Alameda Native History Project

Category: Shellmounds

  • Alameda Shellmound Map

    Please Note: A new version of the Alameda Shellmound Map (Version 2.0) was released on July 18, 2024.

    There’s a new map showing the Shellmounds of Alameda.

    It transposes the historic alameda shoreline onto the modern-day silohuette of the city. The map shows historic wetlands and tidal marshes, and the four Alameda Shellmounds.

    Map of the
    Shellmounds of Huchiun,
    ~Muwekma Ohlone Territory~
    Showing the Area Now Known As The
    “City of Alameda”

    By: Gabriel Duncan

    Description of The Map:

    The base map is comprised of the present-day shoreline of the Alameda and Bay Farm area, indicated by a gray-hashed outline; with the land-mass filled in white. The overlay to this map shows the pre-1900 shoreline of Alameda as a solid black outline.

    The Areas shaded in green comprise historical wetlands in the Alameda and Oakland Area. Alameda and Oakland were once connected. Alameda used to be a lush oak tree forest (Coast Live Oak), with verdant wetlands, and a thriving ecosystem. Alameda was also called la Bolsa de Encinal, or Encinal de San Antonio (a land grant reference.) First Peoples called this place Huchiun.

    The green dots (or markers) indicate the approximate positions of historic Ohlone shellmounds present around 1908, and before. The shellmound locations indicated in this map were compiled from three different sources:

    1. N.C. Nelson’s “Shellmounds of the San Francisco Bay Region” [1909, University Press.]
    2. Imelda Merlin’s “Alameda: a Geological History”, [1977, Friends of the Alameda Free Library]
    3. Oakland Tribune [“Skull reveals mound”, Feb. 11, 1945]

    What are Shellmounds?

    Shellmounds are the resting place of the First Peoples of this area, Ohlone people. Ohlone people built these ancient structures over thousands of years. There are so many mussel shells in a shellmound they have a bluish tinge. Shells were deposited on land by birds, as well as humans, and the natural course of the circle of coastal life.

    In the 1800’s until around 1980, Archaeologists and Historians thought that Ohlone people were extinct; and that these shellmounds were “trash heaps”. And they treated the mounds accordingly.

    Americans used the shells and bones inside the mounds to make aggregate for concrete; landfill for levees; overspread to grade train tracks; and even fertilize plants. Grave robbers stole things from the Ohlone people buried inside the mound, and sold them to museums or collectors. The famous shellmound that Mound Street is named after (the “Sather Mound”) was used to pave Bay Farm Road on multiple occasions.

    Shellmounds today are one of the most endangered historical sites in the Bay Area. But they still exist as a sacred resting place of the Ohlone ancestors. Alameda is the tribal homeland of the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe of the San Francisco Bay Area, survivors of the Missions Fremont, Santa Clara, and Delores, and the Verona Band of Alameda County. For at least 10,000 years, Ohlone people have called this place home.

    Get an 24×18-inch copy of this map:

    Get this map as a thank-you gift for your donation of $25 or more to the Alameda Native History Project. 10% of your donation goes directly to the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe of the San Francisco Bay Area.

    References:

    1. Historic Wetlands; Gabriel Duncan 2023
    2. Historic Shoreline (1851-1877) Datasets produced by NOAA National Ocean Service
    3. Present-day Shoreline; City of San Francisco Department of Telecommunications and Information Services
    4. Tribal Regions; A Time of Little Choice: The Disintegration of Tribal Culture in the San Francisco Bay Area 1769-1810, Randall Milliken, Malki-Ballena Press, 1995
    5. Shellmounds of the San Francisco Bay Region, N.C. Nelson, University Press, 1909
    6. Alameda: A Geographical History, Imelda Merlin, Friends of the Alameda Free Library, 1977
    7. “Skull Reveals Mound”, Oakland Tribune, Feb. 11 1945
    8. Muwekma Ohlone Tribe of the San Francisco Bay Area, Personal Interviews with Tribal Chairwoman Charlene Nijmeh, Vice Chairwoman Monica Arellano, Tribal Member Joey Torres
    9. Muwekma History Presentation to Alameda City Council, Alan Leventhal, Dec. 5 2022
    10. Muwekma Ohlone Tribe of the San Francisco Bay Area Website, http://muwekma.org, Accessed Aug. 10, 2023
    11. “Road Paved with Bones Grewsome [sic] Covering On Bay Island Thoroughfare”, Alameda Daily Argus, Apr. 23, 1901
    12. “Fixing the Streets”, Alameda Daily Star, Aug. 13 1908
    13. “Mayor Has Idea on Roadbuilding: Takes Exception to Old Mound Being Used for Dressing on New Road”, Oakland Tribune, Oct. 9 1908
    14. “Routine Ruled the Meeting”, Alameda Daily Times, Sep. 29 1908
    15. “End Hauling Dirt to Island From Mound”, Oakland Tribune, Nov. 22 1908

    About the Cartographer

    Gabriel Duncan is the founder and principal researcher of the Alameda Native History Project. He is a recognized descendant of the Utu Utu Gwaitu Paiute Tribe. Gabriel was adopted at birth, and born and raised in the city of Alameda, California. ANHP is devoted to researching and documenting the Indigenous History of Alameda, fostering indigenous representation and awareness in Alameda, and educating Alamedans about their local (living) history in a modern, nuanced way.

    NOTE: This map was updated on 08/17/2023 to show the “Pre-1900 Shoreline”, Historic Wetlands, and Present-Day Land-mass; which are layers 1-3 on the list of references, above. Subsequently, those references have also been updated to reflect this change.
    Please Note: A new version of the Alameda Shellmound Map (Version 2.0) was released on July 18, 2024.

