The Aboriginal Population of the San Joaquin Valley, CaliforniaCook, Sherburne Friend
History
The Aboriginal Population of the San Joaquin Valley, California
Cook, Sherburne Friend
Indians of North America -- California -- San Joaquin Valley; San Joaquin Valley (Calif.) -- Population
If the Aguastos extended from Richmond to Crockett or thereabouts, they
were Costanoan and strictly bay people; hence not pertinent to this
study. If they lived along Suisun Bay, regardless of their ethnic
affiliation they may be included for demographic purposes among the
delta tribes. Some further light can be thrown upon the problem by an
analysis of the dates shown for baptisms in the San Francisco Mission
records.
If the baptisms of gentiles are tabulated according to village and
year, it is seen immediately that the conversions in the first year,
1777, were all from local rancherias. This group was extended during
the following decade until the San Francisco peninsula had been
completely covered. However, after the year 1792 all mention of the
peninsula abruptly and entirely ceases. As early as 1778 on the other
hand baptisms are listed from a village (Halchis) specified as being in
the "sierra oriente de la otra banda." In the succeeding years villages
ascribed to the "otra banda" become more frequent and reach a peak
between 1790 and 1795. Subsequent to 1800 the conversions from these
places diminish rapidly and disappear. Now we know by following the
documentary accounts of expeditions that during the decade 1790 to 1800
the great effort of the San Francisco Mission was expended in securing
neophytes from the east shore of San Francisco Bay as far north as the
Carquinez Strait. There are no baptisms of gentiles whatever listed in
the San Francisco books for the years 1797, 1798, and 1799. Therefore
it is reasonable to assume that the supply of Costanoans from the east
bay had been exhausted. Furthermore, village names qualified by the
term "otra banda" and appearing in the baptism record _for the first
time_ prior to 1800 must certainly refer to villages in this region.
Among these are rancherias stated as belonging to the "nacion Juchium"
together with the separate designation "Tuchimes." Thus it is clear
that the Huchium lived, as Merriam believed, on the east shore of the
bay.
After the inactive period at the end of the century a flood of
neophytes began to pour into the mission together with a completely new
set of names. One of the first of these is Habastos, a rancheria which
contributed 137 converts in 1800 and 1801 and which is now stated, for
the first time in the mission book, to lie "acia el estero de los
rios." Later, the variants Quivastos and Aguastos are used. Conversions
from this tribe continued until 1810, after which the name disappears
from the lists.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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