The Chumash: How do migratory patterns in SW California reflect centralised control?
ROBBIE LUXFORD The Chumash: How do migratory patterns in SW California reflect centralised control?
Robbie Luxford s2410699
MA Thesis Archaeology 4ARX-0910ARCH
Supervisor: Dr. L. S. Borck
MA World Archaeology
University of Leiden Faculty of Archaeology
Leiden, 15 June 2019
1 Preface/Acknowledgements
I would like to thank my family for supporting me throughout my journey as an archaeologist, from the lows of failing my initial exams in high school to the highs of being accepted for both an undergraduate degree and a master’s degree. Thank you to the tutors that have enabled me to push myself to my limits and helped me realise my potential. Thank you to my first supervisors during my undergraduate that helped me achieve a first in my dissertation and my colleagues and tutors in Canada that gave me the knowledge base to pursue studies involving indigenous people. Thank you to all my tutors and colleagues at Leiden who have introduced me back into academia after a prolonged gap, stimulating my academic mind once more. Lastly, thank you to my colleagues and friends at Border Archaeology who taught me most of what I know in terms of practical exercises.
2 Table of Contents
Chapter 1 Introduction 6
1.1 Introduction 6
1.2 Literature Review 7
1.2.1 Archaeological studies of migration 7
1.2.2 Archaeological studies of social complexity 8
1.2.3 A range of studies on the Chumash 10
1.3 The Chumash 13
Chapter 2 Methodology 21
2.1 GIS 22
2.2 The Shell-bead industry 23
2.3 Ceremonial events on the Chumash mainland 25
2.4 Missionisation 27
2.5 Pre and Post-contact comparison 28
Chapter 3 Results 30
3.1 The Shell-Bead Industry 30
3.2 Ceremonial Events 36
3.3 Missionisation 39
Chapter 4 Discussion 44
4.1 Shell-Bead Industry 44
4.2 Ceremonial Events 53
4.3 Missionisation 60
4.4 Pre and Post Contact Migration Comparison 66
Chapter 5 Conclusion 69
5.1 Present Day Migration 69
3 5.2 Concluding remarks 70
Abstract 73
Bibliography 75
Figures
Figure 1: Established Chumash language groups by the Historic/Mission Period 19
Figure 2: Shell-bead Industry Key 23
Figure 3: Ceremonial event key 25
Figure 4: Missionisation key 27
Figure 5: Area of Santa Ynez Valley/Mountains and suspected migratory patterns
30
Figure 6: East Santa Ynez mountain area including routes 31
Figure 7: West Santa Ynez mountain area including routes 32
Figure 8: Channel Islands including case study sites 33
Figure 9: Santa Cruz Island including case study sites 34
Figure 10: East Santa Cruz Island including distances and projected routes 35
Figure 11: Map of Ventureno region including migratory patterns and villages/ceremonial sites 36
Figure 12: Ventureno region and projected routes which were taken 37
Figure 13: Map of Ventureno region and case study sites 39
Figure 14: Missionisation case study sites and their projected routes 40
Figure 15: Projected route of Channel Island migration patterns during Missionisation
42
Figure 16: Table of bead types at Santa Cruz Island 50
Figure 17: Microblade assemblage at Lu’upsh village dated at the Historic Period 51
Figure 18: Burro Flats Painted Cave 54
4 Figure 19: Lake Manor site 56
Figure 20: Chatsworth painted site 57
Figure 21: Baptism record based on Mission Register Data 61
Tables
Table 1: Dates for Chumash regional chronology, modified from L. Gamble 2008 and D. Kennett 2005 13
Table 2: Calculated distance and times for East Santa Ynez Mountains 31
Table 3: Calculated distance and times of West Santa Ynez Mountains 32
Table 4: Calculated distance and times in the Ventureno region 37
Table 5: Calculated distance and times in the Ventureno region during Missionisation
40
Appendices 91
Archaeological Sites 91
Historic Villages 99
5 Chapter 1
Introduction
1.1 Introduction
“As long as you look on migration as a problem, as something to solve, you’re not going to get anywhere. You have to look at it as a human reality that’s as old as humankind. It’s mankind’s oldest poverty reduction strategy. As citizens, we have to find a way to manage it.” – IOM DG William Lacy Swing 2017.
Migration is woven into the fabric of human behaviour. The words spoken by William Lacy Swing touch upon the thoughts of present-day migration, but the background of migration through prehistory is much more than just a poverty reduction strategy, it is one of subsistence and resistance to harm. The ancestors of the Chumash people arrived in what is now SW California around 13000BP, relating them genetically to the Clovis people as the site of Daisy Cave in the Channel Islands can be dated to around the Clovis/Folsom periods (Kennett 2005, 121). Over millennia, they eventually formed a social identity recognized as Chumash to the present day. As with all groups through human history, social identity and cultural practices are constantly in flux and the same is true for the Chumash. The largest, most abrupt shift for them likely occurred due to Spanish missionisation. Prior to the Spanish invasion of the region, the ancestors of the Chumash (descending from the Clovis people) were a highly mobile hunter-gatherer group who spread quickly throughout the region after arriving on Californian soil. Eventually, around 8000 BP, they began to settle into permanent villages and the Chumash identity that was present when the first Europeans arrived (Gamble 2008) emerged in this new ecological and social environment.
Migration is rarely random, rather, it is a process which has fixed conditions and during the latter stages of Chumash socio-political organisation it can be shown to be a result of centralised control. Through the analysis of three case studies, I will demonstrate how these migratory patterns reflect centralised control and the management of migration by this process. In the conclusion, I will discuss how the Chumash and the later colonizers did not see migration as a problem but as something with positive social benefits.
6 1.2 Literature Review
In order to create a clear dialogue that represents the research question, three avenues of literature were required: 1) archaeological studies of migration 2) archaeological studies of social complexity and 3) a range of studies on the Chumash. By doing this each element of the question can be appropriately answered and a concise evaluation can be made.
1.2.1 Archaeological studies of migration
Orderly Anarchy by Robert Bettinger (2015) analyses the socio-political organisation within California during the periods in which the Chumash were present, giving an insight into how they were structured and how other groups within California functioned during this time. In order to decipher how communities may have migrated or for what reason, it is crucial to understand how they operated and to what end. As he notes however, it is easy to place the peoples of California in a broad evolutionary perspective; they are hunter-gatherers (2015, 15). This common trait is shared by the groups in California yet they eventually separated to follow different subsistence strategies. In Chapter 4 of this thesis, it will show how the Chumash and other groups came together for certain events as well as the territorial tension which is regularly documented.
In the past year J.J. Clark et al. studied migration in the pre-contact US South West, but it is highly relevant to the migration study of Chumash which is presented in this thesis. The study examines the migrations out of Mesa Verde and the Kayenta region and discusses attributes which need to be assessed when migration occurs such as scale, socio-economic context prior to migration in area moved from, organisation and distance travelled and the socio-economic context in area that people moved to (Clark et al. 2019, 263). These attributes can also be related to two sub-brackets of migration when evaluating the Chumash; forced and voluntary migration (Piguet 2018), whereby forced implies that a centralised power controlled where people moved and/or why and voluntary implies that the people had elements of control over their movements. These two forms of movement can be interwoven which is seen in the post-contact period with missionisation. Additional elements that Clark et al. note are that the Kayenta held on to some past traditions whereas the Mesa
7 Verde people moved in order to break from their past (2019, 279). Both these elements are again displayed by the Chumash, differentiating in the pre and post-contact periods.
These additional elements are exemplified in a study by Borck and Mills in 2017. This study looks at the model of diffusion, being the movement of ideas rather than people and how communities may have resisted these ideas or embraced them as manners of rejection or acceptance of centralised control. This is apparent in the Chumash society when looking at the shell bead industry. It is apparent that certain inland villages were beginning to experiment with crafting their own beads rather than just obtaining them – the main regions for this craft were on the Californian Channel Islands and coastal sites. The study also argues for the use of network analysis, as through this it can be shown that changing patterns of consumption are driven by the diffusion of goods and their associated ideas (Borck and Mills 2017, 32). This is important to the research question as not only can we view how in the pre-contact period the Chumash moved to areas where they could create the tools for the shell-bead industry but also how further into the period just prior to post-contact their ideas were widely spread.
A 2000 paper by Burmeister highlights the issue of migration in terms of archaeological research and concludes that by “identifying aspects relevant to migration, the necessary background is established for the development of archaeological research” (2000, 552). During early migration studies it was not precisely clear what the signs of migration were. The development of a model for migration is crucial in being able to separate migration from diffusion and trade.
1.2.2 Archaeological studies of social complexity
Conversations regarding what is or is not social complexity have plagued archaeological research. During the beginning of archaeological practice in North America, indigenous people were not considered to be complex socially, but rather that their impressive feats “were of a superior race wiped out by Indians” (Kelly and Thomas 2010, 30). However, as evidence and archaeology developed, so did the theories on the indigenous past and we are now presented with a very different dialogue to what was initially thought. Despite this, there are still
8 conflicts between archaeologists of what constitutes a complex society and what is complex at all? Due to this disconnect it would be apt to consider different viewpoints in order to be able to apply these criteria, if any, to the Chumash.
The evolution of simple society by S. Fowles challenges the notion that the concepts of simplicity and complexity are separate entities that are superior in format to each other. A poignant turn in his conclusion describes the two as “each other’s wellspring” (Fowles 2018 11); they are interwoven with each other and are needed by each other in order to succeed. We are able to view simplicity as an ethos that is constant, where the tensions of those who oppose forms of complexity such as hierarchical organisation or otherwise develop over time and persistently fight it, successfully or otherwise. Alternatively, do we need to determine if a society is complex or simple? From an outsider’s perspective a society may be complex but to those that were integrated within it may have been simple and the reversal of this concept can also be true – for example, initial observations of indigenous groups were that they were simple compared to complex Western European people.
Egalitarian Behavior and Reverse Dominance Hierarchy by C. Boehm theorises the notion of reverse dominance hierarchy, in which he tries to determine if “any intentional behavior that decisively suppressed hierarchical relations” (Boehm 1993, 228) was present within the society. This pattern of behaviour in the Chumash would potentially be signalled in regard to conflict in certain territories and would signal the inequalities that were present in Chumash society that people were eager to change. It is not thought that prior to the Mission period that the Chumash were egalitarian but post-contact it could be said that the elites and those below now shared a common trait which was their oppression by the Europeans. Their collective ideal to continue traditions that they held prior to European contact bonded them, yet their Spanish counterparts and the disease which eventually decimated them were too strong and potential egalitarian behaviour may have been stopped.
Feinman and Nicholas’ paper Framing the Rise and Variability of Past Complex Societies shows the important relationship between leadership and the general population. The cooperative arrangements that leadership and populace have differ: “collective forms of leadership - power depend more directly on local
9 populace and autocratic rule - leaders rely less on local populace” (Feinman and Nicholas 2016, 283). The former is present in Chumash society as the capital villages depended on the outlying villages in order for the Chumash’s social interaction sphere to work. Although the elite individuals were in charge of the specific industries such as the shell-beads or the revered ‘tomol’ – Chumash canoe – they required the general population to adopt them.
Lastly, Angelbeck and Grier (2012) gives an insight into how a Californian society combated centralised control through the concept of anarchy. Contrary to popular opinion, anarchy in the true sense of the word relates to collectivism in individuals and local groups that self-govern. Their indicators for anarchism include “individual and local autonomy and expression, voluntary association, mutual aid, network organization, communal decision making, justified authorities, and decentralization” (2012, 551). Elements of anarchy can be said to be displayed in Chumash society and thus the question of Chumash people under centralised control is inherently more complex than a simple were they or were they not. As alluded to above, the shell-bead industry was controlled by elites, but it required mutual co-operation and a collective of chiefs inland, coastal and on the islands in order to organise smaller villages into prosperous networks. Actions such as those in the Santa Ynez mountains may have been displaying patterns of decentralisation and local autonomy and expression by beginning to create their own shell-beads.
1.2.3 A range of studies on the Chumash
Perhaps the greatest overview for the Chumash is Lynn Gambles 2008 book. Though the overall context of the book concerns the Chumash at European contact it provides a wealth of knowledge for socio-political organisation, their ceremonial relationships, their relationship with the coast and its resources, economy, periods of conflict and an in-depth analysis of complex hunter-gatherers. Gambles’ personal relationship with Chumash archaeology began in the late 70s, and she has authored several articles some of which have attempted to explain the complex nature of Chumash chiefdoms in 2002 and the effects which climate may have had in terms of socio-political change/migratory movements during the Middle/Late Period in a paper published in 2005. Within her 2011 book Chapter 4 and 5 are of particular relevance. The table which
10 provides information of how many baptisms were performed at each village is excellent in providing sample sizes compared to population statistics during the Mission period and thus an analysis of ‘forced migration’ can be made post European contact.
Aside from general Chumash literature, a difference between pre and post-contact resources needs to be noted. Archaeological sites are given clear Reference IDs by the Californian state and in some instances, they can be attributed to historic villages due to their locations. Historic villages are assigned their Chumash name and also the name which the Europeans gave post-contact and they are used interchangeably in the literature.
A majority of archaeological sites were excavated during the early-mid 1900s and have been documented by both the federal registers and the National Park Service (NPS). Unfortunately, due to some restrictions which the US has in place, it is difficult to access some information from the Netherlands which concerns the Chumash and the sites, both to protect sites that are in danger of destruction/robbery and due to European/US confidentiality laws. However, some NPS reports and Federal Registers are available and were used to construct an overview of Chumash archaeological sites. For example, the 2010 report on Channel Islands National Park by the NPS gives a substantial timeline of the Chumash on the Islands, dating from 13000BP up until and including the post-contact period.
A paper by Brandoff and Reeves (2014) explores the Chumash who settled in the Santa Ynez mountains and their sustained occupation there, but also the avenue they took in terms of the shell-bead industry. Evidence in this paper attempts to address the question: “Was bead production occurring at interior Chumash villages?” (2014, 43). It explores the nature of diffusion and migration and questions the reader as to if it was either or a mix of the two. By exploring this area in this research question, the authors approach the idea of migration in both small and large quantities; small, as different villages were occupied at different times (Potentially due to material being present in different areas) and large - as people may have migrated from the Channel Islands to coastal sites and then further inland to the mountainous region.
11 Albert Knight of the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History has written several papers (Rock Art at Momonga (CA-LAN-357) in 2018; The Burro Flats Burro Pictograph Site (56-001772) in 2017; and a joint paper in 2014 with Eva Larsen of the NPS titled Revisiting the Treasure House (CA-VEN-195) which look at rock-shelter sites in California and the significance which they had to the Chumash during the Late - Historic Period. Their importance is tied to their function. Although in many pictograph sites the artefacts display that they were most likely used as temporary hunting/butchering sites, the images which they display tend to reflect activities that would indicate ceremonial or ritual practices. Since precolonial Chumash society had shamans (Whitley 1992), these sites could have dual functions and also displayed the temporary migratory patterns of the Chumash.
In Chapter 5 of Ethnographic Overview of the Los Padres National Forest, Chester King details the Chumash inhabitation of this area and his own publication Overview of the History of American Indians in the Santa Monica Mountains in 2011 gives a comprehensive view of not only Chumash occupation and artefacts but mineral and vegetation in the area, providing possible reasons for people to move and take advantage of what the region had to offer. Chapter 9 in his 2011 paper is most relevant to this thesis as King examines varying attributes that are important to track migration and possible reasons for doing so, along with evidence for potential centralised control. These attributes include the distribution of settlements (e.g., which villages were larger and capitals that were a central place for other villages in the network to thrive off), site sizes and situation (e.g., which areas change in population compared to their earlier or later occupation) and the types of sites (e.g., which sites were permanent forms of occupation and which were used either seasonally or during certain events) (King 2011, xii).
Lastly, Kennett’s 2005 book The Island Chumash: Behavioral Ecology of a Maritime Society provides adequate material in relation to the Historic period Chumash villages on the Channel Islands off the coast of California in Chapter 5. The Chapter examines each village separately with thorough data analysis using excavation and ethnographic reports and includes enough data for the Santa Cruz and San Miguel islands to determine migratory patterns and a social network pattern. A table included in the book shows the number of chiefs which
12 were present at each village which further allows specification of which were capitals, and which were not i.e. presenting centralised control or not.
1.3 The Chumash
For the purpose of this study a brief overview of the Chumash people is needed, including the information that is relevant for the research question and as such any information which is omitted is due to its irrelevancy to the research. Archaeologists have continuously revised the dates of each Chumash period but for this study I will use the chronology outlined in Table 1.
Table 1: Dates for Chumash regional chronology, modified from L. Gamble 2008 and D. Kennett 2005.
Period Date
Early Holocene 13000-8000BP
Early 8000-2500BP
Middle 2500BP-800BP
Middle-Late transition 800-600BP
Late 600-200BP
Historic/Mission Period 200BP -
The Chumash - translated as “bead-maker” or “seashell people”, occupied the southwestern region of California, including the Channel Islands. Although this area is thought to have been occupied by people ~10-13kya due to the discovery of Arlington Springs Man (see Orr 1962) on Santa Rosa Island, it was not until many thousands of years later which they formed an expansive trade network incorporating shell-bead production that enabled an efficient and cohesive Chumash lifestyle.