  • Shellmounds: Spanish and American Influence on Indigenous Burial Practices and Shellmound Use

    A shellmound is a graveyard, a mortuary complex, an ancient structure. It’s a place where the first peoples who live along the coasts and rivers of California, used to bury their dead. This article briefly explores why that is.

    Spanish Influence on Indigenous Use of Shellmounds

    This changed when Spain Conquistador’s invaded the San Francisco bay area, on June 27, 1776, and established what’s known now as The Presidio, in San Francisco, California. [On July 4th, 1776, thirteen British colonies in North American declared their independence, and formed the United States.] Three months later, on October 9, 1776, is when Mission San Francisco de Assisi was founded and missionization of the Bay Area officially began.

    This missionization of local indigenous people can be characterized by the abduction, forced baptism, and slavery of Indigenous people by Spanish Priests and Conquistadors. And, the outright theft of natural resources (like food) which indigenous people had helped cultivate and depended upon for all of their food, medicine, building materials, etc.

    In spite of the homefield advantage, and larger numbers, indigenous people could not defeat the colonizing Spanish force.

    Spanish conquistadors were cruel, paranoid, psychopathic, mass murdering kleptomaniacs. Their expeditions were marked by massacres of unarmed people; looting of villages’ water, food and gold; and the enslavement of surviving indigenous people. Indigenous objections to the Spanish invaders were often met with attacks on villages, and public executions–a fear tactic meant to terrorize local indigenous people into submission.

    Spanish Missions are places where indigenous people were brainwashed into accepting their slavery and the belief that “indigenous people are inferior to Spanish” colonizers, conquistadors, and especially clergy. Indigenous people were indoctrinated into the Catholic labor system by Clergy through coercion, torture, and threat. And reinforced with food, personal living quarters, better jobs, and some form of acceptance into the Spanish way of life.

    When Spanish colonizers had ruined the ecosystem by grazing, logging, razing, and waste, indigenous people found themselves with little choice but to join the missions or flee to places outside of the reach of the mission system. (In reality, no Indigenous Californians were safe from the missions, except those in the far North of California, where Missions did not exist.)

    Because the Missions were located in Central Areas; and because of the Area of Influence Spanish Invaders were able to exert dominance over was so vast (due to horses); indigenous people of the area known as the Bay Area were forced to abandon their burial practices because they had to abandon the land their graveyard was situated upon.

    This meant that indigenous people had to figure out how to bury their dead using the resources found away from the coasts and rivers they were used to.

    It also meant that, indigenous people were being buried in graveyards at Catholic Missions all around the Bay Area.

    American Influence on Indigenous Use of Shellmounds

    Soon, American aggressors would begin to appear in what they though was their frontier land; an “Indian Frontier”. This was during the time of the “Wild West”, when Indian Wars were being actively fought.

    The Indian Wars would be romanticized for years to come in newspaper stories, and on the screen especially during the 1950’s with such films/shows as:

    • Winchester ’73
    • Gunsmoke
    • The Lone Ranger
    • Davey Crockett
    • They Died with Their Boots On

    But there was nothing romantic about the real story of the California Genocide.

    Americans would purposely destroy or vandalize sacred sites for entertainment or out of spite. One famous shellmound, in Alameda, California, was used to pave Bay Farm Road in 1908. The bodies of ancestors were routinely ground up and used as aggregate for cement, or even calcium enrichment for roses and other flowers (instead of eggshells.)

    The vandalization, desecration and disrespect of Native American Graves and Bodies continues to this day.

    Militias were paid by the United States Government, and (later) the State of California, to hunt and kill all indigenous people. The United States Army “expeditions”, especially what they liked to call “punitive expeditions”, were marked by the execution of indigenous men, and the rape, torture, and mass-murder of indigenous women and children.

    In 1848, the area now known as California was ceded by Mexico, at the end of the Mexican-American war. Two years later, California would officially earn statehood, and its first governor, Peter Hardeman Burnett, during his first State of the State address mentioned the California genocide explicitly.

    “A war of extermination will continue … until the Indian race becomes extinct,” Peter Hardeman Burnett, the First Governor of California continued, “the inevitable destiny of the race is beyond the power or wisdom of man to avert.”

    Now, all Indigenous people were actively under threat by all white people, who were paid for each “Indian” they killed, baby they stole, or person forced into slavery via “prisoner debt” to white business and property owners. Prison debt was money owed to a person or business for a crime committed against it. These were often times for extraordinary amounts of money which the debtor was only able to pay through involuntary labor or servitude. The prison debt system was created to control Indigenous People, and People of Color, and prevent them from gaining any foothold or capital in a society and world which white people viewed themselves as being solely entitled to because of their religious or racial beliefs.

    Once Native Californians were being displaced, forced onto reservations, into indebted servitude, boarding schools, orphanages; and their burial places forced abandoned, and desecrated by American invaders. Many indigenous people began the practice of cremation. One of the most common reason for why someone is cremated was because they wouldn’t be able to be buried with their ancestors, next to their loved ones, or with their family or tribe. It was better to live the afterlife free of their body than to have it defiled.

  • What is Tribal Recognition, Who is a Descendant, How does the NAGPRA Notification List Work?

    This article will be a very brief primer, touching on three important topics:

    • “State-Recognized” Tribes don’t exist in California; but they do in 11 other states.
    • Tribal Notification occurs after the discovery of Native American Remains; Tribal Consultation Occurs during the CEQA Workflow.
    • Recognized Descendants of a Tribe, and Enrolled Tribal Members have established their “American Indian ancestry”.

    What is Tribal Recognition?

    Federal Recognition

    When the U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Indian Affairs, Office of Federal Acknowledgment, formally recognizes a group (“tribal entity”) as being a separate sovereign government from the United States.

    This recognition “establishes” a government-to-government relationship with the U.S., and imbues this “Federally Recognized Tribe” with certain rights–like the ability to make and enforce their own laws, decide who they want to lead them, but also receive federal benefits (like HUD services), and must follow certain B.I.A. Federal laws, rules and regulations.

