Timeline

Confederated Tribes of the Goshute Reservation

Confederated Tribes of the Goshute Reservation Website: https://www.ctgr.us

Early History

Newe (the People)

"Goshutes are part of the Numic speaking peoples of the Uto-Aztecan language family ... Whether speaking individually or collectively, the Goshutes refer to each other as Newe (the People), and they consider themselves connected to an ancient common ancestry."

Connection to the Land

The Goshute people have a strong connection to their ancestral homelands. They share that they have been here since time immemorial and "believe that the Creator gave these lands [western Utah and eastern Nevada] to them, and they have a responsibility to maintain cultural connections to the land and resources."

Read more: 2011 Ethnographic Analysis

Ecology & Origin Stories

"These Numic-speaking peoples [Goshute & Paiute] further stipulate that because they have lived in these lands since the end of the Pleistocene and throughout the Holocene (a period of approximately 15,000 years), they deeply understand dramatic shifts in climate and ecology that have occurred over these millennia ...

These traditional ecological understandings are carried from generation to generation through the recounting of origin stories occurring in Mythic Times and by strict cultural and natural resource conservation rules."

Read more: 2011 Ethnographic Analysis

The Goshute Name

The word Goshute itself, refers to the Newe, but the word Goshute means "people of the desert." Since time immemorial, the Goshute have inhabited the Great Basin Desert in Western Utah and Eastern Nevada.

Many other words have been associated with the Goshute people, due to the language barrier at the time of white settlement. Words like Goship, Gutsipiuti, Kutsipiuti, Go-shoot, and Go-sh-yuta were created because white settlers could not understand the traditional word for Goshute, Gosiutta. Gosiutta (Go-see-uta) is the proper, traditional way to say the Goshute name today. As a greeting, the Goshute would refer to themselves as the Gosiutta Newe.

Source: Charlene Pete (CTGR-Education Director Education Dept. & Library)

Mistakenly Called "Gray-Utes"

Another misunderstanding of the Goshute name occurred as a result of the westward travel of settlers. During this time, it was common for Goshutes to spread gray mud clay on their skin as sunscreen, treatment for mosquito bites, bug bites, or rashes, and for other medicinal purposes. Having met the Utes in Eastern Utah, settlers automatically believed that all tribal people were Utes and began calling the Goshute people Gray-Utes.

Source: Charlene Pete (CTGR-Education Director Education Dept. & Library)

Goshute Leadership

"The Goshute understood that only "small family groups were able to survive in western Utah because of the harsh desert climate. The Goshute lived in informal band groups with loosely defined leadership. Often leadership formation was oriented to a particular activity such as a communal hunt ... " Familial leaders were typically fathers, grandfathers, uncles or other male relatives.

Source: Charlene Pete (CTGR-Education Director Education Dept. & Library)

Surviving in the Desert

"Through the centuries the Goshute developed a culture that adapted and thrived in the desert. They constructed wickiups [kahni] or brush shelters; gathered seasonal seeds, pine nuts, grasses, and roots; collected insects, larvae, and small reptiles; and hunted antelope, deer, rabbits and other small mammals. They stored nuts and dried meats to survive the winter months."

Travel Essential to Ecological Harmony

The Goshute traveled throughout their ancestral homelands following the seasons, the natural production of food, and the presence of water. In this way, they lived in harmony with the land. This lifestyle benefited the Goshute and protected the ecological landscape in which they lived.

Source: Charlene Pete (CTGR-Education Director Education Dept. & Library)

Festivals Marked Key Seasonal Events

The Goshute, Shoshone, Paiute, and Pahvant held festivals at Bahsahwahbee (Swamp Cedars) principally in the spring of the year. " ... Spring Valley Festival sites played a key role in the Festivals for all of the Villages and subsistence areas of eastern Nevada." (pg. 11)

Festivals lasted for many days and included dancing, socializing, and trading. Dances were also held at other times of the year, especially during pine nut gathering in the fall. (p. 14)

Read more: 2011 Ethnographic Analysis

Pine Nut Harvest

Pine nuts are harvested in September or October and the harvest period is typically three weeks or less. There is no ownership of pine nut areas due to the variable nature of the harvest. Sometimes families would have to travel 50 miles or more to find a crop of pine nuts and this harvest was directed by family leaders.

Source: Charlene Pete (CTGR-Education Director Education Dept. & Library)

Read more: 2011 Ethnographic Analysis

Benefits of a Desert Home

In addition to the challenges that came from living in a desert, the harsh desert landscape also "provided an effective barrier against white encroachment until the middle of the nineteenth century ... " However, " ... the Goshutes did encounter transient trappers, emigrants, and slave traders in their territory before that period" as well as shamans from different tribes."

Source: Charlene Pete (CTGR-Education Director Education Dept. & Library)

1830

Slave Raids

"While they encountered few whites, the Goshute were not unaffected by [the] Spanish settlement of New Mexico. They were the frequent victims of slave raids [by the Spanish and other tribes] between 1830 and 1859."