Evidence from the Early Holocene determines that despite being a highly mobile group of hunter-gatherers, people began to settle in areas which gave them access to certain resources. The sites which are found to date the earliest in
13 what would become Chumash territory are on the Channel Islands. This strengthens the theory that the people first moved into this area through coastal migration. Though the people were competent in their gathering of plants and hunting land animals, a particular focus began to be made on marine life; at Daisy Cave (Channel Islands), fish constituted 50% of the meat diet and at mainland sites fish constituted less than 15% but most mainland and some island sites show shellfish was at least 80% of the diet (Arnold et al. 2004, 10) showing their adaptability. The Daisy Cave site is important in the analysis of early human occupation in the Channel Islands as it determines evidence for several aspects of permanent residency in and around this site. Archaeologists discovered a thick shell midden at the rock-shelter (large deposits of midden hint to long term occupancy as they accumulate from domestic refuse) that contained an abundance of marine life which dated from 10000-700BP but also evidence for the earliest known baskets in the region, some 5000 years earlier than previously thought. The basketry which was found at the site is made by the z-twist method which is similar to the Hokan Chumash that developed a long-term material culture based upon the very same craftmanship (Connolly et al 1995, 316). Though there were several other sites during the Early Holocene which contained shell midden and projectiles/lithics that were discovered at Daisy Cave, no other sites dated to 9000BP when the basketry has been dated to, contained baskets. From this we can suggest that the other sites may have been sites that were temporary and frequently moved between compared to Daisy Cave which was used in a more permanent capacity and built from a long-standing material culture.
During the Early Period many sites are known to portray attributes which show the Millingstone culture was present in this area of California. The Millingstone culture is one which contained large numbers of lithic artefacts including handstones, flake tools, projectiles, milling slabs and cobble-core tools (Jones and Klar 2007, 135). A site which exhibits tools of this nature is CA-VEN-1 (Little Sycamore) on the Santa Monica coastline. Dating to around 8000-7000BP, it contains around 15 groundstone artefacts as well as 6 Olivella shell beads (Dallas Jr 2004, 160-162). The discovery of shell-beads at the site provides archaeologists with some of the earliest indication of the shell-bead industry. Was this a demonstration of migration from the Channel Islands? Or was its
14 diffusion/trade which led to the beads finding their way to the site? What we do know is that at CA-VEN-1 the people were using various subsistence methods including fishing, hunting and gathering so they were a group which retained some sense of mobility. As Dallas Jr highlights however the high level of marine material found at the site suggests that they “aimed at maximizing their diet and yet making the most of the local resources without having to forage far away” (2004, 166). It is known that people began to become more conscious of energy levels and the temporary migratory patterns that they had exhibited previously may have been a poor use of energy output, compared to the pattern that they decided to exhibit by settling in coastal regions. It is also not inconceivable that the Chumash who had operated in the Channel Islands had reached the coastal mainland and began a long-term interaction of trade.
As noted previously, the Early Period showed that the Chumash were beginning to settle in areas and the Middle Period marked a great societal upheaval which changed the shape of the socio-political organisation in the region. At several Channel Island sites, it was evident that burials in the Early period had distributions of wealth in a more equal manner compared to the Middle Period which showed that there was an increased control of prestigious material. As King states, ‘maintenance of power was attained by ability or age to a society in which material expressions of political power were acquired through inheritance’ (1990, 95). This may be linked to the increased number of permanent residencies throughout society compared to the highly mobile hunter-gatherer groups that first came to the region. Although sites were kept as seasonal hunting/butchering/ritual places, the period of time during which people were not participating in these activities were spent at their respective permanent small villages or large capitals. It can also be linked to population growth and the specialisation of certain aspects of Chumash society which will now be discussed in relation to elites and centralised control.
In order to reach the mainland, the construction of what was known as the tomol occurred, the Chumash form of canoe. The tomol was a crucial component to Chumash culture, being used for ‘procuring food—fishing, collecting abalones, sea mammal hunting...and conducting trade’ (Hudson 1976, 6). As is clear in respect to other complex societies, persons of considerable craftsmanship abilities are often listened to, respected and allowed positions of
15 control in order to exude maximum efficiency in production. Members of society who constructed the tomol were considered at an elite level due to its importance to aspects of the Chumash network such as the shell-bead industry, but possibly also because of the early migratory patterns that occurred (Hudson 1976). Those who pioneered movements to new territories would likely be revered by other members of society. As population levels were lower during the early period of sporadic movements, an equal level of society can be considered to be a formality, but as it grew the specialists of Chumash culture came to be through lines of inheritance rather than ability. King believed that it was due to a question of who managed something rather than who had something which became the case in the Early Period. In the Middle Period it appears that trade was almost completely controlled compared to in the Early Period when participation by anyone in the economic subsystem enabled them to attain power (King 1990, 97). This is a crucial element when considering the prospect of centralised control as with this being the case there is a clear shift in power dynamics and could be related to population/culture growth. If we consider a modern example of a business, the initial stages tend to see the owner of the company involved largely in the overall process compared to when the business has grown and they can then begin to delegate tasks to sub-managers who can then deal with daily tasks while they fall into a lesser position of labour yet retain their power. It may be that in Chumash society the elite began to delegate the labour management to sub-leaders while they began to assert their dominance through their wealth/luxury items, leading to them then altering to leadership staying within certain families.
It is not only craft specialists that need to be analysed, we also should review chiefs who we know from ethnographic studies existed during the Historic Period and were present when the Europeans made contact. From the ethnographic research, indicators in the archaeological record are now apparent which demonstrate that they were present during the Middle-Late period. A series of articles which were published by Arnold and Gamble debating the relationship and identity of Chumash chiefdoms seemed to correlate the work of King. During the Middle-Late period, as well as socio-political change, a large variation of shell-beads became more apparent which gave greater insight into trade patterns but also labour patterns. Gamble describes how “smaller, more
16 refined beads require more effort to make” (2002, 775) so we can therefore think that burials with these smaller beads could be related to chiefs or those of an elite status due to the stratification of society at this time. Rather than before whereby the elites were craft specialists and in charge of making items of value, these positions were subsidised to the larger community who were involved in that process and the chiefs were left to manage this large network. Although the shell-beads became a common commodity and exchange currency there were special variations of it that were controlled by Chumash chiefs. Spielmann notes that “individual skilled specialists create ritually charged objects for individuals or sodalities that commission them” (2002, 201) and this is possibly evident in relation to the smaller beads found in many burials.
Chiefs were the primary elite but there were others who were considered powerful figures within Chumash society, such as shamans. They were the connection of the Chumash people to the spirit world and held special ceremonies which only select individuals were allowed to participate to full capacity. These ceremonial events took place at specific sites to commemorate things such as the summer and winter solstice aside from more general ritualistic performances. Some of these rock-shelters have been dated to the Middle-Late Period but a large quantity of our evidence for shamanistic behaviour is through ethnographic accounts, as the motifs which were painted to the cave walls have been related to other activities aside from ritual. The activity which the shaman engaged in such as “songs, dances and ritual accoutrements were believed to derive ultimately from the supernatural world of spirits” (Whitley 1992, 107) and thus they had a connection to a world which nobody else in society could hold. This aspect of their being meant that they were respected in a separate kind of entity to the chiefs of the Chumash. Although the chiefs heralded an element of centralised control over the overall state, the shamans had an element of control over the chiefs as it were. The engagement in the ceremonial events meant that elements of temporary migration were still evident in aspects of society which had now settled in permanent residencies.
The Middle-Late transition is named as such due to the switch of microblades that were “trapezoidal to the triangular-with-dorsal-retouch” (Glassow 2010, 2.8). Though this may seem irrelevant on the surface, it was crucial in terms of the shell-bead industry which the chiefdoms had built their legacy upon. The
17 movement to microblades of this nature correlated with a surge in their creation which “suggest that the production of microliths became more standardized through time” (Kennett 2005, 206). The reason for a transition gap between the Middle and Late is because both microblades were still in function before a widespread use of the triangular microblades is seen across Chumash territory. This could be linked to the theory of diffusion rather than migration, yet the migratory patterns can possibly be seen in terms of the shift to quarries where greater quantities of quality chert could be obtained. These movements would be managed by the capital that would guide its labourers to increase production as demand for shell-beads also substantially increased. The Chumash were not without their conflict though and archaeologists have noticed that during this transitional period there were several instances of it. As there were many different competing chiefs which were attempting to mark their authority and increase their power, conflict between villages as well as trade was inevitable. However, can the instances of conflict be attributed to levelling techniques too? If we think of Angelbeck and Grier’s paper concerning anarchy, they demonstrate that in the Coastal Salish society there was a clear sign that lesser people in the society “challenged the increasing status and control of the hereditary elite in society” (2012, 563). One of the methods that they chose to challenge the elite was through warfare.
Archaeological evidence for the Late Period enables us to be able to view how a Chumash settlement may have looked in real-time, as the layout of homes and respective activities were present at Pitas Point which is a coastal site located in south Ventura. It was excavated by King in the 60s/70s and subsequently discussed by Gamble in her 1983 article where she gives an elaborate summary of the site. The assemblage of artefacts and buildings at the site exemplifies that the village was most likely one of great importance during the Late Period as they associate with activities that were domestic and also related to certain industries. Activities at the village were also separated in terms of within the home and outside of the home, similarly we can see this evident in practice within our own societies today whereby we associate certain actions to our garden space and others inside our homes. At Pitas Point it was clear that the production and maintenance of fishing equipment and flake tools and butchering were limited to outside of the home whereas events such as
18 stone-tool production, food preparation and basket-making occurred within the home (Gamble 1983, 127). If we consider butchering for example, it was evident in the Middle-Late period that there were rock-shelters and small encampments that were used for this and they can be linked to larger villages and settlements that were near to these butchery sites. It could be said that butchery sites that were very close to villages may be determinable as areas of important permanent residency whereas butchery sites that weren’t close to villages were examples of the temporary mobility that some of the Chumash still held onto.
Figure 1: Established Chumash language groups by the Historic/Mission Period (Wikimedia 2019)
The Historic or Mission Period marks the beginning of European contact with the Chumash and another era in which the socio-political organisation changed dramatically. The map in figure 1 indicates that although the overall material culture of the Chumash was widespread throughout their territory and had prevailed from the Early Period to now, it was made up of different language groups which were regarded as sub territories. Regarding the Historic/Mission Period, it is contentious to discuss, as although the effects on the Chumash were devastating (disease essentially wiped out the 20’000 or so population which is thought to be present pre-contact) the arrival of the Spanish was not necessarily met with complete aggravation. Many of the Chumash were accepting of the newfound materials which the Spanish offered such as glass and metals which meant that the shell-bead industry and the political control which chiefs had
19 over it was revoked as many people now had access to the materials. As people became indoctrinated under the Spanish regime, they did continue to display aspects of Chumash tradition such as their persistence to “make beads and other trade items and to practice traditional subsistence pursuits” (Rick 2007, 95). Although the colonial system and disease became too much for the Chumash to continually resist, the continuity of aspects of their tradition and material culture may have been the overarching attempt by them to resist the centralised control that the Spanish were seeking to create aside from the cases of revolt and violence. Attempts of violence were made against the Spanish including the most famous which was the revolt in 1824. There are several accounts that record this revolt and describe how the Chumash were wary of the Europeans and their true intentions; they did not believe that they were beneficial to their culture, and they were right not to be. It is said that toward the end of the revolt Captain Noriega of the Spanish said that they would make peace in terms of the Chumash’s favour (Blackburn 1975, 227) but this was most likely an attempt to appease them and stop further conflicts from occurring. During the Historic period it was noted that a number of intermarriages were pursued by the Chumash. This was most likely due to different villages amassing at Missions which the Europeans set up that may not have been in direct contact with each other prior to colonisation. It provides evidence that forced temporary movement by the Spanish in order to be baptised could have side effects that the colonialists did not foresee. As many of the Chumash resided at the Missions or ranches after baptism it meant that the intermarriage during this period was not the same prior to colonial rule where people may have migrated purely due to intermarriage. Ethnographic research indicates that no marriages occurred between individuals from villages that were more than 59 km apart (Johnson, 158). This narrows the distance covered by the Chumash in south coastal areas but makes relative sense when you consider that Missions only covered certain catchment areas – the villages in Johnsons study would relate to Santa Barbara, Santa Ines and San Buenaventura.
20 Chapter 2
Methodology
As the Chumash area of territory and data is so vast, specific areas in this thesis are studied in order to give detailed analysis while focusing on case studies which are able to acknowledge a sufficient overview of Chumash migratory patterns. These case studies are as follows: 1) the Shell-Bead Industry: 2) ceremonial events on the Chumash mainland and 3) ‘Missionisation’. To provide clarity in these case studies, GIS was used in order to map sites and the movements that people then made during certain periods. By using a map of the historic villages of the Chumash which was prepared by Benjamin Pease in 1975, the locations of various villages and the archaeological sites which have been associated to them are able to be mapped with distinct accuracy.
The aims of the study are to diachronically map the movements of people under the categories of each case study and each section will look at either pre or post-contact examples to determine whether migration patterns reflect centralised control. “The Shell-bead industry” was examined in terms of its effect on migration in pre and post-contact, “ceremonial events” was examined in terms of its effect on migration pre and post-contact and “Missionisation” was examined in terms of its effect on migration post-contact. After analysing each of these effects, a comparative narrative was made to determine similarities or differences between the two timeframes. Though this research paper includes a wealthy sample of archaeological sites, some are omitted as they do not provide substantial data/are inaccessible. Although in the earlier formation of the Chumash people were highly mobile, they reached a stage in their timeline where they began to settle in villages/towns, and it is these archaeological sites which are analysed with more scrutiny. However, sites which contain subsequent amount of data that were used as seasonal or ceremonial sites are also studied to give a clearer view of how the
21 Chumash relationship with migration was not strictly confined in terms of settlement to settlement and it was rather more complex. At the end of the study present day migration is examined to see how patterns are different to what we may have seen in the archaeological record and if there are elements which we can learn from in order to manage present day crises.
Two different databases were made as part of the methodology. The first database categorised different types of archaeological sites which were relevant to the study and the second database categorised the historic villages which are marked by Pease and King in the 1975 map. The database includes; 1. Site/Historic Village name; 2. Reference ID; 3. Description; 4. Date; and 5. Reference. Site/Historic Village name are used interchangeably in much of the Chumash literature which is accessible which is why a Reference ID is in place so that during the paper if a Site is mentioned that may also be attached to a Historic Village it can be traced to both datasets. Also at times within the literature, the name which remains of a site may not be the traditional Chumash name but the name that was given to the area by the Spanish which is why a Reference ID is needed. The description gives a brief detail of what was found at the site/village and if noted in the literature, its link to migration patterns. Under the ‘Date’ bracket, both specific timespans and also generalised Periods are used due to some sites and the research not containing enough evidence to be able to give a concrete date. Although this is the case, the date given will always include a specific timespan if it is available.
2.1 GIS
The relationship between GIS and archaeology begins in the 1990s but within the past decade it has been used hugely within both the academic and commercial sector to create 2D and 3D models of both sites and artefacts. An increasing use of GIS in academic studies of migration, trade and diffusion is ‘its ability to map, measure distances and tie different kinds of information together’ (Fischer 2004, 391). Using GIS, theories can be presented through imagery and simple maps. GIS in this study allows distances to be determined throughout each of the three case studies of the ‘Shell-Bead Industry’, ‘Ceremonial Events’ and ‘Missionisation’. The scale and the energy expense for each distance may be calculated in terms of time using the GIS measuring tool. By using Naismith’s rule of walking, distance speeds can be generally calculated; 15 minutes per km and 10 minutes per 100m ascent. This can determine whether aspects of migration
22 may have changed during different periods of time and thus whether it changed due to a centralisation of control. An open-source GIS application was used called ArcGIS Explorer which has since retired, but versions of it are still available for download and for the purpose for this study it was the best available free resource to perform the aspects that were needed to answer the research questions. As the application is open source it also has a database of pre-made maps which can be used in order to use as the base or layer for the file which you are working on. As it happens, there were a few files which related to the Chumash including a dataset which plotted each Chumash village during the Historic Period and the related Missions. This pre-made map (tmmoc, ArcGIS) was used as a base due to its accuracy and thus could then be manipulated based on the results of the research. GIS has been used to study the Chumash people in a paper by Robinson and Wienhold in 2016 who followed a similar employment strategy of energy expenditure when looking at ceremonial events in Chumash territory. Their use of GIS and energy expense analysis meant that they were able to determine areas that may have been able to ascert political and social control due to the time expenditure in relation to other sites that were important in the Chumash region. They note for example that the village of Tashlipun was in an area that ‘provided geographic access that presented major economic advantages and secured its role as a strong defensive force’ (2016, 376). By following a similar model in this study, it will show why the Chumash decided to settle in certain areas rather than follow the highly mobile route that preceded the later periods. 2.2 The Shell-bead Industry
Figure 2: Shell-bead Industry Key (Luxford, 2019)
23 Trade and communication between the islands and the mainland were extensive (Rasmussen 2000, 193) as there were several commodities which were unavailable in their respective landscapes, so the Chumash needed to assemble strategies to survive. If we consider the concept of trade, we can divide it into two brackets of short-term exchange - legitimate domain of individual...activity and long-term exchange - concerned with the reproduction of the social and cosmic order (Parry and Bloch 1989, 2). By observing the Chumash and their creation of their shell-bead network, we can place value of its short-term interactions from island to mainland in respect of the long-term social order which it enabled society to govern beneath.
The shell-bead industry required the three raw materials - chert (for the production of drills), shells (the currency) and string (where the shells would be placed). The acquisition and successive creation of drills from island chert meant that like the tomol, people of superior knowledge and skill were elevated to an elite status. The drills were made in 3 stages. Firstly, the chert was obtained, secondly microliths were flaked from the chert, and finally ‘small micro-drills were fashioned from these microliths’ (Kennet 2005, 206). A study by Arnold et al., demonstrated that chert which was of higher quality such as on the Santa Cruz Island, gave ‘tremendous advantage in the production of shell beads as it was possible to drill holes faster and replace drill tips less often’ (Akin et al 2016, 40). The work which went into crafting this mode of currency was of significance; ‘the clam-shell represented almost an hour of production activity and the cupped bead was even more time consuming’ (Gamble 2011, 232).
It is noted that the ‘first appearance of shell-bead currency followed upon other important economic innovations’ (Nigra and Arnold 2013, 3648) such as the tomol as they were the catalyst to each other in developing Chumash trade networks. It could be argued by this that shell-beads were initially an equal commodity between people who first began to use it and it was only with increased time that status began to be associated with certain types of shell-bead. With the construction of the tomol allowing increased contact with the mainland the shell-bead catapulted to the foreground of Chumash culture and demand for them increased. It could be said that by obtaining shell-beads, it gave people of lower classes the feeling of status, rather than having real substantial status, leaving the upper-class in positions of centralised control and the lower class uninterested in resisting.