    At last check, California has 109 Federally Recognized Tribes, with nearly 100 separate reservations or Rancherias. [California Courts, California Tribal Communities FAQ’s]

    State Recognition

    Provides the same acknowledgment of sovereignty; however, it does not necessarily come with the kind of funding (reparations), or even “Trust Responsibility” that the Supreme Court ruled the Federal Government has to Tribes.

    States with a Tribal Recognition Process:

    • Alabama
    • Connecticut
    • Georgia
    • Louisiana
    • Maryland
    • Massachusetts
    • New York
    • North Carolina
    • South Carolina
    • Vermont
    • Virginia

    Still, each of the (currently) 11 states with a tribal recognition process imbue Recognized Tribes with their own mix of duties, rights, and responsibilities.

    California State Recognized Tribes

    The State of California does not have a recognition authority or process for Tribes, therefore, there are no State-recognized Tribes.

    In California, there are Federally recognized Tribal governments, non-Federally recognized tribal governments, and Tribal communities.

    California Community Assistance for Climate Equity Program, Tribal Appendix to the 2020 Technical Assistance Guidelines for State Agencies [Deliberative Draft]

    California Native American Heritage Commission and NAGPRA

    What California does have, is the California Native American Heritage Commission (Cal NAHC, or NAHC), and a robust, and codified set of laws protecting Tribal Cultural Resources (like Rivers, Forests, Plants, and Animals); and Places (like Shellmounds, Caves with Petroglyphs, Sacred Places like Ceremony and Village Sites); and Things (like mortar & pestles, funerary objects, jewelry,); and more.

    Acts of legislation like both the Federal and California Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), AB 52-CEQA Tribal Consultation, empower the California Native American Heritage Commission to carry out both the administration and enforcement of NAGPRA, AB-52, and other related laws.

    How Does the NAGPRA Notification List Work?

    NAGPRA Notification Lists are made up of NAHC Contact Lists.

    Part of NAHC’s solemn duty as the NAGPRA Administrator for the Great State of California is to develop and maintain a contact list of federally recognized California Native American tribes, non-federally recognized tribes, and coalitions of tribes.

    This contact list informs the Most Likely Descendant List (CalNAGPRA List).

    The Most Likely Descendants list is a registry of tribes, coalitions, and Individual Native Americans who trace their ancestry to a particular village site or traditional tribal territory. Tribes and Coalitions appoint their own MLD Representative; Individuals appear for themselves.

    If discovered human remains are determined to be Native American by the County Coroner, the Coroner is required to send notification of that discovery to NAHC. (The Native American Heritage Commission.)

    NAHC immediately notifies the appropriate Most Likely Descendant(s) via phone. This is the process commonly referred to as “Tribal Notification“

    This Tribal Notification only occurs when the Native American Heritage Commission “receives notification of a discovery of Native American human remains from a county coroner” pursuant to the Health and Safety Code.

    Public Agencies are required to perform Environment Impact Assessments and Reviews. The California Environmental Quality Act mandates Tribal Consultation for public projects [with some very important exemptions; I digress.]

    Tribal Consultation is the process of working collaboratively with a Tribal Consultant(s), and/or Most Likely Descendant(s) before development begins to mitigate the harm to Tribal Cultural Resources, and/or Native American Remains.

    What is a descendant?

    Anyone can claim descendancy, sure. Some people bet the farm on a family rumor of “Chief Apache” blood. But claiming descendancy is different than being an actual descendant of a tribe. It’s not something you can claim from a generalized mouth-swab, or even a fully sequenced finger prick; unless you can tie your DNA to a specific place, or band/tribe, that ancestry test means nothing. [For a number of reasons].

    Being a descendant means knowing your family history. Being able to state who you are related to, and where you come from. True tribal descendants will be Recognized By Their Tribe (“Recognized Descendant“), or be Enrolled As a Tribal Member. When someone claims Native American/Indigenous/American Indian Ancestry, we expect them to be able to back that up by telling us who they are.

    One who Is descended from another; a person who proceeds from the body of another, such as a child, grandchild, etc., to the remotest degree. 

    Black’s Law Dictionary, 2nd Ed

    Establishing Indian Ancestry is an essential part of any person’s claim of descendancy.

    The two easiest ways to tell if someone is lying about their Native American ancestry, are: (1) they claim to belong to a California “State-Recognized Tribe“, or (2) when they are not a Recognized Descendant of the tribe they claim to be a descendant of.

  • SF Bay Area Shellmounds Are Some of the Most Endangered Cultural Resources in the World

    Save Shellmounds Not Parking Lots campaign image of archaeologists sifting through soil in a cemetery. Title reads: “You wouldn’t let them dig up your grandma. Why would you let them dig up ours?”

    The San Francisco Bay Area had well over 425 shellmounds.

    Gabriel Duncan, from the Alameda Native History Project, estimates the true number of shellmounds around the S.F. Bay Area’s shoreline is closer to seven or eight-hundred shellmounds, which existed before European invasion and colonization.

    Shellmounds are ancient burial grounds used by the First People of the San Francisco Bay Area for over 10,000 years. Shellmounds form ancient mortuary complexes created by Ohlone, Miwok, and Karkin people. Shellmounds were not village sites; but they were places where ceremonies dedicated to indigenous ancestors were performed; and large seasonal gatherings were held nearby to celebrate the unity, harmony, and balance indigenous people share with the earth, each other, our ancestors, and all creation.

    Grave robbing by universities and treasure hunters; as well as desecration by railroad companies, oil refineries, and quarry operators, has made the remaining San Francisco Bay Area Shellmounds one of the most endangered cultural resources in the world.

