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![]() | 1769 Spanish missions crush traditional cultural ways Spain establishes Mission San Diego, the first of 21 missions built along the coast of California. The ... |
![]() | 1819 Congress pays missionaries to ‘civilize’ American Indians Congress appropriates $10,000 to pay what it calls people of “good moral character” to help the U.S. eliminate ... |
1834 Mexico denies return of mission lands to Chumash In California, the Mexican government frees the Chumash, who had been enslaved by the Spanish in California ... |
1851 Congress creates reservations to manage Native peoples The U.S. Congress passes the Indian Appropriations Act, creating the reservation system. The government ... |
1860 California Native population plummets after Gold Rush Diseases brought by gold prospectors, along with the violence that miners commit against Native peoples, ... |
![]() | 1870 First Ghost Dance movement seeks revival of cultures The Ghost Dance is a Native spiritual movement of hope and renewal that originates with Wodziwob, a ... |
1887 Indian Affairs Commissioner bans Native languages in schools Commissioner of Indian Affairs J. D. C. Atkins first bans instruction in Native languages as well as ... |
![]() | 1887 U.S. subdivides reservation land; sells off surplus Congress passes the General Allotment Act, better known as the Dawes Severalty Act, which divides reservations ... |
![]() | 1889 Yavapai doctor advocates for Indian self-determination The Yavapai doctor Carlos Montezuma (who was named Wassaja, “gathering” or “beckoning,” at birth) graduates ... |
![]() | 1897 Indian boarding schools teach manual labor Commissioner of Indian Affairs William A. Jones questions the potential of Indian students to compete ... |