24 The shell-bead industry was used as a case study to show the variations in trade patterns and also migratory routes that may have been taken by the Chumash in relation to the procurement of materials in order to craft the shell-beads. We know that the shell-beads were traded throughout the islands and the mainland but were there cases of certain Chumash groups who began to craft their own materials aside from where the supposed centralisation of the industry occurred? If this was the case, then how did they obtain their materials? Was it through trade of microblades and of shells or did they source their own materials as the energy expense was worth the creation of the beads? By looking at the region in the Santa Ynez Mountains that Brandoff and Reeves discussed in more detail these questions are answered and the relationship between Chumash settlements and activity areas (where they obtained materials) can be made. By mapping the movements that these people made and the timeframe of settlements, we are able to see why they chose to settle or move into the areas which they did, contrasting with prior settlement practices. In the GIS maps the settlements are displayed by nodes which are green nodes and activity areas (quarries, tool-making sites, fishing spots etc.) are displayed as red nodes. The directions and distances that people travelled are within the maps and tables respectively.
2.3 Ceremonial events on the Chumash mainland
Figure 3: Ceremonial event key (Luxford 2019)
As was previously mentioned, the Chumash connection to shamans and ritualistic activity can be dated back to the Middle Period and manifested itself into society through different ceremonies which all held their own individual importance. When
25 Europeans arrived on Chumash soil, they were able to notice that there was an elite group of individuals whom participated in ceremonial events including the chiefs who were called ‘wots’ and a cult which was named the antap (Hudson 1977, 260). The antap group were a mix of religious people such as shamans and leaders within Chumash society that were tasked with activity which related to the world beyond the earth and linking the two together in special events such as the solstice. We know from other archaeological sites around the world that humans have long been able to predict the dates which solstices – the point where the sun reaches its most northernly or southernly distance from the equator – occurred. It is also known that they built tombs, cairns, rock-shelters and various other structures that would allow them to directly or indirectly view the solstice during gatherings of either the whole society or (in the case of the Chumash) certain members. Much of the evidence which we have for the Chumash holding these events is ethnographical but also from rock-paintings that were left at sites and will be shown in Chapter 4 which will discuss the case study sites in more detail. A study by Hudson et al. in 1979 of a few cave sites in Chumash territory discovered that the Chumash used ‘movable objects that were placed in line with the beam of sunlight to increase accuracy’ and that they were not always associated to predicting solstices but purely for the act of the ceremony in question (50). In relation to migratory patterns, the sites which were used to predict or hold these ceremonies were not in the villages or capitals which the elite leaders lived at. This meant that people were required to travel great distances bi-annually to take part in these events. By viewing the movements that these people took and analysing their energy outlays the study can determine how and why people were willing to expend in order to take part. It is thought that many groups besides the Chumash who resided in the SW of California, also took part in events such as this, sometimes using the same sites that the Chumash did. Due to tensions between the different language groups and cultural identities it is interesting to discover that they would potentially meet for gatherings such as this and adds another dimension to the migratory pattern. As part of the methodology it is important to distinguish these ceremonial events from the religious events which took place in post-contact (missionisation) as Chumash culture continued to persist despite the Europeans attempting to uphold total control over Chumash society. The questions which need to be addressed concerning ceremonial events are;
- Why and where were the Chumash holding these events?
- Was this movement a display of centralised control?
26 - Was this a display of voluntary or forced migration?
In the GIS maps, settlements are displayed as orange nodes while the ceremonial event sites (rock-shelters and caves) are displayed as purple nodes. The directions and distances that people travelled are within the maps and tables respectively.
2.4 Missionisation
Figure 4: Missionisation key (Luxford 2019)
The Europeans are documented as observing the Chumash from the early 1500s, but they did not make sustained contact and occupation until the late 1700s which is when the process of missionisation throughout SW California took place. Archaeologists/Historians have found that from AD 1786 and 1803, over 85 percent of documented Chumash conversions took place (Dartt-Newton and Erlandson 2006, 419) i.e. they were baptised at several Missions which were built. The Missions which will be discussed with most scrutiny are those on the SE coastline such as San Buenaventura, Santa Barbara and San Fernando. The latter Mission included people who were from different territories to Chumash and thus occasions of intermarrying between different communities may be seen which would not be seen pre-contact. As discussed previously
27 in Chapter 1, movements to places are related to the aspects of what you are leaving behind and what you are going to gain from the new area that you move into. Although the people were going to be moving into areas that were traditionally Chumash territory, it was now the backdrop for a new political foreground. By all accounts it appears that the Europeans began teaching the Chumash various techniques which would help them not only build the missions but decorate them within, plus held plans to keep them at the Mission areas past the baptisms. For example, it is seen in plenty of missions that the walls were decorated similarly to the ‘rock art practiced for millennia by some native California groups’ (Kimbro et al. 2009, 131). Though they were entrapped within the grasp of another cultural entity, the Chumash found ways to convey their own traditions in ways that were not violent. Despite some members of Chumash society who were less than happy with following colonial rule, the Spanish managed to limit their revolts and won over the majority of Chumash people, which helped in managing the resistance they were up against.
The Europeans made their way through the valleys on a recruitment drive, rallying as many Chumash as they could to join their cause. While on their travels, they made careful selection of where they would settle and made sure that the areas that Missions would be erected contained a ‘viable water supply and abundant land for fields, orchards and pasturage’ (Haas 2013, 14). As the Chumash had built a society which relied on marine resources and coastal sites, this would be a sharp shift in socio-political organisation if they made the move to join the Europeans, but does this show that the benefits of what they could bring outweighed their current economic climate?
While assessing missionisation the questions that will be addressed are;
- Was this a result of forced or voluntary migration? - What were the energy expenditures involved in the movement to missions?
In the GIS maps the missions are displayed by a building node while the villages are displayed as red nodes. The directions and distances that the people travelled are displayed on the maps and within tables respectively.
2.5 Pre and Post-contact comparison
As Smith and Peregrine state “comparative analysis is the only way to identify regularities inhuman behavior, and it is also the only way to identify unique features” (2011, 4). The comparison to be made in migratory patterns relates to types of migration
28 which may occur in societies whether they are under centralised control or not. By analysing pre and post-contact migration patterns it can be determined whether they were permanent or temporary and forced or voluntary. Comparing the two periods can suggest whether different types of centralised control have similar effects on migratory patterns. The act of forcible migration can be related to patterns which political powers made people do in order for them to gain something from it and the act of voluntary migration can be related to people who had an element of choice in the actions they were taking. These two elements of migration can be mixed as people may voluntarily move to places without understanding the full consequence of their actions or because they are coerced into doing so, an attribute which may be attached to the migration which occurred during the Mission Period. It is important that within this study the periods of migration which display traces of a mix of these elements are clearly exposed in order to reach a fair comparison between the pre and post-contact periods. The comparison can also be used to determine how much control the Chumash still held over their people’s actions during post-contact and whether it is possible to see two factors of internal and external control.
29 Chapter 3
Results
3.1 The Shell-Bead Industry
Mainland
Figure 5: Area of Santa Ynez Valley/Mountains and suspected migratory patterns (Luxford, 2019)
The first case study which reviews migratory patterns relating to the shell-bead industry is the region of the Santa Ynez Valley/Mountains. This area is known for being abundant
30 in Franciscan chert, different to the chert of the Channel Islands which is documented as being the best quality chert throughout Chumash society. In the map shown in figure 5, 8 sites within the area have been chosen to convey the study. Of the sites, Refuge Bay, Elijman and Snojoso date to the Middle-Late Period, Snihuaj, Xonxonata and Najalayegua date to the Late Period and Soxtonokmu and Syuxtun date to the Late-Historic Period (Brandoff and Reeves 44-46). From this material a rough migratory pattern could be considered to be as the map shows. The routes from Elijman towards Najalayegua are considered due to the Santa Ynez Mountains to the south which were difficult to overcome and there were only specific routes which would allow movement through them. The red nodes in the map indicate areas of chert potential which is suggested as another pathway for the people from Elijman to take towards Xonxonata. They may have also migrated from the coast to the west, but this would be from an area which contained a different language group from this Santa Ynez region -Purisimeno in the west compared to Barbareno and Ineseno of this region. Although it is noted that the southern mountains posed a wall to the sites on the coast and the sites of the interior valley a movement from refuge bay to the south may also be possible through the canyons as people were beginning to populate the area in the Middle Period.
Figure 6: East Santa Ynez mountain area including routes (Luxford 2019)
Table 2: Calculated distance and times for East Santa Ynez Mountains (Luxford 2019)
Site Interaction Distance Calculated Time
31 Elijman - > Snojoso 11.4km 2 hrs 38 mins Snihuaj -> Najalayegua 19.6km 6 hrs 11 mins Syuxtum - > Najalayegua 20km 6 hrs 17 mins
The map in figure 6 shows the approximate distances between the sites in this region. The distances and routes were mapped using a GIS base which showed modern roads and trails plus roads that are known to exist prior/during the contact period. The combination of these meant that estimated routes could be gauged and thus using the Naismith rule a calculated time for how long it would take people to walk these distances was made. The Naismith rule requires an average walking speed to be inserted and this is considered to be 4-5km/h. As the Chumash were a mobile hunter-gatherer group initially and they still retained semblances of this mobility although having permanent settlements during these periods, the speed which was used to calculate the times was 4.5km/h as they would most likely have been fit enough to match or exceed this speed in certain situations. If Elijman was in contact with Syuxtun it would unlikely be directly due to the ~14-hour distance which it would take to get there due to the south mountains acting as a barrier. As this portion of the Santa Ynez Valley is not thought to contain an abundance of chert compared to the north western part, the chert or shell-beads which came through most likely came from the coastal sites as it was exported from the Channel Islands. It is likely then that people migrated to the east into the sites of Snihuaj and Najalayegua where they could be in more direct contact with the people of Syuxtun. Due to the village of Najalayegua being closest to Syuxtun it would also be likely that people moved from the south into this north portion and took their ideas of industry with them and thus they would be able to craft their own beads within this interior.
Figure 7: West Santa Ynez mountain area including routes (Luxford 2019)
Table 3: Calculated distance and times of West Santa Ynez Mountains (Luxford 2019)
32 Site Interaction Distance Calculated Time Chert Potential - > Xonxonata 30km 7 hrs 10 mins Xonxonata -> Saxtonokmu 14.1km 3 hrs 8 mins Saxtonokmu - > Chert Potential 4.3km 57 mins to base / 2 hrs 4 mins to peak
The map in figure 7 indicates two areas of chert potential in the north west part of the Santa Ynez Valley and two settlements that the Chumash were known to reside in during the Late and Historic Periods. The area to the west is a 30km distance from Xonxonata so is unlikely to be an area that they exploited due to the 7-hour time it would take to reach there, but the area nearer Saxtonokmu seems more likely. It is slightly less time to both the base and peak of the mountains here. Though 3 hours does not seem to be of significance in comparison to the 7-hour expedition, a round trip would then add up to 6 hours of time if they were directly trading between villages. As the village of Saxtonokmu is known to have been occupied to a later date than Xonxonata it may be suggested that people ended up moving to this area because of the chert that was able to be exploited and the capabilities that were possible in relation to how society became to be structured during this period.
The results of the Santa Ynez valley would indicate that people moved out-with of the central interior such as the village of Elijman as socio-political structure changed. As people began to gain more autonomy over the shell-bead trade and found areas of exploitation by either trade or natural resources, they could move into the necessary areas of occupation in order to utilise them to their maximum efficiency.
Coastal
33 Figure 8: Channel Islands including case study sites (Luxford 2019)
The areas of interest in the Channel Islands cover each of the most archaeologically intense islands – the San Miguel Island, the Santa Rosa Island and the Santa Cruz Island. On Santa Miguel Island there are the Early Holocene sites of Daisy Cove and Cardwell Bluffs to the east and the site of SMI-503/504 to the west which is dated to the Early-Middle Period. Santa Rosa Island is home to the Tecolote Point (SRI-3) site which dates to the Early Period. The sites of El Montón and Punta Arena on Santa Cruz Island are both Early Period, whereas Christy Beach is a Middle Period site. Prisoners Harbour is a Transitional-Historic Period site, China Harbour and Scorpions Anchorage date to around the Middle-Historic Period whereas Smugglers Cove dates to the Late-Historic Period. This initial prognosis would indicate that the migratory patterns of the Islands is not particularly regular, as there is no clear pattern of migration, but patterns which seem to be determined by which areas would be the best to exploit dependent on the materials or artefacts that were significant to the designated period.
Figure 9: Santa Cruz Island including case study sites (Luxford 2019)
However, Santa Cruz Island seems to tell a different story. The sites of El Montón and Punta Arena were included to the initial map as they also display patterns of stone assemblage that were related to plant material like in the case of SMI-503 and 504 on San Miguel Island but they are most likely not linked to that of Christy Beach and the sites further east of the Island. The site of Christy Beach is not thought to have been occupied during the transitional period in comparison to those sites on the eastern side of the island. This potentially indicates that the areas here provided material during the
34 latter periods in Chumash society demonstrating that they wished to settle and exploit here rather than anywhere else. The sites here would also be closer to the mainland than those to the west which meant trade to the mainland would be in better reach.
Figure 10: East Santa Cruz Island including distances and projected routes (Luxford 2019)
As signified in figure 10 a potential movement to the east would be as follows, whereby the transitional details of microblades would gradually filter to the areas of China Harbour, Scorpions Anchorage and Smugglers Cove and due to the best quality chert being available they would then be in the best possible positions to benefit from the shell-bead trade. By the Late-Historic Period there was most likely little movement between villages permanently and it was most likely diffusion and trade that dominated this period, but in places like China Harbour there were little quarry sites that were the sources of chert. In China Harbour’s case the quarry was 1.2km from the settlement – around 16 minutes.
35 3.2 Ceremonial Events
Figure 11: Map of Ventureno region including migratory patterns and villages/ceremonial sites (Luxford 2019)
The next case study which looks at ceremonial events views the region of Ventureno to the SE of Chumash territory. Three pictograph sites named Burro Flats, Lake Manor and Chatsworth were known to be sites of great ceremonial importance from around the Middle/Late Period until the Historic Period. The villages within the Ventureno region were thought to take part in the ceremonial events, especially the village of Humaliwo which is now Malibu, which was thought to have been one of the biggest and most important capitals. The villages of note all temporarily moved into the central pictograph sites during events such as the solstice. The type of migration which this can relate to is that of circular migration which in the modern day would be akin to people who temporarily circulate through specific regions due to employment. As noted in figure 11, people were also moving toward the area from the east and territories which were not occupied by the Chumash indicating that different groups were mixing while they were at these sites and using them for similar purposes. Though the villages or sites have not
36 been noted onto the maps due to this being a study which focuses on the Chumash patterns of migration, they will be discussed in Chapter 4 due to the relations to the modern day concerning borders and border control, something which would not have been apparent in the past as the political boundaries were made but not controlled as they would be today.
Figure 12: Ventureno region and projected routes which were taken (Luxford 2019)
Table 4: Calculated distance and times in the Ventureno region (Luxford 2019)
Site Interaction Distance Calculated Time Simiyi -> Chatsworth 19.6km 4 hrs 33 mins Ta’apu -> Chatsworth 14.4km 3 hrs 24 mins Huwam -> Burro Flats 3.2km 49 mins Hipuk -> Burro Flats 16km 3 hrs 39 mins Ta’lopop -> Burro Flats 10.2km 2 hrs 28 mins Humaliwo -> Burro Flats 20.2km 5 hrs 6 mins Topa’nga -> Burro Flats 15.7km 3 hrs 29 mins Sumo -> Burro Flats 27.7km 6 hrs 37 mins Chatsworth -> Lake Manor 3.5km 47 mins
37 Lake Manor -> Burro Flats 5.8km 1 hr 17 mins
The map in figure 12 and table 4 highlight the pathways that would potentially have been taken by the Chumash people when taking part in these ceremonies. As with the shell-bead industry the routes were created by using modern roads/trails that were present on the GIS application and Chumash routes/trails that we have some evidence for. It is not clear which villages would have congregated at each site which is why the routes have been determined to the nearest. For a village such as Humaliwo it is highly likely that they would have been present at each of the sites due to their huge importance to the rest of the interaction sphere. Due to this, the distances between the ceremonial sites have also been given so it can be determined how long it would have taken to take from the village of Humaliwo to get to Chatsworth rather than Burro Flats for example or the village of Simiyi to Burro Flats rather than Chatsworth. The greatest journey was determined to be for the village of Sumo at 6-hours 37 mins which translates to over ½ a day for a round trip. If we also factor in that the solstices occurred at specific moments during the day and while the events were on it included dancing, singing and other activities, they may well have spent a few days away from their home villages rather than the village of Huwam for example which was calculated as only being around 49 minutes from the Burro Flats site and known to be the host village for the festival. By extending the distance of Sumo to Chatsworth, it takes the total single journey from 6-hours 37 mins to 8 hours 41 mins which extends the round trip from around ½ day to ¾ of a day. The results not only determine the significant time periods that it would have taken many of the villages to reach the ceremonial sites but also the extent of the climbs/descents that they would endure while hiking. In some instances, the groups that were travelling would climb/descend up to 1000 feet due to the mix of mountain trails and valley floors. This can be exemplified in situations where the distance is quite close together but the calculate time is a bit higher or lower than expected. For example, Simiyi to Chatsworth is 0.6km less than Humaliwo to Burro Flats but takes 34 mins less showing that the hike from Humaliwo was more strenuous than the trip from Simiyi. Examples such as Hipuk and Topa’nga who both would most likely have commuted to Burro Flats show that their respective journeys were of similar strain. The average time to reach the general vicinity of the three sites works out as 3 hours 46 minutes. When calculated into a round trip this works out as a little over ¼ of a day.