    One of the chief defilers of shellmounds are quarry companies. These companies are still operating today, at places like the San Rafael Rock Quarry–which is home to no less than five shellmounds; and Dutra Materials Quarry, in Richmond, California–an area dotted with the highest concentration of shellmounds in the East Bay.

    But not much is being said about the historical and ongoing desecration and defiling of indigenous bodies to build the infrastructure and institutions all around us.

    This is surprising, considering the amount of time, effort, and fundraising which has gone into “preserving” a parking lot in West Berkeley, and protesting a thriving and established shopping mall in Emeryville, California.

    While other cities and corporations used shellmounds to level their train tracks, and pack for roadways: the Angel Island Immigration Station is one of the best surviving answers to the question of “What Happened to the Shellmounds?”

    Angel Island was home to about four shellmounds. All of which were quarried and used as a base for the concrete to construct the immigration buildings now standing as Angel Island State Park. However, there is no mention of this fact in the park brochure, or uttered by any tour guide on the island.

    The historical and continuing desecration goes unspoken, and right before our very eyes; all over the San Francisco Bay Area.

    Instead of directly addressing and challenging the corporations and cities responsible for the desecration of Ohlone, Miwok, and Karkin burial grounds, and sacred sites: advocates and allies are being fooled into believing these parking lots (in West Berkeley), and post-industrial waste sites (in East Oakland) are the priority for the fight against desecration of indigenous land. This is not true.

    “Saving” parking lots is not an indigenous priority over stopping the desecration of indigenous sacred sites today.

    Optic-driven, PR events, like urban gardens, and cultural easements to use our own land for free, do not address the fact that shellmounds are being quarried into extinction. That these ancient structures are being erased by shoreline development, and urbanization of the San Francisco Bay Area waterfront.

    This situation will not change; the desecration will not stop, until our supporters and allies start to critically assess the information being given to them by non-profit corporations trying to fundraise for their money, and compare that with information provided by scholars, experts, and bona fide tribes like the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe of the San Francisco Bay Area.

    Save shellmounds. Not parking lots.

  • Save Shellmounds Not Parking Lots

    Collage art of a shellmound with historic Alameda newspaper articles in the background, with the title words “Save Shellmounds Not Parking Lots”. Artwork by Gabriel Duncan.

    While these places may be on our traditional homelands, and within our tribal territories: Brownfields properties and Supferfund sites are neither appropriate, nor respectful gifts of atonement to the Indigenous People the entire Western Hemisphere was stolen from.

    It is a waste of resources for indigenous non-profiteers, like Corrina Gould, to focus primarily on post-industrial sites, like the place she alleges is the “West Berkeley Shellmound“.

    It is an improper use of our allies’ time, energy–and money–to have them marching around an empty parking lot, and futilely protesting an established and thriving shopping mall (Bay Street Emeryville).

    All of this takes away from the reality: Ohlone cultural resources in the San Francisco Bay Area are being destroyed by development at an alarming rate.

    Without intervention, Native American cultural resources, like shellmounds, and the fragile ecosystems they inhabit and have supported for over 10,000 years, will be destroyed. Paved over, without a second thought for anything other than their “fair market value”.

    Parking Lots and Abandoned Post-Industrial Spaces are not a priority; compared to Federal Recognition, Federal Land Grants, and the establishment of a Tribal Land-base and an official, recognized, Ohlone tribal reservation, and sovereign tribal territory.

    Urban Gardens do not address the Land Back movement in a relevant way.

    Cultural Easements—like the one proposed at Joaquin Miller Park, in Oakland, California—are not actually land back, and do not benefit the cause Corrina Gould (under the auspices of Sogorea Te Land Trust) purports to advocate for (all the while pretending to be the “tribal chairwoman” of a non-profit corporation posing as a bona fide tribal government.)

    In fact, PR events like the dedication of part of Joaquin Miller Park, in Oakland, and the renaming of a park in Alameda, are completely irrelevant to the actual cause of land back, rematriating the land, and the real priorities of bona fide tribal governments, like the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe of the San Francisco Bay Area–a tribe Corrina Gould would be a member of, if she weren’t so focused on personal gain, instead of advocating for her own tribe, and all Ohlone people.

    All of this only confuses the well-meaning public; and takes attention and purpose away from the legitimate means of land back, and the mechanisms which exist to attain justice, land, and equity for Ohlone people in the San Francisco Bay Area.

    As long as people realize their time and energy is better spent on an achievable goal, like Federal Re-Recognition & The Establishment of a Muwekma Land-base: Land Back is something we can see happen within our lifetimes.

    For more information on how you can help Ohlone people regain Federal Recognition, and get their Land Back, visit the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe of the San Francisco Bay Area’s website at: http://muwekma.org

  • Finding the Alameda Shellmounds: Part One

    The Plaque at Lincoln Park

    It’s hard to say exactly what this plaque meant to me, growing up, adopted, in Alameda. This was a tangible symbol of my Native American heritage; something connected to my identity. Proof that my people actually existed somewhere. Even though I couldn’t see them, or be with them. It was also a source of horrors; knowing that I was living on an Indian Burial Mound.

    This was supposed to be an art project; with some ghost stories, hand made beading, and hand-made historic reproductions of traditional Native American garments and adornments.

    All I wanted to do was find out if my grandfather’s house really was built on an Indian Burial Mound. I thought I was asking a simple question, that local historians would be able to answer in the same way they could erudiate on Victorian Houses, and Electric Railways.

    Instead–when I went to the Alameda Museum–the subject was dismissed.

    “Somebody already did that,” I was told.

    An unnamed docent from the Alameda Museum asked me, “Wasn’t it just a trash heap?”

    Searching For Answers

    It soon became obvious that Non-Native Historians were neither interested, nor knowledgeable about the Alameda Shellmounds, or the First Alamedans;
    I realized I would have to perform the work.

