Since we’re not supposed to change anything on the server, our Merch/Giveaway page is still offering Limited Editions of the Indigenous Bay Maps and T-Shirts!
As always: we’d like to remind you that Alameda is Ohlone Land; the ancestral homeland of 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; and who were also members of the historic Federally Recognized Verona Band of Alameda County.
“In Defense of Native America: The People Versus David Van Horn” cover art for @AlamedaNativeHistoryProject on Instagram.com
An archaeologist is sued by the California Attorney General, and the Native American Heritage Commission for the return of stolen Native American Artifacts.
Santa Cruz Sentinel; Nov. 09, 1990
People v. Van Horn (1990)
The only “published” case in California where any entity is being sued by “The People”.
In this case: the State of California is suing David Van Horn, and Archaeological Associates, Ltd. (a company owned by him and his wife, Ruth) for the return of Native American artifacts and remains in his, and his wife’s, possession without Native American consent.
David Van Horn, an archaeologist hired by a City to examine land The City intended to use as an industrial park, found two burials, and related funerary items and goods. Also present, and a party to this action, is Horn’s assistant, Robert White. Tribes weren’t aware of the discovery until the Oceanside Blade-Tribune reported it, and hinted that Van Horn, and his archaeological consulting company were trying to conceal the existence of the discovery.
Once tribes found out, they grouped together, engaged Kern County, City governments, and demanded that the remains and everything be returned to the tribes.
This lead to a meeting, where David Van Horn agreed to return the remains to tribes. But, in a later meeting, he refused to return metates that were buried somehow on top of the remains; arguing that objects placed on top of buried remains were not “funerary objects”, or grave-related goods; he asserts his “expert opinion” that the metates were simply put there to “weigh” the body down.
Van Horn publicly showed contempt for NAGPRA, and claimed he was being unfairly persecuted for doing legitimate, scientific, work. He even went as far as to throw doubt that the representatives of several Native American tribes demanding return of these objects were even related to the bodies discovered.
This was the ultimate in sleazy denials. I bet the demurrer was fantabulous. Because, Van Horn threw out everything he could in his defense. Archaeological Associates, Ltd., claimed ignorance, and pointed to David Van Horn as the party ultimately responsible for breaking the law.
A year into the dispute, the California Attorney General, and Native American Heritage Commission filed suit to compel the return of the objects.
The statutes were clear that it is against the law to posses Native American Artifacts without Native American consent. Summary judgment was granted againstDavid Van Horn. Van Horn, and Archaeological Associates, Ltd. were ordered to return the Native American artifacts, and repatriate Native American remains, to their Tribal Nation.
In the end, it didn’t matter how much David Van Horn tried to fight culpability for his actions, and continued possession of Native American artifacts, without Native American Consent. It didn’t matter because he never argued whether or not it was against the law to possess those objects.
And so…
the issue of fact becomes one of law and loses its triable character if the undisputed facts leave no room for a reasonable difference of opinion.
(Reid v. State Farm Mut. Auto. Ins. Co. (1985) 173 Cal.App.3d 557.)
The California Attorney General published an opinion on this case: 2007 Cal. AG LEXIS 23, 90 Ops. Cal. Atty. Gen. 89
Santa Cruz Sentinel; Nov. 23, 1990
There were also criminal charges filed against David Van Horn, and his assistant, for knowingly desecrating Native American graves. The case was ultimately dismissed.
However, the criminal case against Van Horn is notably “the first use of a 1988 state law that makes Native American grave robbery a felony.”
Anthropology, Archaeology, and Ethnology have always been competitive fields. In the East Bay, Native American Graves Consulting is a booming, and exclusive business.
And, the documented existence of the Ohlone people, who have occupied the East Bay continuously, for thousands of years, hinges upon the information locked away behind paygates; only being referenced by Developers, and City Attorneys.
The exclusivity of this information has been exploited for money. And used to bolster false claims of sovereignty.
Cover
Page 28
Page 180
Page 252
Page 279
But, let me be clear:
The only reason you have this information is because you robbed our ancestors’ graves.
On a very basic level–without being reductive–these academic papers; all of the information; tangible and non-tangible things that have been developed, derived, or created from the desecration of our ancestors….
All of that still belongs to us.
” A Time of Little Choice: The Disintegration of Tribal Culture in the San Francisco Bay Area 1769-1810″
Learned there were 2 excavations of the Shellmound off High Street, in 1892 & 1908–when the mound was leveled-off. But bodies still remain just under the surface of places which remain largely untouched since those first houses were built.
Found the final, grisly fate of the “450 indians with stone implements”. The remains of Native American people were ground up, and used as aggregate, for paving Bay Farm Road. (Remains were also used for a number of other roads, and sidewalks.)
Learned that there are over 425 shellmound sites in the San Francisco Bay Region.
All of this will be addressed in later articles. Excerpts of the Articles on both excavations will be grouped together, and populated in the Wiki. But… this project has a lot of departments, [seriously, it’s bigger on the inside,] so bear with me.
Findings:
Shellmounds are, first and foremost, cemeteries; and should be respected, not disturbed.
The actual, pre-contact, population density of Native Americans in the Bay Area is grossly under-stated.
Not many people know about the shellmounds, despite that fact that many shellmounds are usually less than 15 minutes away from any place in the San Francisco Bay Area.
Gate-keeping, and white-washing exists in all facets of academia; and must be countered in every way reasonably possible. History should be based on fact. And sources needed to be vetted more often.
There must be a proactive effort to identify and protect Native American graves on private property; and to educate the public, and concerned persons, about the development, and usage of non-invasive sensing technology that requires no touch, and no digging.
The interface for said effort with private property owners and occupants should include reassurance that their land rights should not be infringed upon, either; but creating a permissive easement, and/or right-of-way for descendants, and tribal members to come visit with their ancestors is something that can go a long way in settling the affairs of the land.
Phase 2 of the Alameda Native History Project is a natural next-step for the project.
After gathering, compiling, indexing and aggregating information about the Alameda Shellmounds, it made sense to see where other shellmounds in the San Francisco Bay Region are.
“This phase of the project includes a lot of mapping, satellite imagery, and field research.
It’s the perfect mix of the things I love: travel, investigation, maps, and history.”
Gabriel Duncan, for the Alameda Native History Project
Mission: The Search for Undiscovered History
Objectives
Conform N.C. Nelson’s, “Map of the San Francisco Bay Region Showing Distribution of Shell Heaps” to the current geography of that same region. Fully plot, and find the geographic coordinates of the mounds marked as “still present”. [Completed.]
Use satellite, photogrammetry, Light Detection and Ranging, and other imaging available to analyze said coordinate for specific elevation and topographical qualities.
Make a list targets to investigate, and perform a preliminary investigation to determine if further focus is warranted.
I’ve been performing some copy editing, graphic art production, and user experience design, to make the website more user-friendly. Also because images can convey information in a way that is not as readily available as print.
I try to make sure to optimize for both Desktop and Mobile views. If you’re wondering why the website doesn’t look right in Tablet view, that’s why.
Aside from this being my first post in this category; this is to announce that I’ve finished working on the Alameda Shellmounds project pages, of the Alameda Native History Project section of this website. Woo!
The history of the Alameda Shellmounds, presented with research, and excerpts of historical sources, and some interpretation. The project is being presented on 3 pages. So, get your reading glasses, ready. I’ll also be making another page in the ANHP section specifically to showcase ANHP maps. Historical maps can be seen in the Alameda Native History Project Wiki.