3.3 Missionisation
38 Figure 13: Map of Ventureno region and case study sites (Luxford 2019)
Due to over 160 historic villages being reported throughout Chumash territory the missionisation case study does not look at all of them but focuses instead on the Ventureno region and the Channel Islands to give two opposing perspectives of missionisation. During the research it was discovered that some of the villages such as Topa’nga were difficult to research in terms of where they were baptised and thus omitted from the survey, but the remaining villages were reported in terms of the distances and calculated times. As with the previous two case studies the distances were calculated using the GIS maps modern routes/trails and historic Chumash trails. Also included into this map is the El Camino Real which is highlighted by the purple line on the map. The El Camino Real is the road which the Europeans used to get from each Mission to the next and stretched from NW California to the South American territories. Where applicable, this road was used as the most likely route that would have been taken due to the Europeans using it themselves. By using the mission registers, it was made possible to know which villagers were baptised at which Mission and thus the routes could be made to each relevant Mission. In some cases, it was discovered that some villages were recorded as being baptised at both and in these cases both routes were recorded. It is interesting to note that the San Fernando Mission was out of Chumash territory and thus a role reversal was taking place in contrast to the Ceremonial events pattern where Chumash were moving into another group’s region, though at this time the colonialists were reaching the boiling point of political stress.
39 Figure 14: Missionisation case study sites and their projected routes (Luxford 2019)
Table 5: Calculated distance and times in the Ventureno region during Missionisation (Luxford 2019)
Site Interaction Distance Calculated Time Shisholop -> San 0km 0mins Buenaventura S’omis -> San 13.7km 3 hrs 3 mins Buenaventura A’hwai –> San 28km 6 hrs 32 mins Buenaventura Sisxulcuy -> San 19.6km 4 hrs 29 mins Buenaventura Kacantuk -> San 20km 4 hrs 27 mins Buenaventura Mupu -> San 28.4km 6 hrs 31 mins Buenaventura Sis’a -> San Buenaventura 36.3km 8 hrs 34 mins ‘Alalhew -> San 33.1km 7 hrs 49 mins Buenaventura S’eqp’e -> San 45.8km 10 hrs 35 mins Buenaventura Kayawish-> San 31.7km 7 hrs 30 mins Buenaventura Lalimanux -> San 29.8km 7 hrs 5 mins Buenaventura Sumuawawa -> San 43km 10 hrs 22 mins Buenaventura
40 S’apwi -> San 37.6km 8 hrs 49 mins Buenaventura Ta’lopop -> San 60.3km 14 hrs 13 mins Buenaventura Muwu -> San 29.6km 6 hrs 35 mins Buenaventura Lisiqishi -> San 45.8km 10 hrs 17 mins Buenaventura Loxostox’ni -> San 52.3km 11 hrs 43 mins Buenaventura Sumo -> San Buenaventura 59.9km 13 hrs 22 mins Humaliwo -> San 69.3km / 73.1km 15 hrs 30 mins / 16 hrs 48 Buenaventura mins Hipuk -> San Fernando 40km 9 hrs 2 mins Humaliwo -> San Fernando 42.9km 9 hrs 50 mins Huwam -> San Fernando 19.5km 4 hrs 23 mins Shimiyi -> San Fernando 33.9km 7 hrs 52 mins Kimishax -> San Fernando 43.3km 10 hrs Ta’apu -> San Fernando 30km 6 hrs 60 mins Kamulus -> San Fernando 37.4km 9 hrs 7 mins
As is noted in table 5 the least distance that would have been travelled is 13km at a calculated time of 3 hours and 3 mins, indicating that any of the journeys to Missions would not have been easy. The greatest distances are mainly from the villages in the SW portion of Ventureno, particularly the village capital of Humaliwo where people were baptised at both San Fernando and San Buenaventura. From this village to San Buenaventura there were found to be two possible pathways, either the coastline or by moving north and using the El Camino Real which were quite similar in their timeframes. The coastline route was 15hours 30 mins and the El Camino Real route was 1 hour 12 mins more. Each route would take roughly ¾ of a day. If we compare it to the time it took to get to the San Fernando Mission it was ¼ of a day less which shows that the Europeans may have wanted villagers from respective villages to move into certain Missions rather than others or the villagers did for them to expense that amount of time in doing so. Another factor when considering the villages are the curious cases of Hipuk and Talopop. Looking to the map at face value you would think that Hipuk would migrate to San Buenaventura and Talopop to San Fernando, but it was the opposite. From Humaliwo to San Fernando it is roughly 42.9km at a calculated time of 9hours 50 mins compared to 60.3km and 14-hour 13mins journey from Talopop to San Buenaventura. Looking at the map the distance to San Fernando from Talopop would be less than from Humaliwo which would indicates that the journey time would have been significantly less – possibly ¼ a day less.
41 Figure 15: Projected route of Channel Island migration patterns during Missionisation (Luxford 2019)
The area of the Channel Islands during the period of missionisation is intriguing as there were no recorded Missions. This meant that during this time the Europeans that were baptising the Chumash would either have to do so within the islands or the coastline of the Californian mainland where the Missions of Santa Barbara and Santa Buenaventura were the most likely candidates. Due to this, the distances and calculated times are not noted for the villages here but they will be discussed in Chapter 4 when contrasting to how people were baptised from the mainland because of the risks that were involved. Although the Chumash were considered to be expert seafarers when in charge of their tomol, they were now being transported by the Europeans to their respective destinations. There are some questions which may be instigated by this such as why were Missions not established on the island? If they knew of the risks that were involved when transporting people, would they have taken it if it was an act of voluntary migration?
42 Chapter 4
Discussion
4.1 Shell-Bead Industry
As represented in Chapter 3, the area of the Santa Ynez Mountains displayed profound change from the Middle-Historic Period which is most likely linked to the change in shell-bead industry and members of Chumash society yearning for greater autonomy. Those that were attempting to gain autonomy were not necessarily common members of society, but the members of the Chumash elite who wished to control production of the shell-beads themselves rather than rely on trade to obtain them.
If we first focus on the west side of the Santa Ynez where Xonxonata and Soxtonokmu are present the geological review of the area would suggest that the chert resources within the Santa Ynez region are most likely confined to here. The region is limited in
43 chert but the mountains which were far from the coast included both Monterey chert and high-quality Franciscan chert (Arnold 1987, 91). From prior excavations it is found that the movement to the east Channel Islands was to exploit high quality chert and this may well be the case for the migratory patterns of the Chumash in the Santa Ynez Mountains. As Franciscan chert was limited in supply but available, the people decided that they would move to occupy areas where it could be done so to maximum efficiency.
Using material collected by Brandoff and Reeves we can analyse the interaction sphere between those at the opposing corners of the Chumash geographical window; islanders and those in the mainland mountains. They discovered a number of settlements in the Santa Ynez region which contained shell-beads with some exhibiting bead-making. At the sites of Soxtonokmu and Xonxonata excavations found evidence of shell debris as well as actual shell-beads. Soxtonokmu contained 42 pieces of debris compared to 383 beads and Xonxonata displayed 21 pieces of debris compared to 347 beads (Brandoff and Reeves 2014, 47). This shows that despite the number of beads being much larger than that of the debris there is evidence that the people were starting to create their own. By exploiting the chert that was available and using it to craft their own shell-beads, the shift of centralised control in the industry for these people moved from the Channel Islands to here. Although the Channel Islands would still trade with the coastal mainland and to some extent the villages at this site, it would be different as the various cherts would be traded, but also different types of shell which were crafted.
As noted in the results there was another chert exploitation area to the west of this area where the present-day Vandenberg Air Force Base (VAFB) is located. Perry and Jazwa note that since there was “intensive biface production in the VAFB region, it is clear that exchange networks existed in the Santa Barbara Channel since the early Holocene” (2010, 184) and may have been displayed initially when the people migrated from the inner valley village of Elijman towards Xonxonata. Due to the trade links they could be in a ‘middle’ space between the villages on the west coast beside VAFB but also to the mountains of the NE where another source of chert was available. It may also make sense if people from the VAFB had migrated east to the villages of Xonxonata and Soxtonokmu as they were experienced in the manufacture of lithic materials as-well as the mining of the materials.
What may be overlooked is the energy expense which it would take in order to obtain the chert which also factors into the distance and time from village to quarry sites. Due
44 to the production and mining times of certain materials/lithics that would be needed to manufacture the materials, the time limit to reach the materials may have been wanted to be reduced in order to set up a proficient industry.
It is not purely for chert deposits that the people may have decided to move into these areas, as the assemblages from Xonxonata and Soxtonokmu display great abundance of deer bone compared to shellfish (the main food type of coastal sites) due to the exploitation of deer in the interior valleys (Glassow et al. 2007, 209) that would not be available to the same extent as they would be on the coast and the Channel Islands. As different resources were able to be managed in different environments, being able to migrate to an area that would increase trade in some capacities would only further benefit the village and its people and thus increase centralisation for the villages. Additionally, there were cases on the mainland of people exploiting other types of materials such as obsidian. At the sites of VEN-852 and VEN-853 there were sharp increases in the procurement of obsidian during the Early and Middle Periods, an item rare at inland sites (Roman 2019). This autonomy further exemplifies that the Chumash residing inland were becoming increasingly autonomous and constantly aware of their environment. Obtaining obsidian would allow for expanded trade and potential to create various tools that would previously have been unable to craft locally. A decrease in island reliance but an increase in the trade between the two parts of Chumash society meant that the sociopolitical organisation was an everchanging construct.
As is evidenced, the magnitude of production heavily inflated in the Late Period, with the overarching material discovered being present in these deposits, thus providing the verification that increased centralisation occurred, but in a different manner. The hierarchical structures that were in place did not falter, but instead grew in alignment with the industry as demands for the shell-beads escalated to a level that required more autonomy to the regions of the interior Santa Ynez Valley. It is clear that all indicators lead to the belief that this was an act of voluntarily migration by the elite members of society. Furthermore, a reason for people to voluntarily migrate to places is for better opportunities in certain aspects of their lives. Although the common people of Chumash society, who we know at this point of the Middle-Historic Period were under complex chiefdoms, would not have had much choice in the matter, the elites saw these regions as an opportunity to gain more control over an industry that enabled the peak of Chumash complexity. As it was the elite who were in charge of movement, it seems as if the people of society were forced to move under their control which in the broad view
45 would seem so, but they may have benefited from this movement also. As they were beneath the chiefs in the organisation, they would have a choice over whether to resist their leaders’ choices through varying levelling mechanisms such as violence or denouncing them. It could be said though that by moving to an area such as Soxtonokmu where power clearly increased compared to the village of Elijman that there would be benefits such as increased protection and safety. Mauss, in his acknowledgement of exchange, argued that it is an ideal built upon trust and the ‘obligation to reciprocate’ (Komter 2007, 103) i.e if we begin to give something, we would expect something back, and the building of this leads to continued interactions. Societies can be seen in a similar vein of reciprocation. The trust in leadership in a hierarchy is just as valuable as the control of the lesser population, and the reciprocation of management to labour enables efficiency but also a lack of desire to resist.
By the Historic Period the village of Soxtonokmu was one of the most important in the Santa Ynez valley (possibly due to the reasons which have been mentioned above) and enabled them to have “extensive trade and marriage ties to coastal and inland villages” (Haas 2013, 21) displaying their prominence. These marriage ties were most likely to have been formed during the villager’s congregation at the Missions which the colonisers established at the coast such as Santa Barbara. As these ties began to be formulated, so did new modes of production. They became less specialised as the Europeans brought new materials with them - ‘introduction of metal needles as the preferred tool for drilling beads’ (Johnson 1999, 62) as-well as glass to be used for the beads meant that the ‘undermined the shell bead currency and contributed to the collapse of the island Chumash economy’ (Gherini 2015, 26) plus those of the mainland who had begun creating their own such as at Soxtonokmu or Najalayegua. In this case the Chumash were powerless to resist the influx of a foreign entity and despite attempting to maintain their social values they were eventually overcome politically. Within the space of a few thousand years the migratory patterns that the people of this territory had made through both voluntary and forced patterning had inflated them to the heights of cultural achievement. Unfortunately, they were then led to eventual decimation as a political power as a result of the Europeans enticing the Chumash through their own means of centralised control.
The villages of Snihuaj and particularly Najalayegua are different in their results of why people migrated to these villages from the interior. The location of Najalayegua is perfect for the occupants to remain tied to the interior valley while being able to maintain a
46 stable relationship with those on the coast due to the 6-hour time that it would have taken to move between it and the village of Syuxtun which was known to be a major Late-Historic village. The village of Syuxtun exhibits strong behaviour in terms of bead-making itself as more than 14,296 pieces of Olivella bead detritus was found in a 1/4-inch sample (Gamble and Gusick 2013, 6) which is more than any of the villages documented in this case study by a great distance. As it is also clear that in terms of Najalayegua, “connection to the coast is strong at the site, as exhibited by the marine remains and ethnographic kin relationships” (Brandoff and Reeves 2014, 45) it amounts to the conclusion that people not only moved into this area from the village of Elijman to the west but also from the coastal sites such as Syuxtun to the south. This format of migration showed that although it was also voluntary, the circumstances that enable it can be of different pathways but work towards the same end. By moving further toward the village of Najalayegua it would not only benefit the elite as they were gaining more autonomy over the shell-bead industry, but they would also be creating strong links to other villages in to the coast that were previously difficult to reach due to the barrier of the Santa Ynez mountains. The links to the other villages would clearly benefit them politically as they would have further protection and safety. Although it was a different reason for migrating it still reflects a pattern that is a result of centralised control and a furtherance of the power that the elites of these settlements in the Middle Period such as Elijman held. It results in an interesting paradox whereby they were decentralising from the shell-bead industry in the Channel Islands and coastline to the south that had better access to materials and crafting and centralising in the interior valley by beginning to craft their own shell-beads. A decrease in specialisation did not necessarily mean a collapse of central control but revealed the fluidity within political governance as a pattern shifted from specific members being in control to a wider range of people involved in order to meet the demands of a rapidly evolving network. This decentralisation from the coastal south did not mean that the production of shell-beads disappeared and it was still prevalent until the Mission Period. SBA-72 and SBA-73 which are located at Tecolote Canyon, just west of Santa Barbara, contained Olivella shell-beads and debitage which dated from around 2000-500BP showing that there was a prolonged industry which occurred at this village site (Erlandson et al. 2006).
To explore the Channel Island relationship with migration and the shell-bead industry, an analysis of initial migratory patterns on and between the islands were looked at to determine if they had any correlation to what we are able to see within Middle-Historic
47 Period. The evidence gathered would suggest that during the Early-Middle Periods there are no clear designated routes which people would have taken but that the patterns were reflective of a highly mobile hunter-gatherer group that were committing to areas once they knew that it could be exploited for the certain materials that they wished to gather. It also displays that migratory patterns can definitely be linked to learned behaviour and once people know of certain resources, they will tend to gravitate towards these areas in order to gain maximum efficiency. To explore this relationship of learned behaviour during the Early-Middle Period the sites on Santa Miguel Island were looked at; Daisy Cave and Cardwell Bluffs.
The areas of Daisy Cave and Cardwell Bluffs are two of the earliest sites which we have dates for on the Channel Islands at both 12000-11500BP respectively for their earliest occupations. The site of Daisy Cave is known during this time period to have been “occupied repeatedly by maritime peoples who relied heavily on marine resources” (Erlandsen et al. 1996, 370) which is evident by the huge shell midden which was exposed by archaeologists that contained lithic tools as well as food debitage (bones). To this knowledge then we can clearly notice that the people who first migrated into the Channel Islands found sites on the coast which would give them access to marine resources and provide them with the necessary subsistence and also a protective and defensive shelter from any potential enemies. The Cardwell Bluffs site is equally representative of this thought as there were numerous bifaces and points at the site which show hunting of sea birds, sea mammals and fishing were important activities as much as the collection of shellfish was (Rick and Erlandson 2012, 94). By this account the people of the two sites were still a highly mobile group despite having areas that they used for occupation. The lithic assemblages resemble a society that was still in a phase which shifted from moving continuously to one which was beginning to realise the potential that San Miguel Island in terms of marine exploitation. From these areas it may be suggested that they then became the descendants of those that moved eastwards as they were the first people to live in this manner. From 11500BP onwards the sites within the Channel Islands become more frequent and resemble the same types of activities that were happening at these two sites on east San Miguel. The sites of SMI-606, SMI-522, SMI-608 and SMI-507 all show these traits including the appearance of Olivella type shell beads for the first time. It appears that once the people of these sites began to get more comfortable and aware of their newfound resources, they began to identify ways in which they could utilise it further to create an industry which ended up
48 becoming the backbone of Chumash society. The creation of these beads at these sites were not necessarily an intentional movement of centralisation and it conveys that migrations that we may deem as insignificant at the time pave the way for later periods of centralisation.
One of the sites which represents this first semblance of centralisation is the site of SRI-3, or Tecolote Point located on Santa Rosa Island where a cemetery was located. A cemetery is one of the most validating implications for permanent occupancy within archaeology as it denotes that people at the site had a connection to it that they wished to continue into further generations and after life. The burials that were at the cemetery contained red abalone shells which were placed on their heads which signifies the relationship between shells and the people here (Braje et al. 2010, 2.7). Though there was a large number of burials which most likely did not represent a hierarchy that was similar to that which was found during the Middle-Historic Period, they were beginning to form styles of burial practices that would later be related to the patterns of elite burials. The process of migration from the San Miguel Island outward from sites such as Daisy Cave and Cardwell Bluffs to the sites of Tecolote Point amongst others exemplifies that the people were voluntarily moving to places that they believed would contain the resources that they had found in other similar areas and represents learned behaviour which is what many migratory patterns are based on. It can also be related to why the Chumash may have been welcoming of the colonialists as they learned that migrating to new places can end in better things, but this will be discussed further in the Chapter during the Missionisation section.