    Not just to find out for myself; but to counter non-native apathy, and gate-keeping; and hold this knowledge in trust for other native people who search for their own heritage, too.

    But how do I find out more about the Alameda Shellmounds, and their history, when the Alameda Museum doesn’t even care?

    I would have to find, search, index, and analyze several volumes of information; across several sources, and locales.

    This is the progression of sources I consulted, regarding this topic. Research is still ongoing. Check the ANHP Wiki for specifics, excerpts, transcriptions, and more.

    Existing, Aggregated Information RE: Shellmounds in Alameda

    Books:

    • Alameda: A Geological History, Imelda Merlin, 1977
    • Shellmounds of the San Francisco Bay Area, N.C. Nelson, 1914
    Alameda Historic Records

    Learned:

    • Where the “Sathers Mound” actually was;
    • There was more than one shellmound in Alameda;
    • People used shellmounds to pave sidewalks and roads.
    Newspapers

    Search expanded to regional and state newspapers; like the Oakland Tribune, and the Alta Daily California.

    Learned:

    • First excavation of the Alameda Shellmound was 1892, sponsored by the San Francisco Call newspaper;
    • California Academy of Science was involved in 1892 excavation;
    • Several artifacts reportedly gifted to U.C. Berkeley Anthropology Museum.
    University/Research Institutions

    Relevant material found in the holdings of:

    • University of California, Berkeley;
    • San Francisco State University;
    • California Academy of Science.
    Museums
    • Phoebe A Hearst Museum, Berkeley, California
    • California Academy of Science, San Francisco, California
    • Coyote Hills Regional Park, Fremont, California
    • California Indian Museum and Cultural Center, Santa Rosa, California
    • California State Indian Museum, Sacramento, California
    • Alameda Museum, Alameda, California
      (Errantly attributed Ohlone artifacts to “a branch of the Miwok tribe” for decades.)

    “Somebody already did that.”

    Imelda Merlin

    Imelda Merlin is a famous Alamedan. Her Master’s Thesis for the University of California, Berkeley, was published in 1977 as Alameda: A Geological History. This book contains a Map of Live Oaks, which features several shellmounds.

    Imelda Merlin’s book is considered the “Alameda bible” as far as local historians are concerned. It contains excerpts from, and references to, some of the core historic records of the City of Alameda. However, the map is of Live Oaks, and does not appear to be a serious attempt to show the accurate locations of shellmounds which existed in Alameda around 1850; and the sections concerning indigenous occupation of Alameda and extremely light on verifiable citations.

    N.C. [Nels Christian] Nelson

    Was an anthropology student at the University of California, Berkeley. Worked for John C. Merriam. Merriam and Nelson both went on an exploratory expedition of the San Francisco Bay Region, where Nelson surveyed and analyzed shellmounds.

    In 1914, N.C. Nelson published his findings in “Shellmounds of the San Francisco Bay Region”, which featured the “Map of the San Francisco Bay Region, Showing the Distribution of Shell Heaps”.

    This is the most thorough survey of the Bay Area Shellmounds ever made; and Nelson’s work is heavily cited by historians, newspapers, and researchers, alike. Nelson’s map represents the positions of shellmounds he and his team personally observed, which makes his work a primary source.

    Confronting the Current Record

    Reconciling local “common knowledge” with Public Records and Official Studies
    Issues presented by Imelda Merlin’s Map

    Citations are missing, incorrect, and/or do not substantively match or explain the locations of shellmounds in content, or context. For instance, the 1850 “Whitcher’s Survey” map of the Alameda area has been lost to time, even though it was referenced as being on prominent display in Alameda’s City Hall. This survey appears several times in Merlin’s work, all with hand-drawn additions by Imelda Merlin, herself.

    Multiple Versions of N.C. Nelson’s Map

    Aside from the official U.C. Berkeley, University Press printing of Nelson’s Map; there are versions with more Shellmounds, and different numbers. However no addendum or update by Nelson has been recovered; drawing into question the accuracy of these other, unofficial, maps purportedly attributed to Nelson.

    Complete Reliance by Non-Native Historians on Unvetted Sources

    Hometown pride may have blinded local historians. But even credible witnesses can give unreliable testimony. There is an argument for considering Merlin’s map as a Tertiary Source.

    Non-Native Attitudes that the Burial Mound Issue is “Settled”

    Resulting in a fundamental lack of knowledge and comprehension of local historical events by local historians and curators–who are supposed to be the experts on this subject, among other Alameda History. The assumption that there is nothing more to find, and no more to learn about the Alameda shellmounds, meant that no research was performed regarding the History of the First Alamedans–until now.

    As this project continued, I learned that there was a lot left unsaid, and even more Alameda History to be uncovered beyond answering the question: “What happened to the shellmounds?”

    End Part One

    Stay tuned for Part Two.

  • More Alternatives to Shuumi

    Here at the Alameda Native History Project, we value organizations and movements which focus on measurable, outcome-based strategies and planning. We value transparency, accountability, and regular reporting on the progress toward those goals.

    And while organizations associated with Corrina Gould talk a good game: it would behoove you to take notice of the fact that none of the organizations associated with Gould have achieved any of the goals they purport to strive for.

