': After the War with Mexico 25Ã??'The Founders of Human CivilizationÃ??': The Settlers 26Ã??'Expensive Wars and Barbarous DevastationÃ??': The Effect ofWhite Settlement on Native Peoples 28Conclusion 34CHAPTER 2. THE ESTABLISHMENT OF NOME CULT FARM 38Kidnapping of Native American Children 49CHAPTER 3. THE ARMY, THE SETTLERS, AND THE OFFICE OF INDIAN AFFAIRS IN 1857Ã??'1858: CONFLICTING VIEWS OF A COMPLICATED SITUATION 50The Army vs. The Indian Affairs Office 50The Settlers 54Reservation Officials and the Office of Indian Affairs 59The Conflict Converges 68CHAPTER 4. GEN. KIBBEÃ??'S Ã??'EXPEDITIONÃ??' OR, THE WAR WITH THE WIN-TOONS 1858Ã??'1859 70The Ã??'War with the Win-toonsÃ??' 70CHAPTER 5. VENGEANCE AND TAKING THE LANDÃ??'EDEN AND ROUND VALLEYS, 1859Ã??'1860 88CHAPTER 6. THE WOES OF THE SETTLERS AND RANCHERS 104CHAPTER 7. THE EMPLOYEESÃ??' DEPOSITIONS 135James Tobin 135Simmon P. Storms 139George Rees 143Other Reservation Employees 146CHAPTER 8. DEPOSITIONS OF THE SOLDIERS 159CHAPTER 9. JOURNALISM OF THE PERIOD AND ROUND VALLEY IN THE 1860S 167Regional News Reports 167Reservation Building, Round Valley Style 171CHAPTER 10. THE REJECTED MAJORITY REPORT, 1860 177CHAPTER 11. Ã??'ARRANT FABRICATIONSÃ??': THE 1860 CONGRESSIONAL DEBATE AND KIDNAPPING NATIVE-AMERICAN CHILDREN 189Superintendent Hanson and the Kidnapping Rings 194CHAPTER 12. NATIVE AMERICANS RETALIATE 198Horse Canyon, a Yuki Revolt, Little Stony Creek and the ArmyÃ??'s Return, September 1861Ã??'April 1863 198A Mendocino Herald Investigation 200The Horse Canyon Massacre 204The Little Stony Creek Massacre 207The Concows Leave the Valley 209Another Attempted Yuki Uprising 212CHAPTER 13. TENSION MOUNTS BETWEEN NATIVE AMERICANS AND SETTLERS 219CHAPTER 14. COMPANY F OCCUPIES ROUND VALLEY AND DECLARES MARTIAL LAW, AUGUST 1862Ã??'SPRING 1863 227CHAPTER 15. FURTHER INJUSTICE, 1863-1864 248The Legacy of the Mendocino War 257CHAPTER 16. CONCLUSION: Ã??'JUSTIFIABLE CONQUESTÃ??'? 262Office of Indian Affairs Expenditures 267Postscripts of Round ValleyÃ??'s Main Characters 270APPENDICES 2751. Deposition of S.P. Storms, Overseer at Nome Cult 2762. Indian Population in the Western States and Territories, 1860 2773. Round Valley Native Americans 277BIBLIOGRAPHY 279Books and Articles 279Newspapers 284Websites and articles 285Federal or state official reports and records 285Census Reports 287Unpublished theses, dissertations or other scholarly articles 287Special collections 288Personal interviews 288INDEX 289