To finalise the Santa Miguel Islands sporadic migratory patterns, the sites of SMI-503 and 504 are looked at, believed to be the same occupied settlement which is dated to Early-Middle Period. These sites displayed a remarkable wealth of stone bowls and mortars which they were considered to be specialist manufacturers (Arnold 1987, 27), and carries on from the sites of Daisy Cave which exhibited stone artefacts in the early periods that were discussed, displaying that through time the people became more cultured in the manufacturing processes which would have been enabled by moving through the islands to better areas for materials.
Santa Cruz Island is where the patterns of migration relating to the shell-bead industry in its prime begin to formulate. The site of Christy Beach displays evidence of shell-beads and burials which is similar to that of the site at Tecolote Point dated to the Early Period
49 but at a significantly more centralised level, however the occupancy does not continue into the Middle-Late transitional period compared to the sites of the eastern portion of the Island that do. In order to understand the data of Prisoners Harbour, China Harbour, Smugglers Cove and Scorpion Anchorage coherently, we must categorise the beads into definitive periods when they were apparent. They are as follows: the Middle Period c.3500 - 800BP (wall-bead), the Late Period c. 600 - 200BP (callus-cupped), and the Contact Period c.200BP - Present (glass-beads/needle-drilled), whereby the wall-bead and callus-cupped are used coherently during the timeframe of 800-600BP during the transition.
Figure 16: Table of bead types at Santa Cruz Island (Kennet et al. 2000, 218)
The analysis undertaken in figure 16 is significant in how we can map the route of shell-bead production chronologically at Smugglers Cove (CA-SCrI-504 and 506) and
Scorpion Anchorage (CA-SCrI-423 and 507) as the beads were found in-situ with the tools required for their manufacture, highlighting them as areas of centralised control. At Scorpion Anchorage it would appear that there was a consistent level of shell-bead production from the Middle to Contact period ‘suggesting some continuity in residential communities’ (Kennet et al. 2000, 215). In contrast, Smugglers Cove showed that there was a boom in shell-bead manufacture in the Late Period, revealing that the callus-cup bead had become an essential component in Chumash commerce - 948 beads being found at site CA-SCrI-504 compared to 16 wall beads which were associated with the Middle Period. An argument that can be made from the overall data is that as demand increased it meant new sites of specialised production appeared in the Channel Islands to cater for it. If this is the case then two different types of site may be evident, one of which produced for the wider Chumash community and another that dealt with local
50 status/trade due to the relative numbers of material recovered, or it can be reflective of movements to regions that contained better materials and therefore these can be seen as those which reflected greater centralised control.
Figure 17: Microblade assemblage at Lu’upsh village dated at the Historic Period c. (Dietler 2003, 112)
Lu’upsh, an area now known as China Harbour, is home to a site (SCRI-306) which adds further complexity to an already intricate network. This site ‘exhibited a demonstrable economic emphasis on microlith production’ (Arnold 1990, 118) (as seen in figure 17) rather than of shell-beads or drills, indicating that there were also sites which exported microliths that would then be made into drills at shell-bead manufacturing sites, therefore the network was reliant on cohesiveness between these components. A quarry site SCRI-93 is demonstrated on the map in Chapter 3, close to the site of China Harbour and is dated to roughly 1000BP signifying that procurement of microlith material began in the Middle Period and continued through to the Historic Period. The distance of the site to where the historic village would eventually be signifies how a village could rise to such prominence as they were in an excellent defensive location on the coast while being able to obtain the materials for the industry. Prisoners Harbour is a site which shows evidence of the transitional period and it may be from here which the ideals of the transitional trapezoid to triangular microblade moved from, through a series of exchange networks between it and China Harbour which would be beneficial for both communities that were placed in opposing areas of the same coastline. As with the interior valley sites, the Channel Island sites of Smugglers Cove, Scorpions Anchorage and China Harbour all show that people were moving toward the reaches of increased
51 autonomy through the intensification of shell-beads which was lifted by the creation of new tools to create beads.
Despite these sites displaying further specialisation in eastern Santa Cruz, there were examples of shell-bead production and trade becoming more prominent in the western area of the island during the Mission Period. L’akayamu, Ch’oloshush and Shawa were all villages that rose to prominence post-contact and indicated that the introduction of glass and metals meant that many villages were able to centralise to an extent that was not seen prior to the Mission Period (Braje et al. 2010). This is similar to the Santa Rosa Island sites that exhibited behaviours of settlement patterning in relation to mortar and pestle manufacturing. The people on Santa Cruz Island were drawn to the coastlines in both the East and the West due to the attributes that would benefit them such as defensive positioning, marine resources, chert exploitation/manufacture and also the use of specialised craft such as the tomol. Despite this, the movement to the East was most likely the more favourable as they were closer to the mainland and thus could create a stronger bond and subsequently trade with coastal mainland villages.
Upon reflection of the above case studies that demonstrate permanent or temporary migration patterns relating to the shell-bead industry, it seems that they can be intrinsically linked to the act of wanting to better oneself. The act of voluntary migration in these scenarios appear to be apparent when the availabilities of new resources became knowledgeable to people and they could be exploited to reach further socio-political complexity which during the Middle-Historic Period was controlled by the hereditary elite.
4.2 Ceremonial Events
The ceremonial events which occurred in the case studies territory can be related to a theory which is known as circular migration in the present day. As noted in Chapter 3 this is the act of moving to a temporary location for work purposes and although the ceremonial events were not acts of employment necessarily, they were activities which helped the elites keep socially aligned similar to a job which is beneficiary to have rather than to not.
52 An analogy which may best describe the link of ceremonial events to the Chumash and the energy expense they were willing to make in order to take part in them is akin to the present day and special events that we decide to take part in such as a wedding of our family members, though in the present day we have the option to remain connected through other means of communication – an opportunity not afforded to the Chumash. They could be aware of the ceremonial events and have gathered in their own villages to commemorate the solstice, however they chose to gather at ceremonial sites which enhanced the benefits of physical participation and increased connection with their neighbours. This physical participation allowed those present to connect to the spirits that the Shamans would represent through song and dance and the metaphysical alignments that were crucial to the structure of the antap. The physical implications that were involved travelling to the sites were worth the output as the connection of the physical and spiritual world that they were able to make at the end of the road would enable continuation of this link, whereas the implications of what may have happened if they did not do this could have put a weight onto the Chumash elites shoulders. As it was the elite who were taking part in this act of circulatory migration, it conveys the view that these patterns were a clear representation of centralised control as the access to the sites would be limited to a select few during the ceremonial events. The sites in question are Burro Flats, Lake Manor and Chatsworth. By discussing the evidence for them we will form an understanding of why the people were willing to travel to these sites.
The Burro Flats area is home to not just one ceremonially linked site but of two, the Burro Flats painted cave and the Burro Flats pictograph site.
53 Figure 18: Burro Flats Painted Cave (IPFS 2016)
The Burro Flats painted cave (BFPC) as demonstrated in figure 18 is shown to display a remarkable array of motifs that show varying depictions of the spiritual elements that were important in Chumash society. There are several motifs that are common at painted sites such as the aquatic motif which is shown on the Burro Flats cave wall – it is the pieces which show elongated forms ending with split fin tails (Gilreath 2007, 278). Due to the great importance which marine resources had to the Chumash it is not a surprise that they are then seen in relation to ceremony. It is difficult to analyse many of the motifs as there are not enough ethnographic accounts or material which allows us to definitively know what each motif means, but from the evidence we can make some educated guesses. The ethnographic evidence which is available is mostly presented through oral accounts and many of them have stated that there are links in the spirit and real world but also to the astronomical. There are beliefs that there was a celestial ocean that was home to monsters that was located between the stars in the Cygni and gamma Aquilae in the Milky Way, and thus the cave paintings that were displayed are a visual representation of the journeys or narratives that the shamans of society see and have been guided to display them for the other elites in society (Hudson and Conti 1981: 227). To the right of the cave painting can be seen two lines of circles which possibly indicated the shell-beads that were distributed throughout the Chumash regions. The demonstration of this industry within the cave and links to the spirit world shows the deep-rooted importance it held within society and strengthens the connection between the sprits and activities of the physical world. It is clear from both aspects that the ceremonial sites were controlled by a central elite as two of the most important pieces of Chumash culture which were the shell-bead industry and marine dependence are exemplified by the paintings. As we know through the previous case study in 4.1, the shell-bead industry during the Late-Historic Period which the ceremonial sites are dated to, were controlled by a hereditary elite as were those in charge of creating the watercraft of the Chumash, the tomol. This site is closest in proximity to Huwam which is noted as being the “host village for the regional Kakunupmawa or winter solstice festival, in honor of the return of the sun” (Knight 2012, 262). As displayed in the results, the village of Huwam was only 3.2km from the site at a rough calculated time of 49 mins based on relative climb/descent. It would be believed then that many of the elites from varying other villages would congregate here from the region, particularly the south where the capital, Humaliwo was based. If we consider the estimated time to reach
54 Huwam from Humaliwo it works out as being around ¼ of a day, so it was a considerable distance for the elite to travel in order to commemorate this festival.
The Burro Flats pictograph site (BFPS) is not as clear in its relation to the Chumash. An observation by Kuhn indicated that five of the eight paintings at the site are more closely related to a Santa Barbara cave site (128km away) than the Burro Flats Cave Site (1.6km away) (Knight 2017, 14). This correlation does not make sense if it was linked to the Burro Flats cave site as we know that the Chumash were using it since the Late Period which is a span of many generations. Several theories have been suggested which include that it was colonialists who had seen the depictions while they were at Santa Barbara and decided that they would mark in similar styles to the Chumash or that it was Chumash that were still present after the colonialists had entered Chumash territory and began to control them, which in either corner exemplifies that it was made due to centralised control. In the case of the Chumash people painting the site it would be related to the idea of continuing traditions which were embedded into their social fabric and retaining the autonomy which they had prior to colonial rule, albeit the people who were painting it may not have been part of the sacred antap group. If it was colonialists who had created these motifs, it may have been another indication that they were adopting another aspect of Chumash society and beginning to claim it as their own. This is not particularly reflective of being a site that is inherently linked to migratory patterns in terms of why people moved to certain areas but potentially one which people had visited previously and learnt of why the Burro Flats area was important to others and then chose to see it for themselves. In the modern world we hold sites like the Pyramids at Giza, Stonehenge or the Great Wall of China as places that others have travelled to and we also need to visit to connect to them culturally, and this was the same for the ceremonial sites and BFPS – people may have visited the site and decided to then create their own interpretation of it in order to try and connect with the cultural implications that the Chumash did with BFPC.
55 Figure 19: Lake Manor site (Wikimedia 2016)
The site of Lake Manor is now within an area that is currently a private estate and thus there was limited excavation activity. As a result, there are also limited reports which mean that even less information is known about it than the Burro Flats site but this picture demonstrates that it displayed similar traits. The same approach in style is reflected as the black background is present with white and red motifs superimposed. The aquatic motif that is evident in the middle of figure 19 is displayed in several locations at the BFPC and thus links the Lake Manor site to the real/spirit world marine relationship. By contrast, the shell-bead industry does not seem to be represented in the same way that it is at BFPC. Although the excavations were limited, a private excavation in 2011 that was given the go ahead by property owners established that artefacts including a ‘steatite bowl rim fragment, quartzite cores, scrapers, flakes, a small black fused shale bird point, black fused shale flakes, one obsidian flake, Monterey Chert flakes, much burnt rock, and a few small mammal bone fragments, some of which were burnt’ (Knight 2012, 10) were present. The artefacts that were present here signify that this was an area that was repeatedly used and that they were most likely used in respect to the ritual events which occurred at the site. Regarding the steatite bowl for example, it is believed that concoctions would be created with ingredients that were gathered and then used to convey hallucinations to the shamans. They would then relate this experience with their connection from the physical world to the spiritual world as the imagery that they had created on the walls came to life, resonating around them.
56 Figure 20: Chatsworth painted site (Knight 2012)
The last site in this area, Chatsworth is one which is believed to have been a meeting place of both the Chumash and the Tongva (also known as Gabrielino or Fernandeño) who resided to the east of Chumash-Ventureño territory. As this was the case, it implies that the territorial boundaries that were in place during the Middle-Historic Period were ignored briefly while the ceremonial events took place. Boundaries do not need to be physical and can instead be seen as a cultural boundary. Whilst it is possible to cross these cultural boundaries, they aren’t due to the negative consequences that may occur if people did so. This implies that cultural boundaries are controlled somewhat by the people who physically occupy certain areas and decide who is allowed to enter or exit them, symbolising control. Although the act of migration can be a reflection of centralised control, this shows that physical or cultural barriers that stop migration can also be a reflection of centralised control, despite these boundaries being revoked. Both the Tongva and Chumash were known to use the site of Chatsworth as it was consistent with the pictography present at Burro Flats and Lake Manor plus contained artefacts which were consistent with material that would be found in the Fernandeño region. Studies have indicated that it may not be a Chumash site at all, but a Fernandeño village called Momonga. With this being the case, it demonstrates that there were clear cultural
57 crossovers between not only different Chumash groups but different tribes entirely. The artefact assemblage included “steatite bowl fragments, manos, pestles, blades, choppers, beads (Olivella and steatite), pendants, projectile points made from rhyolite, fused shale, chert, chalcedony and obsidian, flakes, 843kg. of burnt rock . . . and some 8000 faunal specimens” (Knight 2012, 10-11) amongst others. The evidence of faunal specimen was most intriguing as it would indicate that aside from the ceremonial events this may have been a hub of activity that was used as a butchering or hunting site local to the groups that were in the area. If this was the case, then some of the motifs that were displayed on the walls of the site would potentially reflect hunting practices as it was a base for this activity. As the Chumash and Tongva both retained elements of their hunter-gatherer lifestyle, the use of this site as not only ceremonial but also as a base for subsistence-based practices would further exemplify its central importance. Though hunting is not necessarily a reflection of centralised control, its link to one of the primary functions of the site means that it would be inherently entangled with the social fabric of Chumash and the Tongva. Aside from material being similar to the Chumash and Tongva, the paintings were also as in figure it shows that the black and red pigments were used along with the commonly occurring aquatic motif. There is further evidence for cultural links between the Chumash and the Fernandeño through the village of Talopop. Due to its location in SE Ventureño it meant that trade links would be easily created with the Fernandeño people compared to other Chumash villages, though they still participated in interactions with coastal Chumash villages (McLendon and Johnson, 1999).
Examples of short stay sites are thorough when viewing the Chumash, especially rock-shelters. Including the above examples, there were sites such as VEN-69 which was most likely used during periods of seasonal hunting (Moratto 2014, 141). Hunting was an embedded practice within Chumash material culture and arguably held as much value as the ceremonial events which took place. Specialised groups would undertake these tasks as was the case in terms of the ceremonial events and meant that villages were regularly fluctuating in population due to these practices. The site of VEN-195 in the Santa Monica Mountains showed that there were some rock-shelters which were used for both sets of practices. Debitage of projectile points and Olivella beads indicated that there were periods of occupancy linked to hunting/trading but there were several painted motifs at the site too (Larson and Knight 2014, 359). The motifs appear to show hunters and thus linked the ceremonial aspect to what the site was generally used for, signifying the Chumash linking each parts of their material culture together.
58 As is reflected in the shell-bead industry there are distances and calculated times that are not represented in the study such as the gathering of materials to create the motifs that were painted at the sites. This was also exemplified within the ceremonies though and it appears that the Chumash were deeply connected to the overall landscape and knew that the concept of temporality was important to reflect. As Robinson describes “the power experienced at a place was deeply implicated in cultural attitudes toward environments and geologies” (2013, 97). Each aspect of the central gathering was as important as the next: The village elites, the people who gathered the materials, the shamans, the pictograph sites, the quarries that materials were gathered at and the motifs that were representative of both the real and spirt world. They are all connected to each other and equally as important in Chumash material culture and eventually culminated in these central gatherings. Further implications of time are represented when looking at the three pigments that were used in the case studies; white, black and red. The black pigments were likely made using ash tree and oak bark; the white pigments by burning and pulverising shells; and the red pigments were made from red ochre, cinnabar and sometimes octopus, red tuna cactus fruit and sea hare (Bedford et al. 2017, 155-157). which all demonstrate an immense commitment of time and energy in order to procure and create the individual pigments. The circulatory migration patterns that were employed in the gathering of materials to paint cave sites were of equal importance to the ceremony despite the people who potentially gathered some of these materials not being of a status to take part, which shows that the overall power that individuals could experience in these various locations was still under the collective of the centralised elite.
It is difficult to ascertain exactly whether the migratory pattern was voluntary or forced as it appears to be a mix of the two. Although the elite groups were willing to travel to these sites and the village of Huwam where the festivals would be held, the consequences for not attending may have determined their decision when choosing whether or not to. As it became ingrained into the way of the Chumash it could be argued that there was no choice in whether to attend or not as there was no other way. To attend the events was to celebrate an integral event in Chumash culture and withheld the authority which these centralised elite controlled. As will be discussed in the next section of missionisation, the reality of forced migration does not necessarily have to mean that people were physically moved or shackled prior to moving but it can be
59 related to the emotional investments which people have and the manipulation of certain powers into making people decide to do things.
4.3 Missionisation
There are risks that are taken with most acts of voluntary migration. If we think of the shell-bead industry, people risked moving to areas that they could exploit chert from and believed that it would not only last but also propel them into a new era of central dominance. Within the ceremonial events there were less risk strategies involved in this method as it was a series of cyclical events that occurred each year and the Chumash had attached these patterns to the social fabric of their society. The period of Missionisation indicates another clear pattern of risk due to learnt behaviour within the Chumash. As the colonisers first settled in Chumash territory, they brought with them a series of precious metals and glass to this area which enabled Chumash to evolve the shell-bead industry once more. These elements were tactical and would entice the Chumash and due to the learnt behaviour from past examples i.e. when new materials and methods of drill manufacture or bead manufacture took place they were immediately drawn to centralised places, it enabled the colonialists to move a large quantity of Chumash citizens to Missions without much persuasion. In theory this is an example of voluntary migration but as stated previously the series of tactics by the Europeans to displace the Chumash exemplified emotional and physical manipulation therefore it can be noted as being a mixture of both forced and voluntary migration.