    Here’s a brief breakdown of some organizations Gould is associated with:

    • Indian People Organizing for Change: Gould claims to be a co-founder of this now defunct organization; this is where she began the Shellmound Walk. Though it’s important to note that we haven’t been able to find any newspaper articles where Corrina Gould is mentioned, or pictured, with any other founders of IPOC. In fact, it looks like Gould’s involvement has been using IPOC as a front for her own fundraising efforts. For what, though?
    • American Indian Child Resource Center: Corrina Gould was an employee of this organization as a Title 7 Resource Coordinator during the time she herself was convicted of defrauding Alameda County (which she confessed to); was sentenced to 2 years in jail; and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $5,275. While the AIRCRC is a legitimate organization, one can’t help but ask why the Center continues to associate itself with Gould. [Or why any of these organizations think it’s appropriate to put a fraud in charge of fundraising, or even run for “tribal office”.]
    • Sogorea Te Land Trust: Unaccredited land trust. Named after Glen Cove, in Vallejo, which is actually Wintu and Patwin land; the place where Corrina Gould hijacked efforts to preserve and protect sacred sites. Gould claimed that tribes were not consulted regarding the planning and development of Glen Cove Park, but she was wrong. Tribal Consultation was occurring behind the scenes the whole time Corrina Gould was publicly occupying another tribe’s land.

      Gould’s actions resulted in costing the tribes tens of thousands of dollars in legal fees, and forced the tribe to pay for a cultural easement–which would have been free, if Gould hadn’t interfered. The original goal of the Land Trust was to purchase/receive native land to put back into native hands. However, their entire body of work has only focused on re-appropriating urban gardens, and landscaping, thus far. And also to serve as Corrina Gould’s personal piggy bank.
    • Confederated Villages of the Lisjan, INC.: Formerly created by Corrina Gould to give the appearance of the legitimacy needed for Cities and Developers to treat her as a Tribal Consultant; and to file as an intervenor in court cases to “stop desecration” in places like West Berkeley and Glen Cove. This corporation was subsequently suspended by the Franchise Tax Board; and then taken over by Gabriel Duncan, to prove a point that corporations are not tribal governments. (The exercise of sovereign powers is not a charitable purpose, how can a non-Ohlone person be a tribal chair of an Ohlone government? They can’t; the idea that a corporation can be a tribal government is ridiculous.)
    • Confederated Villages of the Lisjan “Nation“, INC.: Corrina Gould registered another corporation with a similar name to continue her charade as an elected tribal chairwoman. It’s not hard to say that when your board of directors are your immediate family. But Gould isn’t a Tribal Chairwoman, she’s the Chair of the Board of a corporation masquerading as a tribal government.

      The real unfortunate part of this is that Gould continues to present herself as speaking for a larger population of Ohlone People than she has the right to, in the same way King Henry spoke for his subjects in countries across the world. (Except King Henry actually had “subjects”. And, even if you count Gould’s supporters, they’re not Ohlone People.) In fact, it looks like Corrina Gould wants to be the only person consulted, to the point of excluding bona fide tribes, as was the case in both Glen Cove, and Sequoia Point.

      Furthermore, Lisjan is the place name for Pleasanton–not East Oakland. And the real “confederation” of villages is the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe of the San Francisco Bay Area.

      [The present-day Muwekma Ohlone Tribe is comprised of all of the known surviving American Indian lineages aboriginal to the San Francisco Bay region who trace their ancestry through the Missions Dolores, Santa Clara, and San Jose…]

    Lost in the fray is the simple fact that Corrina Gould’s corporation has only been around for about 5 years; whereas the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe of the San Francisco Bay Area has been around since time immemorial. Muwekma has over 600 enrolled tribal members. Muwekma’s lineage is extremely well-documented; and their occupation of the San Francisco Bay Area can be traced back to archeological sites representing at least 7,000 years of ancestral tribal history.

    [Yes, I’m also tired of repeating myself.]

    So let’s say you don’t want to give money to an organization fronted by a convicted fraud, which isn’t doing the work it claims to be dedicated to. What are some organizations where your investment in indigenous people, their rights, and their lives, would make the most difference?

    1. Muwekma Ohlone Preservation Foundation [link]
      The actual Ohlone Land Trust and Preservation Foundation working to preserve the homelands of a tribe which was formerly known and recognized as the Verona Band of Indians, and is known today as the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe of the San Francisco Bay Area. By supporting this foundation, you are supporting the rematriation of the land, re-awakening of indigenous language, culture, and helping to foster the honor and respect required to make space for healing, and rejuvenation of the people who survived the Missionization of the San Francisco Bay Area, and the American policies of genocide and erasure in California.

      The Muwekma Ohlone Preservation Foundation‘s Mission is to:
      • Heal mak Muwékma (“our People”) by connecting with and caring for our ancestral lands,
      • Protect and hinnimpisin ’oyyo ’innu heeme (“restore culture, and natural resources”),
      • Gain and ’utas warep — steward the land-base where we have always been,
      • Awaken cultural practices on the land through tribal gatherings and creating ceremonial spaces,
      • Ensure the continued ’iškaanesin mak Muwékma (“resilience of our People”)
    2. Friendship House of San Francisco [link]
      This organization provides the bulk of services to Native People who are either living off the reservation in urban areas, or have been sent to the friendship house to receive treatment and healing services by tribes far and wide. The Friendship House of San Francisco holds a special place in my heart, because I have seen the people who have benefited from their programs, and ongoing mercy and care for all Native People in the Urban Reservation. Investing in the Friendship House of San Francisco is probably one of the best ways to support indigenous people, not only in the Bay Area, but all over this continent.
    3. Intertribal Friendship House of Oakland [link]
      From the Intertribal Friendship Oakland website:
      “Intertribal Friendship House (IFH), located in Oakland, CA was established in 1955 as one of the first urban American Indian community centers in the nation. It was founded by the American Friends Service Committee to serve the needs of American Indian people relocated from reservations to the San Francisco Bay Area. The Bay Area American Indian community is multi-tribal, made of Native people and their descendants—those who originate here and those who have come to the Bay region from all over the United States and from other parts of this hemisphere.

      “For urban Native people IFH has served as the Urban Reservation and Homeland. In many cases it is one of the few places that keeps them connected to their culture and traditions through pow wow dance, drumming, beading classes, and the many social gatherings, cultural events, and ceremonies that are held there. Intertribal Friendship House is more than an organization. It is the heart of a vibrant tribal community.”

      As a youth, I visited the Intertribal Friendship House of Oakland for a lot of events, powwows and fellowship. IFH Oakland holds a special place in my heart as being my local urban Native cultural center for so long.
    Muwekma Ohlone Preservation Foundation
    Friendship House SF
    Intertribal Friendship House Oakland
    If you want to invest in indigenous people, their rights, and THEIR lives; please consider investing in one, or all three, of the organizations listed above.

  • Self-Dealing or Ineptitude? – Sogorea Te Land Trust Easement Moves Forward Without Tribal Consultations

    Now that initial excitement over the announcement of a proposed cultural easement for Ohlone people at Sequoia Point (5-acres in Joaquin Miller Park) has died down, it’s time to do the actual work of looking at the legislation proposed to Oakland City Council Members, and deciding if this really is a just, and equitable “Land Back” project.

    While Sogorea Te Land Trust spokesperson, Corrina Gould, is also the alleged Tribal Chairperson of a corporation known as the Confederated Villages of the Lisjan Nation, INC.–we noticed that Corrina’s group was the only Ohlone tribal group consulted with while developing a cultural easement that is meant to benefit all Ohlone people.

    Other tribal groups which claim Joaquin Miller Park – Sequoia Point, as part of their Tribal Homeland include:
    1. Amah Mutsun Tribal Band of Mission San Juan Bautista
    2. Costanoan Rumsen Carmel Tribe
    3. Indian Canyon Mustun Band of Costanoan
    4. Muwekma Ohlone Indian Tribe of the San Francisco Bay Area
    5. Northern Valley Yokuts Tribe
    6. The Ohlone Indian Tribe

    So why weren’t these other tribes contacted, and invited to take part in the development of a cultural conservation easement for their land?

    All of the tribal organizations listed above have documented ties to “bands of Indians”, and full-blooded Indian acenstors who appeared on Indian Censuses in the late 1800’s, and early 1900’s–which is a requirement to prove ancestry/degree of Indian Blood, and also petition the Bureau of Indian Affairs for Federal Tribal Recognition.

    If added to the list above, Corrina Gould’s company, the Confederated Villages of the Lisjan “Nation”, INC. would be the newest and least documented tribal group.

    The Ohlone Indian Tribe would be the second newest organization–but this corporation was founded specifically to accept the deed to the Ohlone Cemetery in Fremont, California. The Ohlone Cemetery was probably the first parcel of land back given to any Native American tribe by the Catholic Church (…ever.)

    In fact, out of all of the tribes listed above, most of these tribes have their own Land Trusts, including the Indian Canyon Mutsun Band of Costanoan, which is currently the only federally recognized California coastal tribe between Sonoma and Santa Barbara. As such, Indian Canyon enjoys their own tribal land base, and Federal Land Trust.

    This begs the following questions:

    1. Why haven’t any of these other (arguably more legitimate) Tribal Organizations been contacted?
    2. Who is Sogorea Te Land Trust really trying to return land to?
    Because, right now, it appears that Corrina Gould is engaging in a form of self-dealing, in awarding her own corporation an easement in a transaction that she should be barred from negotiating because of her clear Conflict of Interest.

    The onus to perform due diligence in reaching out to other tribal groups; exercise a duty of care to ensure these tribal group’s right to consultation (and participation) falls squarely on the City of Oakland.

    However, as a land trust, which has no official Tribal Affiliation in their bylaws, or articles of incorporation, it seems incumbent upon Sogorea Te Land Trust to reach out to the tribes they claim to be working (in a fiduciary capacity) towards the return of land for…. And invite them to participate in a project that is meant to benefit them.

    This is Sogorea Te Land Trust’s duty to Ohlone People; as an organization which claims to work for Ohlone people as their “clients” (for lack of a better term.)

    Excluding these other tribal groups from consulting with the City of Oakland is a violation of well established (and accepted) rules and procedures provided, in part, by the Native American Graves Protection and Repatration Act, AB52 (Tribal Consultation), and the California Public Resources Code–which all require Cities and Lead Agencies (in this case, Sogorea Te Land Trust) to contact the Native American Heritage Commission to receive a list of tribal organizations they must request consultation from before proceeding with proposed project or plans on public lands. (Like a city park.)

    More importantly, this is a complete disregard for the Tribal Protocol that Corrina Gould has been so vocal about.

    In fact, Corrina Gould’s number one claim at any protest, is that “tribes were not consulted“.

    Which is ironic considering the fact Gould hasn’t consulted any other tribes in the creation of this proposed easement at Sequoia Point.

    In fact, it looks like other Ohlone tribes are being actively excluded by Corrina Gould, in order for her to engage in what looks suspiciously like Self-Dealing, and Fraudulent Behavior.

    We know that Tribal Outreach and Consultation has not occurred, or even been attempted, because “tribal consultation” is conspicuously absent from the Agenda Report & Legislation for the proposed easement; along with any mention of Oakland City Staff, or STLT’s efforts to reach out to other tribes who are affected by, and are real parties in interest to, the cultural conservation easement proposed at Joaquin Miller Park, in Oakland.

    Hopefully the Oakland City Council will put a hold on their vote on the Cultural Conservation Easement, in order for the City of Oakland and Sogorea Te Land Trust to actually consult with all the local Ohlone tribal groups, and bar Corrina Gould from engaging in negotiations on behalf of Sogorea Te Land Trust which she obviously has a deep, and personal, conflict of interest in.