There were 7 missions which are regarded as being associated with the Chumash and they are as followed; San Miguel, San Luis Obispo, Purisma Concepcion, Santa Ines, Santa Barbara, San Buenaventura and San Fernando. The population estimates during the Contact Period are not reliable as there is uncertainty to the exact number, ranging between 10,000-20,000 people, but we do know from ethnographic accounts that there were 170 or so villages which existed during the Historic Period ranging from capitals to smaller village sites. A direct calculation would indicate that there were 24 villages to each Mission, but it is documented in some cases that certain villages would have people who were baptised at more than one Mission.
60 Figure 21: Baptism record based on Mission Register Data (Gamble 2008, 72-73) In Gamble’s 2008 book she created a table which shows the number of baptisms which occurred at each village of the Chumash, albeit not including all of the villages which we know existed. This signals that either records for them were not kept or they did not migrate to the Missions, the exact reasons for which are unknown. The table in figure 21 can be used to compare the number of baptisms to population estimates for each village and then compared to the individual case studies which I have used to be analysed - The Channel Islands and also the Ventureno region where the ceremonial events were discussed previously. By doing so it is determined whether the villages suffered from a mass exodus or whether these were small migrations compared to village estimates. This is important as it conveys the sustainability rate of each village that lost people; those which lost a few may have been able to survive whereas the loss of the majority would completely disintegrate the socio-political organisation of the village. In some cases, there is a lack of information available in regards to population estimates for each village but in these cases the number of baptisms can be compared to the distance or the other baptism numbers in order to create a rough estimate of the amount of people from each village that were baptised compared to those that were not. It is also possible that rough estimate sizes for villages can be made through settlements that contained large homes, as ethnographic accounts suggest that the homes could sleep up to 70 people (Gamble 1995, 55). This was not always the case and homes may have populated much less
61 people, but it can give a rough estimate for the maximum population that could have been present at a respective sight.
The Missions were set up by the colonisers in order to provide a landscape for European settlement and agriculture, where they claimed that they were saving the Indians from damnation by baptising them as Christians (Gamble 2008, 41). As these Missions were set up to provide agriculture, the colonisers needed people who would work the land for them and the Chumash were the ready-made tools for the cause, resulting in a complete change in the methods of subsistence that the Chumash had relied on prior to colonialist rule. These accounts can point to the colonialists having an overarching centralised control at these Missions but to what extent? To discuss this both the villages which were recruited to San Buenaventura and San Fernando will be analysed.
The map displaying the case study signifies that the village of Shisholop was the location of Mission San Buenaventura and thus this village was quickly recruited to be involved in the construction of it, becoming one of the central points for Missionisation. The villages directly north of San Buenaventura, A’hwai and S’omis display 60 and 216 baptisms respectively. Population estimates are unavailable but the 216 baptisms from S’omis is the second highest on the list in this area, only behind Shisholop which we know is where the Mission was located. This is reflective in the distance to the Mission as it was only 3 hours 3 minutes from the site, the least of any other village so it could be considered that this village was one of the most affected by missionisation. A’hwai in respect is 6 hours from the Mission but displays more baptisms than the village of Sisxulcuy, which only has 15. Due to the link which A’hwai may have had to S’omis, you’d expect more baptisms to occur here than at Sisxulcuy. This is further reinforced when you consider the link it had to Shisholop which was an important site prior to European contact. This shows a twofold relationship in regard to centralised control whereby the villages that were more closely linked to central powers such as the coastal sites were then the most exploitable villages when the Europeans began their reign of centralised control. If this was the case, then it may have been easier for the movement of a multitude of people at a time and indicates that migration related to the closely linked relationships as people are more likely to believe in a situation if they have ties to it. The villages of Mupu and Sis’a ended up being merged by the Europeans into a ranch during the period of Missionisation. These ranches, separate to the Missions were established as an alternative to the Missions but with the same result, both resulted in oppression and control over the Chumash people with no escape. The Chumash that were not
62 baptised would work as cowherds, cattlemen, irrigators, bird catchers and horsemen amongst other roles (Gamble 2008, 206). Although this slight change may not seem as if it is related to migration, the seasonal occupancies that would take place in agriculture show that subsistence patterns would change and therefore people’s relative movements. At Mupu it is noted that there were at least 20 large grass homes (Menchaca 2010, 4) and so if we calculate a maximum population estimate it would be 1400 although this is highly unlikely due to the overall population of the Chumash being reported as low as 10,000 and there were 170 more villages at least. The baptisms from Mupu are only reported as being 102 which would leave 1300 people to work within the ranches and it’s thought that the Missions for example only had populations of 1000-2000 people, and thus the ranches would probably not have exceeded this as the Missions were the symbol of colonisation. Sis’a and S’eqp’e are fairly consistent with the results from Mupu as they posted baptism totals of 74 and 63. Using the same logic which was applied to A’hwai, Sis’a due to its combination with Mupu in terms of becoming a generalised ranch would indicate that the close links made migration to the Missions by these people of similar levels. ‘Alalhew at 22 baptisms represents that there may have been a challenge in migration from certain areas that were in the deeper canyons, despite its relative distance compared to S’eqp’e for example. The respective calculated times and distances from ‘Alalhew and S’eqp’e indicate that there was a more challenging journey from ‘Alalhew and thus they may not have been exploited by the Europeans to the same extent. The intentional isolation of the people there was representative of their reluctance to move from the village. Looking towards the coast, the villages of Muwu and Humaliwo represent the greatest number of baptisms. As it is documented that Humaliwo baptisms occurred at both San Buenaventura and San Fernando it may be why the relative number at 102 baptisms is lower than would be expected for a coastal capital, but it must also be noted that it was the greatest calculated time from each respective Mission too. A mammoth 15-hour 30 mins journey to the Mission at San Buenaventura represents a significant energy expense for people to undertake but signifies the means that the colonialists were willing to make the Chumash go to in order for them to move into these new centralised locations. Ta’lopop is the second largest journey to San Buenaventura but holds 29 baptisms in comparison to the village of Lalimanux which only had 28 baptisms despite being 7 hours less journey time which could be a representation of population sizes rather than of this variation occurred. Either way, the 29 baptisms of Ta’lopop seems such an insignificant
63 number when you consider the journey time and not only the journey time for the Chumash needs to be considered, but the colonialists also as they were willing to undertake these journeys to recruit as little or as many people as they could. The baptisms for the villages which went to the Mission of San Fernando were on average less than those that moved toward the Mission at San Buenaventura. The calculated times are quite similar in comparison to each other also so it is unclear why this may be the case. A theory could be that as the San Fernando Mission was also going to recruit members from the Tongva region, there was little need for an overarching majority of Chumash to move there and instead could work on ranches which were set up in their respective territories.
There were several examples of the Chumash attempting resistance of these movements with violence. The revolt in 1824 is the primary example but there are others such as at the village of Malpwan. At this village there were prehistoric artefacts that demonstrated that members participated in an attack on Spanish soldiers (Johnson 1978). Acts of violence by many would be considered as a last resort so this was a demonstration of the Chumash being severely unwilling to give in to colonial rule. It would be easy to look at this example and believe that violence only occurred due to colonialists, but there are several examples pre-contact that show that violence was a levelling technique that the Chumash used in extreme situations. At the village of Liyam on the Channel Islands, there was a civil war that occurred as several members of society were disgruntled that a female chief was appointed (Johnson 1999). The Chumash were one of many societies which contained specific gender roles pertaining to tasks and the shift from a male chief to a female chief could possibly be a role that had not occurred in this area before thus causing controversy. As this behaviour was known prior to pre-contact it can be considered as learnt and so would be regularly used by the Chumash in extreme situations as it was part of their material culture/an attribute linked to resistance.
The Chumash that resided in the Channel Islands were treated differently in respect to missionisation. As no Missions were built on the Islands and they were largely ignored compared to the mainland coastal sites when they were eventually transported to the mainland it was much later than their counterparts. As stated previously the risk of moving between islands ended in disaster at times and there is evidence that both boats and lives were lost during some voyages (Rick 2007, 95). This ruthlessness displayed by the colonialists showed that they did not care for the Chumash or respect them on a personal level and that all they wanted was a workforce who would increase their
64 socio-political control in the region. The element of risk which the Chumash were forced to undertake during this migration was a clear violation of their lives. If the colonialists had put a Mission on the island during this period it would have potentially saved hundreds of Chumash lives although they would have still been under colonial control, they would have not had to undertake the same risks and pressure that did occur from migrating to the mainland.
It should also be noted that many of the villages were involved in specific interaction spheres surrounding trade and ceremonial events which were eventually eradicated due to colonisation. The village of Humaliwo was a site where winter solstice events were held but colonial migration forced villagers to work on ranches (Gibson 1975). As the colonialists were not part of Chumash culture they did not partake or understand the events which took place or why they were so important and so the events slowly lessened, coinciding with increased movements to ranches. Another village which was considered to be important in terms of interaction was Soxtonokmu. The village of Matapxaw was one of the smaller sized villages that was included in the interaction sphere, whereby trade and intermarriage was extensive (Robinson 2011). These interaction spheres lessened during the Mission Period as the colonialists introduced a multitude of items that became widespread and thus trade was not as important to the Chumash as it once would have been. Due to this the lesser villages would have found it difficult to survive and often either merged with others or were completely abandoned. An example of this is Sisa which merged with Mupu after colonial contact (Menchaca 2010). The villages merging into a larger area and being renamed as Santa Paula meant that Chumash control had moved into the control of the colonialists and many Chumash were then moved into this area of California.
From this analysis it is clear that the movement to the missions was a stressful and daunting task for many of the Chumash during a period whereby colonialists pinpointed areas of centralisation that could then be used as bases for indoctrination. The reality of the situation was that there were no good outcomes for the Chumash. Whether to migrate or not rested under multiple consequences - if people were not baptised, then they were put to work on ranches. If they chose to resist, then they would be severely punished or killed. Although, if they moved to the Missions, they would be far from the places which they called home, the choice of some Chumash elite to be baptised may have been their way of resistance as they would not see the village that was present before contact disintegrate under colonial rule. Certain Chumash villagers kept to the
65 mountains, such as at the village of Takuy where they were able to maintain minimal contact with colonisers (Nestor 2003). This seems to show that the colonisers were aware of the energy expenses that took place during migration to Missions and were in some cases unwilling to make difficult journeys to mountainous settlements as they did not believe it was worth doing. Though they did not have a direct connection with these people the effects of colonisation in the form of disease was still apparent through the Takuy villager’s interaction with Chumash villages which had maintained colonial contact.
The addition of intermarriage that occurred at Mission sites between different Chumash villages (and also broader territories in general) signified that people were holding onto cultural traditions. It is known that prior to contact the Chumash would intermarry to improve economic and political relations among village groups (Johnson, 150) and people would move between villages when this occurred yet during the contact period they were generally confined to the same area and married after the act of migration. The Chumash people were also marrying people from other tribes. The village of Huililic has been estimated to a population size of 78 during the Mission Period, with 13 exogamous marriages demonstrating that 1/6th of the people here were marrying external to the Chumash (Larson et al. 1994). Marriage may have been the link to the places and identities which they had come from that they needed in order to mentally survive the colonial controls.
4.4 Pre and Post Contact Migration Comparison
It appears from each case study that centralised control appeared to become increasingly present in migratory patterns during the latter periods of Chumash society. The pre-contact migration patterns initially began as temporary movements which represent the highly mobile hunter-gatherer society that first moved into the Channel Islands and Californian mainland before becoming increasingly less mobile as they began to settle in areas that provided them with the raw materials to begin various industries and socio-political organisations that would eventually rule the society from the Middle-Historic Period.
The example of the shell-bead industry shows that permanent migratory movements were dependent upon the exploitation of materials and people yearning for greater autonomy. In the post-contact example of missionisation there were examples of permanent migrations which were demonstrative of a centralised power who had already asserted their dominance, forcing the mass movements of people whom were
66 not of the same association. The importance of the migration patterns being under two different centralised powers cannot be understated. Despite the fact that there would members of Chumash society who were not of the elite and thus would move into areas that the hereditary members wanted to in order to gain greater control, they would do so as they held an affiliation to them and the reluctance would not be as high to the colonialists whom entered Chumash territory and were markedly different in their clothing, skin colour, language, and culture.
There are several similarities between the two periods, such as the fact that there were both decreased centralisations and increased centralisations occurring at the same time with each. During the pre-contact period in the shell-bead industry, the island Chumash would become less central to the interior valleys as they began making their own shell-beads and exploited various resources that would give them increased trade due to their movement and within the post-contact period, missionisation clearly demonstrated that the Chumash were becoming less powerful and the colonialists were increasing in it due to the centralisation of Missions throughout Chumash territory. The tactical placement of the Missions is an example of colonial exploitation as they would be placed in areas that would have the widest reach to Chumash historic villages and thus tighten their socio-political grip.
Another similarity is related to the theory of circular migration. As displayed in 4.2 Ceremonial Events, the Chumash during the pre-contact period would annually visit certain sites due to their religious importance and the ties that they had to the social fabric of the Chumash world. The act of missionisation was also indicative of circular migration patterns as the colonialists would repeatedly go on recruitment drives throughout Chumash territory and attempt to make Chumash join their cause and move to the Missions. Each of these examples demonstrated that centralised control was connected to religious practices and subsequently the migratory patterns of the Chumash.
During the post-contact period the migratory patterns of the people are rarely temporary, and are mostly always linked to those of permanency, being at Missions or at the ranches. There was a large decrease in the autonomy of the Chumash by this period as subsistence patterns changed to agriculture rather than hunting and gathering. There was also no need to gather the materials which would be used for the shell-bead industry as the colonialists introduced metals and glass that were then used for these
67 purposes, so they did not need to think about moving to potential new sites to procure raw materials. This shows that it was not only movements that were reflective of centralised control, but it is also the restriction of any potential movements that are which is a main difference between pre and post-contact Chumash.
This comparison between pre and post-contact Chumash displays that migration is an increasingly adaptable and at times conflicting concept. The overarching analysis that can be made following this is that the control of migration seems to always be from a position of central control, whether through the Chumash elite or the colonialists. As the people of Chumash society put their belief into the Chumash elites, the elites of Chumash society put their belief at times into colonial rule and subsequently led to their unfortunate demise.
68 Chapter 5
Conclusion
5.1 Present Day Migration
During the period of missionisation the Chumash were forced to migrate to areas that intended to force a new cultural identity and oppress them, a pattern which continues in human behaviour to the present day. Perhaps the largest scale examples of forced migration in modern history are the appearances of concentration camps in Europe during WW2 and the current Middle East crises. An extreme example can be seen in WW2 when masses of people were moved to concentration camps there was a similar representation of emotional manipulation from the Nazis who told those that were going to the camps that there was nothing to be worried about and it was portrayed as a summer camp. Although the Missions were not conveyed as summer camps, they were similarly built upon the foundation of emotional manipulation and forced migration, yet they appear to be studied in a different manner. If you were to visit a concentration camp in the current climate the narrative is correctly shown as the Nazis committing atrocious deeds and the people who were moved to these places were the victims, yet the Missions in California do not appear to be seen in similar vein. The indigenous people of California and the wider Americas are still an incredibly oppressed group and the influence of post-contact control is still manifested throughout society. In regard to the Missions, they are not seen as places which the Chumash were stripped of all cultural identity and of who they were, but they are seen as a new dawn in American history and by all regards are celebrated which is a pattern of thinking that needs to be changed. In regard to the Middle East crises, the forced migration which is currently taking place concerns people that are escaping conflict and systematic oppression – an option which the Chumash may have taken during the missionisation period which there are some sources of evidence for. Piguet notes that in dangerous climates “refugees are simply compelled to leave their home in hurry and move toward the first safe haven they encounter” (2017, 21). Each of these examples underlies an integral belief system that is attached to human behaviour and the way that they choose to act on certain situations which is vital in understanding to the movements of people. The complexity attached to modern migration issues are not new, as displayed in this study the Chumash people had
69 a strong relationship to several migratory patterns including permanent, temporary, forced and voluntary. These four types of migration were all reflective of centralised control in Chumash culture and colonial rule which followed.
5.2 Concluding remarks
By viewing three different aspects that were crucial to the history of the Chumash; the shell-bead industry, ceremonial events and missionisation, the following conclusions can be made;
1. The shell-bead industry reflects migration which is based upon voluntary permanent movements in order to exploit specific resources which would allow the people of areas such as the Channel Islands or the Santa Ynez Valley to increase autonomy and centralisation but for the sole purpose of bettering themselves. Relating to modernity this can be comparative to myself in my movement from the UK to the Netherlands to undertake a master’s degree. It was a voluntary choice which I made in order to better myself and further my knowledge. 2. Ceremonial events symbolise temporary movements which are integral to the social fabric of society. Although they were voluntary movements, the risk that the elites would take by not taking part (The events brought together communities and were the link between the physical and spirit world) showed that there were elements of forcibility as there may have been consequences if they did not move. It is linked to centralised control as the only people that were allowed to take part in these events were those at the top of Chumash socio-political organisation. 3. Missionisation is reflective of permanent forced migration patterns that contain elements of voluntary actions. These voluntary actions however are making the best out of a variety of bad choices hence the reason they would remain under the bracket of forced migration as no matter what the Chumash did, they would be oppressed by the Europeans who had invaded their territory. The forced movement of Chumash from their villages to specified Missions and ranches that were controlled by colonialists showed that there was a decentralisation in Chumash culture and a centralisation in colonial control.