    Oakland City Council Agenda for Nov. 1, 2022

    Agenda Report on Item 10 22-0849: Cultural Conservation Easement To Sogorea Te’ Land Trust In Joaquin Miller Park

    Proposed Legislation re: Cultural Conservation Easement To Sogorea Te’ Land Trust In Joaquin Miller Park

    Cornell Law School – Legal Information Institute “Self-Dealing“

    Amah Mutsun Tribal Band Website

    Amah Mutsun Land Trust Website

    Costanoan Rumsen Carmel Tribal Website

    Muwekma Ohlone Tribe of the San Francisco Bay Area Website

    Muwekma Ohlone Preservation Foundation (Land Trust) Website

    Northern Valley Yokuts Page – Native American Heritage Commission Digital Atlas

  • Forms of Recognition: Alameda’s Anti-Asian History

    Recognition and Acknowledgment can only do so much; we know. But it’s the start of a larger truth and reconciliation process that America needs to engage in.

    This may be a project that focuses on Native American “stuff”, but…

    Native American History isn’t the only American History that has been ignored by Alameda’s Colonial Historians.

    “The Chinese Vegetable Vendor”, Bancroft Collection, UC Berkeley Bancroft Library, (undated.)

    Asian-American History is largely overlooked; despite the fact that Alameda was the terminus for the Intercontinental Railroad. And Chinese people are primarily credited for building the railways connecting the Eastern and Western United States. There was an influx of Chinese immigrants, who would become the backbone of a service industry, in California.

    During the same time:

    1. Alameda was being founded (1853);
    2. Intercontinental Railroad terminus in Alameda (1869);
    3. Chinese Exclusion Act (1882);
    4. First Excavation of “Sather’s Mound” for San Francisco Call (1892);
    5. During 1908, during reporting on the second (and final) excavation of the Mound Street Shellmound, a “Chinese Vegetable Garden” was pictured, and described in newspaper articles, to be on the shellmound itself.
    “The Alameda Indian Mounds”, San Francisco Call, Sep. 11, 1892

    In the last example, the “Chinese Vegetable Garden” was pictured as part of a “Chinese Camp”. The garden itself appeared to be fairly large, and the image seemed to show the boundary of the camp itself butting up against more farmland.

    “A Comparison”, the Alameda Argus, July 25, 1878.

    In Alameda and Brooklyn townships there are not less than 300 Chinamen engaged in gardening operations.

    “A Comparison”, the Alameda Argus, July 25, 1878.

    Research into “Chinese Vegetable Gardens” around the San Francisco Bay Area, California, and beyond, show that these “gardens” were misnomers. In reality, these “gardens” were farms; and could cover several acres. Many were terraced.

    Chinese Vegetable Gardens, Portland, Oregon, c. 1909 via Oregon History Project.

    These farms produced food for entire towns. Not just the Asian-American people who would later be confined to Chinatowns across America.

    Sam Hop Co., San Francisco, California, Feb. 5, 1908

    In historic City of Alameda Municipal Codes, there are laws against the sale of vegetables specifically by Chinese people who did not purchase a vegetable sales permit. These kinds of laws were created as economic barriers to knock the legs out from under any possible competition with white grocers and farmers. White people were so blinded by their own poison that they had no problem publishing their thoughts in black & white.

    “The Determined Heathen”, Alameda Daily Evening Encinal, April 7, 1894

    Chinese-Americans were already barred from owning land, and were excluded from full citizenship because of the same racist, white supremacist ideologies that were already affecting African-American, and Indigenous/Native/First American people. And, just like them, Chinese-American History has been largely ignored, and unspoken.

    Despite the extraordinary measures by white people to insulate their fragility with false “exceptionalism”–by cheating, and excluding fair competition at every turn–rumors of Chinese wealth generated through farming began to circulate.

    One rumor claimed that a man was able to amass $4,000 within four years, and return to China a well-off man from just the sale of vegetables, alone. [$4,000 in 1890 is roughly equivalent to $123,581.54 today.]

    Untitled, Undated (between 1880-1910), picture of Chinese Man with Pail of Vegetables in His Left Hand

    Such was the contempt for any nonwhite citizen of Alameda, that a strong opposition rose by White Alamedans against the minority farmers, who–despite feeding the island–began to be demonized for “benefitting” from the “best land for residences”; and for their practice of enriching bad soil with manure. The land owners who rented to Chinese immigrants, the Alameda Board of Health, Alameda Chief of Police, were all assailed as enemies of Alameda; responsible for the detriment of city life, and degradation of Alameda’s haut monde.

    This story continues. But it’s continued in the shadows of Alameda’s white history. The accomplishments of the Chinese immigrants who literally built this island were re-appropriated and claimed by White Men, who are extolled as “heroes” and “visionaries”. When it is truly the work of the (non-white) global majority.

    Of course, none of this history has been made available at the Alameda Museum. Maybe one day soon multi-cultural and multi-ethnic Alameda History will be made available to us all. George Gunn, Alameda Museum’s White History curator was allowed to quietly retire like the coward he is. And the Alameda Museum is currently looking for a new curator. [Good luck.]

    Stay tuned for more.

  • Alameda Shellmounds Presented in Augmented Reality

    Alameda Native History Project releases a new Alameda Shellmound Map Model to show the capability of Augmented Reality, when it comes to virtual classrooms, and independent & remote learning. And to showcase the direction of education, and uses for technology, as we progress further into the 21st Century.

    This map is appropriate for use in a K-12 setting; and represents the Alameda Shellmounds, as seen by N.C. Nelson. [“Shellmounds of the San Francisco Bay Region”, Nelson, 1909] This map model was created by Gabriel Duncan, and it was stylized using Adobe Aero.

    Adobe Aero is a free program by Adobe, Inc., available for iOS and Android.

    Alameda Native History Project is not sponsored by, or receiving money from Adobe. This is not a paid product placement. This is an example of how to use the tools already available to you, for free, to make really cool stuff for your class or presentations.

    For more information about this model, or how to get a copy, email the Alameda Native History Project.

    info@AlamedaNativeHistoryProject.com