By using methodology such as the Naismith rule to calculate times that the Chumash would have taken in each of these scenarios, it was possible to calculate the varying energy expenses that would have been taken and why people were willing to move;
70 1. In the shell-bead industry it was shown that moving to specific areas from the Middle-Late Period dramatically decreased potential distances and therefore times that it would have taken to exploit certain materials. 2. In regard to ceremonial events it was shown that despite some villages being more than a ½ day round trip from the respective ceremony sites, the energy expense was worth it due to its importance in Chumash society. 3. The energy expenses involved in Missionisation reflected the uncaring attitude of colonialists to the Chumash people as there were cases of villages being more than a ½ days distance from the Mission that they were baptised at.
The study is limited in respect to some literature restraints and also uncertainty in some archaeological data that has been found at sites. There is evidence which shows that some sites were repeatedly occupied, but excavation has found them in different areas within close proximity that has then grouped them together. It is possible that due to a full site excavation not taking place in some cases and only test trenches or pits occurring, some data may have been missed which hints at prolonged occupancy rather than movement to other areas, and vice versa. Despite this, the archaeological material that is present signifies that the processes which have been described above were occurring during the periods that have been mentioned. The study also does not reflect upon environmental conditions as a reasoning for migratory patterns as they were not relevant to the specific case studies in question. Although there are a variety of implications for environmental fluctuations throughout Chumash history that impacted subsistence patterns, it is noted by Dartt-Newton and Erlandson that “the Chumash survived several millennia of cyclical environmental variations under conditions of both high population and intricate socio-political structures”(2006, 420) implying that circumstances that were reviewed in this study were not particularly effected by environmental conditions.
Though there is the study mentioned in Chapter 1 which looked at energy expense in Chumash society relating to ceremonial sites in a different territory, to my knowledge there is not any other study which views migratory patterns in the Chumash region respective to centralised control. This research provides a predominant view as to how migration is a complex concept which symbolised in many different mannerisms. By using modern concepts such as circular migration, mass migration, forced migration, and voluntary migration, we are able to succinctly summarise why and how people in the past decided or were pushed into moving to areas. Further study of this area may look
71 toward viewing how pre and post-contact migratory patterns manifest themselves within modern day Californian society and the Chumash people who remain. By viewing how indigenous people are treated in American society (still under intense oppression) in comparison to how migrants are treated in society may implicate how centralised control can be a benefit to migrants in the modern day but also a negative towards people who are living with the repercussions of the migratory patterns of the past.
72 Abstract
The Chumash are an indigenous group who formed a complex material culture around 8,000 BP when they began to permanently settle. They settled in SW California and created a material culture which revolved around a shell-bead industry and specific ceremonial practices which were governed by a strict socio-political order that was in place until colonialists arrived in the 1700s. From the Early Period (12,000 BP) to the Mission Period (200 BP) the sociopolitical organisation changed dramatically, but how did this happen? This study represents how migratory patterns were crucial in how material culture changed for the Chumash within this timespan. Furthermore, this study examines the migratory patterns of the Chumash through three case studies – The shell-bead industry, ceremonial events and missionisation. The shell-bead industry case study demonstrates how the Chumash on the mainland moved to certain areas in the latter periods in order to gain further autonomy over the industry which was centrally governed by the Chumash on the Channel Islands. Further examination looks at several sites on the Channel Islands which also demonstrated movements, but in those cases was shown as being a motive to increase production. Ceremonial events display how the Chumash temporarily moved into areas for specific reasons and gives another angle to the complex concept of migration which contains many different avenues such as forced, voluntary, permanent and temporary. Missionisation shows how colonial contact forced the Chumash into moving from their villages to specific areas which the colonisers created such as Missions and ranches. The periods of pre and post-contact demonstrate two different types of centralised control: The Chumash elite and the Spanish colonisers. These two groups are important to distinguish during discussion as they reflect differing ideals and thus migratory methods. Using Naismith’s rule of walking, energy expenditures were calculated for each case study and therefore greater insight can be made into exactly why or how people were willing to undertake these movements. Applying this rule using GIS, maps were made of the respective case studies that visually represent the distances that the Chumash voluntarily or forcibly made. Additionally, the theme of centralised control is viewed alongside migratory patterns to examine if migration is reflective of it or not. By investigating each of these case studies an
73 overview of differing migratory patterns that the Chumash undertook can be compared with each other and a clear conclusion can be drawn that they were all linked to centralised control. By using this case study, further research can be made into other past indigenous groups and their retrospective movements pre and post-contact. The brief comparison in the conclusion to other historical sites and to modern day migration also demonstrates that these types of studies can be used when discussing present issues, whereby we can learn from the past and how we choose to study and participate in migration movements.
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90 Appendices
Archaeological Sites
Site (A-Z) Reference ID Description Date References
Large habitation site, Cachuma Lake, Resource bifaces and artefacts Management Plan: SBA-477 SBA-477 found which 4000-1000BP Environmental, Impact associated with Statement 2010, 46 habitation Cachuma Lake, Resource Large midden - shell Management Plan: SBA-485 SBA-485 material, house pit 4000-1000BP Environmental, Impact and chert flakes Statement 2010, 46 272 Olivella shell Brandoff and Reeves 2014, SBA-823 Snihuaj Late Period beads found here 44-46 532 Olivella shell beads found here, Late-Mission Brandoff and Reeves 2014, SBA-1309 Najalayegua debate over Period 44-46 production and non-production 144 Olivella shell beads and 47 Middle-Late Brandoff and Reeves 2014, SBA-2358 Snojoso serpentine beads Period 44-46 found here No Olivella shell but there were other Brandoff and Reeves 2014, SBA-809 Aquitsum species which - 44-46 determined possible bead making Over 900 shell and Middle-Late Brandoff and Reeves 2014, SBA-485 Elijman stone beads primarily Period 44-46 Olivella Cemetery found here Late-Historic Brandoff and Reeves 2014, SBA-167 Soxtonokmu and 383 shell beads Period 44-46 were discovered
91 347 shell beads found and 21 pieces of Brandoff and Reeves 2014, SBA-3404 Xonxonata Olivella shell debitage Late Period 44-46 which alludes to production here
Thought to be major settlement where microdrills were SLO-44 SLO-44 Late Period Blake 2010, 60 found (21) - shows migration/exchange of values
A village site which was habited by the Canalino Chumash - SBA-73 SBA-73 there were Olivella 2000-500BP Erlandson et al., 2006, 192 shell beads and shell debitage found dating to a wide range
Large village site which is in close proximity to SBA-73, these overlapping Rick and Erlandson, 2012, SBA-72 SBA-72 villages were 2000-500BP 111 evidence of a sustained occupation of the Chumash people Associated with SBA-71 SBA-71 2000-500BP Rick and Erlandson, 2012, villages SBA-72/73 111 Pitas Point site which is dated by Olivella beads which are at VEN-27 Pitas Point 1000-500BP Gamble 1983, 104 the site and where they were manufactured also
92 A historic village which contained a remarkably well preserved sweatlodge which was SBA-78 Mikiw constructed in the Historic Period Gamble 2008, 134 early 1700s and was later destroyed - said to have been one of the largest vilages during this period
Storage pits and house floors found at homes in this historic SBA-205 village site but also 1000-200BP Gamble 2008, 136 recorded to being from the Late period also
Abundance of historic artefacts were found SBA-46 Helo at house floors in the Historic Period Gamble 2008, 147 village site of Helo here
A late period rock shelter which was probably used during periods of seasonal hunting by the VEN-69 VEN-69 Chumash people Late Period Moratto 2014, 141 which indicates that aside from their permanent residency spots they also had temporary spaces
Chumash seasonal hunting and butchering site - VEN-39 VEN-39 similar to Ven-69 in 5000BP-200BP UCLA, 2003, 2 its capacity as temporary space of habitation
93 A cave which is home to many rock paintings which were used for ceremonial Late-Historic VEN-151 VEN-151 Knight 2017 events such as the Period solstice - important for the gatherings of many smaller villages
A site at Canterbury Lake shore which contained a range of Canterbury artefacts such as food VEN-179 Historic Period Corbin 1983, 118 Lake items, hunting, fishing and more - probably traded with many rockshelter camps
Medea Creek - an inland site where a huge cemetery was found of around 400 individuals and 27000 Late-Historic LAN-243 Medea Creek Green 2001, 321 artefacts - suggested Period to be part of the territory which contained Malibu as its capital
Glass beads found dating to historic period but also lithic VEN-110 VEN-110 1200-200BP Greenwood et al, 1986 and bead making manufacture found at site, plus subsistence
Highly saturated midden archaeologically VEN-1029 VEN-1029 which shows 2000-500BP Roman (date unknown) extensive sustained occupation including shell material
94 Talepop - historic beads found as well as food manufacturing LAN-229 Talepop process found at this 900-200BP Glassow et al 1982 village site which indicated that it was important in terms of this use A site which contained phases which concerned lithic manufacture and was a workshop Ring Brothers Early-Late Sapwi-pre specialist site - large King 2002, 10-11 Site Period notched points in its early form and possibly was then the historic village of Sapwi
A hunting and ceremonial site which contained paintings - there was debitage Larson and Knight 2014, VEN-195 VEN-195 800-200BP that gave evidence for 359 manufacturing of projectile points plus Olivella beads found
a site which is considered to be very valuable to the LAN-413 LAN-413 ceremonial events of Historic Period Corbin 1983 the Chumash people and interaction with other social groups
A site which spanned an incredible 7000 years of occupation, but it is debated LAN-62 LAN-62 whether this is 7000-200BP Garraty et al, 2016 consistent or not - shell beads, projectiles, and glass beads
95 Some of the earliest evidence for mainland shell bead Olivella - possibly VEN-1 VEN-1 8000-7000BP Dallas Jr 2004, 162 indicating early use of tomol and people moving from island to mainland? Early evidence for the procurement of obsidian which was rare at inland sites, VEN-852 VEN-852 why would these Middle Period Roman 2019 people have access or more than other areas of the Chumash? Early evidence for the procurement of obsidian which was rare at inland sites, Early-Middle VEN-853 VEN-853 why would these Roman 2019 Period people have access or more than other areas of the Chumash? A series of sites which are considered to be used by the same population - both permanent and Oak Park Oak Park 3000-200BP Moratto 2014, 142 temporary settlements - at 1500 BP there was a sociological change in activity
Although this is historically said to be a village of the Fernandeño called Momonga, it is also 3000BP - 200 LAN-357 LAN-357 Knight 2018 the site of a BP rockshelter which is traditionally painted in Chumash style format
Channel Island Sites
96 Found evidence of SMI-261 Daisy Cave tool making at this 11500BP Braje et al, 2010 site - Daisy Cave Cardwell Bluffs Bifaces found at this (SMI-678, site - used as Cardwell Bluffs 12000-11500BP Braje et al, 2010 SMI-679, and workshops/habitation SMI-680) sites Santa Rosa Stemmed points Island (SRI-707 SRI-707 12000-11500BP Braje et al, 2010 found at this site and SRI-510) Artefacts of stone, Daisy Cave Daisy Cave bone, shell and plant 10000-8600BP Braje et al, 2010 (SMI-261) material found Seal Cave (SMI-604) Seal Cave ~10200BP Braje et al, 2010 (SMI-522) Shell remains found - SMI-606 SMI-606 seem to be short stay 10000-8500BP Braje et al, 2010 site Sustained occupation SMI-522 SMI-522 and Olivella type 10000-8500BP Braje et al, 2010 beads and bifaces Sustained occupation SMI-608 SMI-608 and Olivella type 10000-8500BP Braje et al, 2010 beads and bifaces Bifaces and projectile SMI-507 SMI-507 points - shell material 9000BP Braje et al, 2010 also Olivella type beads SMI-603 SMI-603 8400-7500BP Braje et al, 2010 found Shell midden SCRI-109 SCRI-109 providing projectile 8400BP Braje et al, 2010 points 79 burials and shells placed over some of them - Olivella type SRI-3 Tecolote Point 7600-7400BP Braje et al, 2010 beads also - cemetery implies permanent residency primary village site - red abalone shell - El Montón El Montón digging sticks and 6300-5300BP Braje et al, 2010 plant food artefact- mortuary goods -
97 Sea mammal bones and digging sticks Punta Arena Punta Arena (hunting and 6300-5300BP Braje et al, 2010 gathering tools) - secondary village site Many mortar and pestle manufacturing SMI-503 and SMI-503 and material and artefacts 2700-2300BP Braje et al, 2010 504 504 found here showing it's rise in importance Beads and ornaments SCRI-474 SCRI-474 1000-800BP Braje et al, 2010 found with burials Olivella beads and microblades manufacturing material found at SCRI191/257 Christy Beach 1000-800BP Braje et al, 2010 these sites including burials - does not seem to be occupied between 800-650BP large collection of Prisoners SCRI-240 microblade material 1000-800BP Braje et al, 2010 Harbour found here China Harbour Diagnosed as a quarry SCRI-93 1000BP Braje et al, 2010 Quarry site for microblades microblades and cores which show Prisoners SCRI-240 transition from 800-650BP Braje et al, 2010 Harbour trapezoid to triangular faunal remains and artefacts relating to SCRI-240 Xaxas feasting - village of Historic Period Braje et al, 2010 Xaxas - elite people were occupants here Radiocarbon dating links this site to SCRI Christy 191 in terms of SCRI-236 Historic Period Braje et al, 2010 Beach-Post distance (possibly moved from 191 after European contact)
98 Radiocarbon dating links these two sites in terms of SCRI-195 overlapping and SCRI-195 Historic Period Braje et al, 2010 -SCRI-32 distance (possibly moved to the other site after European contact)
All thought to be related to the village of L'akayamu - after SCRI-328, 329 Historic/Mission L'akayamu European contact the Braje et al, 2010 and 330 Period villages may have formed into one village
Village of Ch'oloshush which was a SCRI-236 Ch'oloshush prominent village in Historic Period Braje et al, 2010 terms of the shell bead industry Village of Shawa which was prominent SCRI-192 Shawa Historic Period Braje et al, 2010 in terms of the shell bead industry
Historic Villages
Site (A-Z) Reference ID Description Date References
Voluntary movement to this area and began First Occupied Humaliwo Humaliwo-Pre Gibson, 1975 trade/establishing 800-1000 BC bead industry
99 Colonial migration into village, 'forced' to work on ranches / winter solstice - people came Baptisms AD Humaliwo Humaliwo-Post Gibson, 1975 to host villages for 1785 to 1816 these important ceremonial occasions from a long distance
Link between coastal Chumash in US Environment Talepop Talepop Chumash villages and area c.7000BP Agency, 1977 Gabrielino to the East
Chumash exploited A.D. 1080 – A.D. The Malibu Sumo Sumo-Pre area for food potential 1200 Post, 2013 - marine and land
AD1542 First Area renamed Point Contact - Malibu City, Sumo Sumo-Post Dume with arrival of AD1776 2015 Spanish settlement
Abundance of artefacts Beads dated AD discovered indicate 1782 > and AD King, C and Loxostoxni Loxostoxni-Post historic village / 1804/05 Parsons, J, 2011 evidence of recruitment for missionisation missions ended
Historic beads found at Historic Period King, C and Sumuwawa Sumuwawa-Post site thought to be this c. 1700-1800 Parsons, J, 2011 village -
Remains found at this A.D. 610 +/−100 site date to AD~610 +/- and Historic National Park Lisiqshi Lisiqshi 100 and Baptisms in settlement in Service 2016 1809 1800s Alqilkowi - - - -
Conflict in this village Chacon, R J and caused abandonment Muwu Muwu-Post c. Late 1700s Mendoza R G, of another village - 2007 Shisholop
100 Thought that site was abandoned but there is c. AD 1300 area Simo'mo Simo'mo-Pre evidence for Johnson, J, 1991 abandoned inter-community migration
Evidence that the Glassow, M A village was possibly Simo'mo Simo'mo-Post c. AD1800 and Snethkamp, 'terminated' during P E, 1982 Mission Period
Smaller village of around 30 or so people Glassow, M A Hipuk Hipuk-Post when contacted - part c. AD 1770 and Snethkamp, of Humawilo P E, 1982 Interaction Sphere
Saptuhuy - - - - Villagers were baptised McLendon, S Sapue/Sapwi Sapue-Post at Mission San c. Late 1700s and Johnson, J Buenaventura R, 1999
Mentioned in Literature as being at Ventura Lalimanuc Lalimanuc-Post the base of Conejo AD 1776 Museum, 2019 Grade where Spanish first met Chumash
Believed to be at site Greenwood, R S, of CA-Ven-110 Foster, J M and Kayiwis Kayiwis-Pre (Calleguas Creek) - 1230-960 BP Romani, G R, radiocarbon 1986 dates/burials
Rancho Simi and Historic Period Los Angeles Rancho El Conejo were Kayiwis Kayiwis-Post c. AD District Corps of set up in area during 1700-1800 Engineers, 1976 Historic Period
Evidence of Chumash here prior to Spanish Sumpasi Sumpasi-Pre - - arrival but not clear of date
In Historic Period, McLendon, S Chumash were Sumpasi Sumpasi-Post - and Johnson, J missionised at San R, 1999 Buenaventura
101 San Fernando Mission Simiyi Simiyi-Post AD 1797 Corbett 2012 recruited villagers
Site named as VEN-629 - considered a ritual Simiyi Simiyi-Pre site that has been Late Period Roman, 2017 dated to the Late Period
Largest of three settlements in Simi Ta'apu Ta'apu-Pre - Appleton, 2009 Valley (area of central importance here?)
Chief of village baptised at San Ta'apu Ta'apu-Post c. AD 1800 Appleton, 2009 Fernando during Mission Period
A central village for the winter solstice, related to the Burro Flats cave Middle - Hu'wam Hu'wam-Pre painting - area of Historic Period Knight 2012 interaction between occupation Fernandeno, and the Tataviam
Named Camulos area and many of these Historic Period Beeler, M S and Kamalus Kamalus-Post people were most c.1700-1800 Klar, K A, 1977 likely relocated during missionisation
Kimišax - - - -
Ethnographic studies AD 1769-1823 reveal that this village USACE Los Kastu Kastu-Post missions was within the lower Angeles, 2012 established Santa Clara Valley
Maxaxal - - - -
102 Ethnographic observations give extensive information relating to missionisation of this village and certain Historic/Mission King, C and Seqpe Seqpe-Post members including Period c. Milliken, R, 2004 knowledge of member 1700-1800 of other villages showing that people moved between villages in terms of marriage
Also named as Alelhue - a young male Chacon, R J and described as being a Alalhew Alalhew-Post AD 1782 Mendoza R G, convert - village was 2007 between Mupu and Seqpe
Area of Santa Clara River contacted in AD1769 by Spanish, King, C and Kačantuk Kačantuk-Post AD1769-1800 this area was Milliken, R, 2004 missionised not long after this date
Area of Santa Clara River contacted in AD1769 by Spanish, King, C and Sa'qtikoy Sa'qtikoy-Post AD1769-1800 this area was Milliken, R, 2004 missionised not long after this date
Area of Santa Clara River contacted in AD1769 by Spanish, King, C and Canaputegon Canaputegon-Post AD1769-1800 this area was Milliken, R, 2004 missionised not long after this date Data of artefacts indicates that the site Glassow, M A Talepop Talepop-Pre was probably occupied AD900-1800 and Snethkamp, in Middle and Historic P E, 1982 Period
103 Missionised at San Glassow, M A Fernando during the Talepop Talepop-Post AD1700-1800 and Snethkamp, Historic Period, 27 P E, 1982 individuals
Area of Santa Clara River contacted in AD1769 by Spanish, this area was missionised not long King, C and Ixša Ixša AD1769-1800 after this date - Village Milliken, R, 2004 was possibly in contact with the Islands pre-contact through trade
Area of Santa Clara River contacted in AD1769 by Spanish, King, C and Sisxulcuy Sisxulcuy AD1769-1800 this area was Milliken, R, 2004 missionised not long after this date Alcui - - - - Document mentioning a road that was created which ran through this village Historic Period Sulukukiy Sulukukiy-Post DeCorse 2019 from San AD 1782 Buenaventura (Mission) to Somis (Chumash Village)
Village noted as a King, C and Somis Somis-Post village of nativity Mission Period Milliken, R, 2004 during Mission Period
Unknown when migrated to this region Mupu Mupu-Pre but presence AD 1000-1500 Menchaca 2010 estimated at around AD1000-1500
104 Evidence that the village merged with Sisa after arrival of Spanish Missions in Mupu Mupu-Post Mission Period and Mission Period Menchaca 2010 was renamed as Santa Paula area, Chumash from other villages migrated here
Burials found here during excavations in National Park Sisa Sisa-Pre A.D.700-1769 the 1970s which dated Service 2016 to Late Period
Evidence that the village merged with Mupu after arrival of Spanish Missions in Sisa Sisa-Post Mission Period and Mission Period was renamed as Santa Paula area, Chumash from other villages migrated here Menchaca 2010 Evidence from beads/burials/artefacts National Park A'hwai A'hwai that this was occupied Historic Period Service 1995 during the Historic Period
30 houses counted by Shisholop South Shisholop-Post Historic Period Gamble 2008 those of the mission
Site of a Mission - San Construction began in San San Buenaventura-Pos 1782, many villages Historic Period Buenaventura Buenaventura t were missionised at Mission 2019 this Church
105 Evidence of Olivella beads are found in the Ventura area where this site would have Middle Period Micqanaqan Micqanaqan-Pre been during the Fortier 2009 -Historic Period Middle Period associated to the Chumash and was occupied until Contact
This village was populated by those of the Santa Cruz Island, showing that the Bornemann, E Kamexmey Kamexmey-Post Missions attracted not Historic Period and Gamble, L just people from the 2019 mountains and valleys - they continued pre-contact traditions
A Swaxil villager that had been baptised McLendon, S Quyuy Quyuy-Post founded a small Mission Period and Johnson, J community here in the R, 1999 Mission Period
Also known as Pitas Point - Occupied during Middle and Late Misnagua Misnagua-Pre AD 1000-1550 Gamble 1983 Period - beads and whalebone found at site
Cwayik - - - -
Evidence that the village here may not have been as decimated by disease Matilha Matilha-Post Mission Period Gamble 2008 as other villages which were nearer the coastline - 241 baptisms registered
106 Suku - - - -
Argued in this paper that there were multiple chiefs in this Pre and during Larson et al. Mišopšno Mišopšno village and they were Mission Period 1994 vital to the food distribution to Chumash people
Suggestion that it was a burnt village which pre-Mission Qoloq Qoloq showed evidence of Gamble 2008 Period violence prior to European contact
Kašomšomoy - - - -
Part of the Soxtonokmu network which included a Matapxaw Matapxaw multitude of villages Historic Period Robinson 2011 with this Soxtonokmu as the capital - pictograph area
Evidence in Mission records state that a Tsnojotso Tsnojotso-Post native of this village is Mission Period Brown 1967 now living at Helo - movement
Saqaya - - - -
Population estimate during Mission period was 78 with 13 Larson et al Wililik Huililic exogamous marriages Mission Period 1994 which showed interlinks with other villages
Miisip - - - -
107 Suggestion that it was a burnt village which pre-Mission Mismatuk Mismatuk showed evidence of Gamble 2008 Period violence prior to European contact
Late Period ceramic 'Olla' discovered at village and dated to Santa Barbara Siwaya Siwaya pre-Contact period - AD1300 - 1769 Historical made on Island which Museum 2019 shows extensive trade links
Noted as being a village which was Snihuax Snihuax Mission Period Hodge 2003 connected to the Santa Barbara Mission
Snaxayaliwiš - - - -
Suggestion that it was a burnt village which pre-Mission Xanayam Xanayam showed evidence of Gamble 2008 Period violence prior to European contact
A village near Santa Barbara mission which is considered as Kaswa Kaswa relatively 'important' Mission Period Applegate 1974 during the Mission period due to being in close vicinity of it
Salawa - - - -
108 Also known as Syujtun, the area excavated brought up artefacts dated to the prehistoric period which indicates hunter gatherers moved Prehistoric - National Park Syuxtun Syuxtun through area - it is also Mission Period Service 2016 known as Burnt Mound which was Missionised by Spanish - prior to this was one of largest Chumash Villages
Mission which was founded in 1786 and Santa Barbara Santa Barbara Santa Barbara missionised many Mission Period 2019 Chumash villages in the area
Evidence during Mission Period of seasonal migration - low population in Kaštiq Kaštiq Mission Period Hill 2017 summer - taking advantage of subsistence - indicative of prior movements?
Tacikoho - - - - Cipowhi - - - - Kapelušnac - - - -
The Chumash in this area had minimal Takuy Takuy contact with colonisers Mission Period Nestor 2003 and kept themselves to the mountain regions
109 Minimal baptisms from this settlement and King, C and Matapjuelejuel Matapjuelejuel occupied in late Mission Period Milliken, R, 2004 Mission Period by colonisers
Village was discovered by colonisers with no people - were they in King, C and Taslipun Taslipun Mission Period seasonal migration? - Milliken, R, 2004 area was hostile toward colonisers
Few baptisms were recorded for village, noted that there were Horne and protohistoric sites Ciwikon Ciwikon Mission Period McFarland (Date around area and that Unknown) ritual ceremonies were held at local rock art sites
Noted as a site where wells were used in periods of drought - Pre-Mission had been in contact Period and Kuyam Kuyam Gamble 2008 with other indigenous discovered in communities other Mission Period than Chumash prior to European contact
Sxenen - - - -
Prehistoric artefacts found in the vicinity of this village and members of this village Malpwan Malpwan Mission Period Johnson 1978 participated in an attack on Spanish soldiers during the Mission Period
Lisahux - - - -
110 Guelecme - - - -
Indicated that this was in the vicinity of where Pre-Mission Nanawani Nanawani-Pre Smugglers Cove site Kennett 2005 Period was integral to the shell industry
60 people baptised from this village at Nanawani Nanawani-Post Mission Period Kennett 2005 both San Buenaventura and Santa Barbara
Indicated that this was in the vicinity of the Pre-Mission Swaxil Swaxil-Pre site Scorpions Kennett 2005 Period Anchorage - integral to shell industry
250 baptisms - largest Swaxil Swaxil-Post from the Channel Mission Period Kennett 2005 Islands
Regularly exploited for local chert and microblade production prior to the Mission Pre-Mission Lu'upš Lu'upsh period but was Arnold 1990 Period abandoned due to introduction of glass beads and steel needles
Dated to the Early Historic Period where it was occupied steadily increasing until Early Historic - Nimatlala Nimatlala Sutton 2014 the Mission period Mission Period where there was a steep decline due to disease
Kahas - - - -
111 Third largest number of baptisms - this was considered capital of Santa Cruz Islands and there were more intermarriages here and bigger social Liyam Liyam political pull than Mission Period Johnson 1999 anywhere else - civil war prior to Mission Period according to folklore as there were disgruntled members concerning a female chief
Late and Historic Period site which contained shell working assemblages and marine resources - Late and Shawa Shawa Graesch 2004 intense bead making Historic Period activity and elites attracted for the resources rather than prime residency area
Chief of town baptised in Mission Period but Mašcal Mašcal Mission Period Johnson 1999 died at sea while crossing to mainland
No mission period artefacts, in area which Pre-Mission Lalale Lalale was site of Fry's Harbor Kennett 2005 Period - abandoned prior to missions most likely
Geluascuy - - - - Talakayamu - - - -
112 Middle to Historic Period occupation where incredible Cološiš Cološiš artefacts of Asphaltum AD700-1700 Arnold 1993 were discovered that all helped with Chumash technology
71 Baptisms at this location, and 4 intermarriages with different villages - Middle-Mission Xicwin Hichimin Kennett 2005 Olivella beads and Period microblades discovered prior to Mission period
Largest town on Santa Rosa Island - population of 120 in Middle - Qšiqšiw Qšiqšiw Johnson 1999 1804 - evidence of Mission Period Middle period occupation Glass trade beads were found in this area Historic/Mission Nilalhuyu Nilalhuyu relating to Historic Period c. Johnson 1999 Period and a few 1700-1800 baptisms
No chiefs but many intermarriage links including to different islands and the Middle - Silimihi Silimihi Kennett 2005 mainland - also areas Mission Period in the vicinity link to Middle/Late Period archaeology
2 baptisms recorded and village was Nawani Nawani decimated during a Mission Period Johnson 1999 measles outbreak in 1806
113 Dated to Historic Period and 10 baptisms Historic to Nyakla Nyakla Kennett 2005 were recorded in the Mission Period Mission Period
Nemxelxel - - - -
Largest town of San Miguel and location of various microblades Late-Mission Tuqan Tuqan Kennett 2005 and late period beads Period were found here - 34 baptisms
Late prehistoric artefacts found in this area and a single household was Prehistoric-Miss Niwoyomi Niwoyomi Kennett 2005 baptised/in this area ion Period during the mission period - people that were outcast of Tuqan?
Large settlement area which was local to incredible shell midden deposits - thought to have been a great area of protection and Middle - Helo' Helo' people sacrificed being Braje et al. 2014 Mission Period mobile to be 'safe' - half of baptisms in 1803, less intensive than many other interactions with colonisers/Chumash
102 baptisms recorded during the Mission Period - considered Heliyik Heliyek Mission Period Gamble 2008 capital where feasts and festivals may have been attended
114 Near settlement of Heliyek and villagers King, C and Anacbuc Anacbuc possibly moved Mission Period Milliken, R, 2004 between the two for certain events
One of largest Historic-Mission period villages in this area and Historic/Mission Kuyamu Kuyamu many artefacts Period c. Grant 1965 including canoe 1700-1800 material was found here
One of the largest coastal towns and was very important in trade Historic/Mission system of the channel Mikiw Mikiw Period c. Haas 2013 island bead industry 1700-1800 during the period during and prior to Mission Period
Sanpilil - - - -
Over 900 shell beads found during excavations that date Middle-Historic Brandoff and Elijman Elijman to Middle-Late Period Period Reeves 2014 showing trade with Islands.
56 Baptisms were Wišap Wišap recorded from this Mission Period Gamble 2008 village
111 baptisms recorded Stuk Stuk from 25 households Mission Period Gamble 2008 located at this village
Aqicum - - - -
115 Extensive trade and marital links to the mainland and island Chumash villages - one of largest in this Historic-Mission Soxtonokmu' Soxtonokmu' Haas 2013 territory - many Period inhabitants had left to join coastal missions when colonisers arrived at the town
5 children from this village baptised at Santa Ines including Hawamiw Hawamiw those from Kalawashaq Mission Period Haas 2013 and others - a chief also attended at this mission ceremony
Asaka - - - - Guyam - - - - 98 baptisms from 16 Haley and Xonxonata' Xonxonata homes during the Mission Period Wilcoxon 2004 Mission Period
Mission of Santa Ines that was area of AD1804 Santa Ines Santa Ines Santa Ines missionisation for construction Mission Chumash villages in began the vicinity
Noted as area with rich agricultural land and thus Santa Ines mission was constructed near Alaxulapu 'Alaxulapu the village meaning Mission Period Haas 2013 that colonisers could take advantage of land and also missionise the Chumash
116 Village first discovered on the expedition of Department of Teqepsh Teqepsh Santa Ines Mission; Mission Period Water woman baptised Resources 1990 during this expedition
Colonisers arrived at town and found that many inhabitants were at fiesta and in Historic-Mission Kalawashaq Kalawashaq Haas 2013 mountains foraging Period (indicating the movements of people from settled areas)
Small village - not Axwin Axwin much more Mission Period - information Qsil - - - - Archaeological site - Taxiwax Taxiwax 400 people may have Unknown Little 1984 located here Sišuci - - - - This village was State Lands Pre-Mission Tuxmu Tuxmu abandoned prior to the Commission Period contact period 1987
186 baptisms from 52 homes, 300 population at time of contact, site Late-Mission Onomyo Onomyo Gamble 2008 was recorded as Late Period Period up to Mission Period
111 baptisms recorded and dated to the Historic-Mission Kaštayit Kaštayit Historic to Mission Little 1984 Period Period, burials discovered here also
Tehaja - - - -
117 prehistoric village site - burials discovered here Pre-Mission Lišil Lišil Little 1984 but no evidence for Period Mission data
Anawpe - - - -
Noted as a historic Western LNG village which was a Itiyaqs Itiyaqs Historic Period Terminal central hub of activity Associates, 1978 in an inland region
Anaxuwi - - - - Sahucu - - - - Awašlayik - - - - Kasmali - - - - Lopse - - - -
village which was present pre-contact Pre-Mission Step Step Gamble 2015 period along with Period saqsiyol and saxpilil
village which was present pre-contact Pre-Mission Saxpilil Saxpilil Gamble 2015 period along with Period saqsiyol and step
village which was present pre-contact Pre-Mission Saqsiyol Saqsiyol Gamble 2015 period along with Period saxpilil and step
Laxšakupi - - - -
A mission was found near this area in 1787 but was subsequently US Department Lompo' Lompo' Mission Period destroyed in an of Justice, 2003 earthquake in the 1800s
Associated with the Purisima Mission Stipu Stipu Mission Period Hodge 2003 which was destroyed and then relocated
118 Area and valley of which the new Mission was located and then Amuu Amuu used as a training Mission Period Fisher, J, 2006 institute and ranching location for the Chumash
Sipuk - - - - Mission which was constructed in 1787 before it was La Purisima La Purisima La Purisima Mission Period destroyed in an Mission earthquake and then relocated
Glass beads found at this site and was a base for before this village was discovered by the colonialists - it was then location for Historic-Mission Noqto' Noqto' Gamble 2008 68 baptisms - the Period population rapidly declined after contact from 60-70 in early 1700s to 12 in late 1700s
Thought to be Historic location but no artefacts correlating to it found here. 106 Historic-Mission Silimaqštuš Silimaqštuš Gamble 2008 baptisms and 150 Period inhabitants seen in 1769. Reduced to 12 in 1796.
33 Baptisms recorded Xalam Xalam here during the Mission Period Gamble 2008 Mission Period
119 Villagers here were in movement with Point Haley, B and Conception where they Upop Upop Mission Period Wilcoxon, L, gathered marine 1999 resources pre and during Mission Period
Noted that there were 197 baptisms at this settlement but only 72 Sišolop North Sišolop inhabitants were Historic Period Gamble 2008 counted in 1796 - people moved into this area for this
74 baptisms were Siswa' Siswa' recorded from this Mission Period Gamble 2008 village Swei - - - - Axwapš - - - - Alexlele - - - -
lost population after 1770 due to migration, baptisms are present Historic-Mission Atajes Atajes and there were King 1984 Period evidences of shellfish prior to Mission Period as coastal site
Sxaliwilmu' - - - -
33 baptisms recorded here during Mission Milliken, R and Period - hints at links Heqep Heqep Mission Period Johnson J R, between different 2005 communities such as Salinan
120 Yucca ovens are found near the vicinity of this Middle-Late United Water Huenejel Huenejel village and it is dated Period 2016 to around the Middle-Late Period
14 baptisms were recorded at this village Ko'owšup Ko'owšup Mission Period Gamble 2008 during the Mission Period Thought to be around the area which is known as Naucu - Anaqwuk Anaqwuk gained population Mission Period King 1984 through migration during the Mission Period
52 baptisms which are Nipumu' Nipumu' recorded during the Mission Period Gamble 2008 Mission Period
Marriage links are seen between Shishilop in the deep south on the Tsquieu Tsquieu Mission Period King 1984 coast compared to in the north of Chumash territory
62 baptisms recorded during the Mission Historic-Mission Wasna Wasna Period - this was a Gamble 2008 Period major historic village prior to contact
Temesati - - - - Selaqini - - - -
121 Expedition passed through this village during the mission period and Pismu' Pismu' encountered the chief Mission Period Bryne 2004 of the region whilst here (Likely from this village) - signifies its importance?
Sepxato - - - -
Mission founded in 1772 and served as San Luis Obispo San Luis Obispo San Luis Obispo area of missionisation Mission Period Mission of surrounding Chumash villages.
122