1850s

Mormon Settlers

"Major white settlement began in the 1850s with the arrival of the Mormons. Permanent settlements encroached upon Goshute lands and resources, upsetting the careful ecological balance the Indians had cultivated. Mormon settlement also displaced nearby Ute Indians, who, after 1854, were forced from their homeland around Utah Lake and began encroaching on Goshute territory. Facing competition for scarce natural resources, the Goshute responded by raiding Mormon settlements and stealing livestock. Mormons responded by raiding Goshute encampments to retrieve stolen goods, sometimes resulting in Indian casualties."

1859

Bahsahwahbee (Swamp Cedars) Massacre of 1859

"Hostilities between starving Indigenous people in the Spring Valley region and EuroAmericans simmered until sometime during 1859 or 1860 when Colonel Patrick E. Conner of the California Volunteers stationed at Fort Ruby in the nearby Ruby Valley ordered the unqualified killing of the Shoshone. According to several sources, U.S. Cavalry soldiers slaughtered more than 350 [Goshute and] Shoshone in a single event that occurred near the swamp cedars."

Sacred Ground

The Bahsahwahbee (Swamp Cedars), in Spring Valley, " is utterly unique and meaningful to the cultural and spiritual identity of the Newe. The spiritual integrity of Bahsahwahbee remains strong with the Tribes. Virginia Sanchez of the Duckwater Shoshone Tribe offered the following:

I heard this story from my mother: You do not touch that area. The spirits of the people that died being massacred, they were not soldiers. It was the soldiers that killed them. Their spirits are yet there. And it's connected to the ... water and the swamp cedars. If the spirit and resources die, [they] are changed dramatically, [and] we cannot preserve our culture. And we as tribal people cannot live with that." (p.2)

Government Farm at Deep Creek

"Federal authorities established a government farm at Deep Creek for the Goshutes in 1859, but the project was abandoned by the next year." Establishing farming as a way of life for the Goshute worked against their traditional lifestyle and the natural balance they had already established with their environment.

Source: Charlene Pete (CTGR-Education Director Education Dept. & Library)

1860s

Transition to Farming

"The Goshutes, who had always been extremely skilled and efficient in their use of wild plants, took up farming as early as the 1860s. In the reservation period, federal agents promoted agriculture as a means of "civilizing" the Goshutes, but their desert lands generally could not support self-sufficient farming. Without a strong economic base, unemployment and poverty have been constant problems on the reservations."

Farming in the Desert

Farming in the desert came with many challenges both natural and man-made. The previously established plants traditionally consumed by the Goshute were located around waterways. Unfortunately, their designated "farmland" and "ranches" were located in drier areas. They were also unfamiliar with the animals they were given to ranch. The natural balance of traditional plants was destroyed as animals trampled and ate the natural grasses and plants. They couldn't subsist on the land because the land was being changed with new plants and animals.

Source: Charlene Pete (CTGR-Education Director Education Dept. & Library)

1860

White Encroachment and Conflict

The Pony Express started on April 3, 1860. A year later in 1861, a telegraph station was placed in Ibapah, Utah. These were indicators of a wider encroachment occurring on Goshute land.

"From the Indians' viewpoint, their fragile home was being encroached upon more and more frequently. Their natural food supply was disappearing. Stations and farms were built near water and fish sources. Game was driven away or killed by the settlers and emigrants. The government was not consistent with the Indian farm or other promises made to them. It was easier to steal and plunder from the whites and seemed very justifiable. Misjustice (sic) was returned in like manner (Bateman 1984:74)." (p. 18)

1863

Bahsahwahbee (Swamp Cedars) Massacre of 1863

"The Overland Goshute War began in 1863, and on May 16 of that year, U.S. Cavalry soldiers killed 23 Goshutes among the swamp cedars but were largely thwarted by the marshy conditions, according to historical accounts."

October 12, 1863

1863 Goship Friendship Treaty

"Attacks on the Pony Express and Overland Stage, which ran through traditional Goshute territory, resulted in an 1863 treaty between the Goshutes and the federal government to allow peaceful travel through Goshute country. The Goshute did not cede any of their territory in the treaty, but federal officials were intent on removing the Indians."

Although, the treaty is known as the 1863 Goship Friendship Treaty, the results of the treaty did great harm to the Goshute people and their traditional lifestyle. Treaties like this were problematic because the familial organization of the Goshutes made tribal representation challenging. Of note, the first Native signature on the treaty is "Tabby," a Ute chief.

Read more: Utah American Indian Digital Archives/History
Read the text of the 1863 Treaty HERE
Read image of the 1863 Treaty HERE

1864

Attempts to Remove Goshutes from Ancestral Land

"Between 1864 and 1912 the government undertook efforts to remove the Goshutes to the Uintah Basin, Idaho, Nevada, and Oklahoma, ... ". During these multiple attempts, when the government tried to remove them, the Goshutes would escape and return to their native lands. After 60 years of fighting to remain on their homeland," ... the Goshutes [finally] received reservation land in their native Utah.

1884

Goshute Profile: Maude Moon

"Maude Moon (nee McGill), was born at Chin Creek, Nevada" in 1884. "She never learned English, in spite of the fact that she played with white children. While in her teens, her father died, and she and her mother and sister (her other siblings had since died) moved to Goshute, where she lived the rest of her life."

She was a gifted storyteller and her oral histories and those of others are essential to carrying on the Goshute language and culture.

Read more: Shoshone Language Project
Photo credit: University of Utah Press

1897

Bahsahwahbee (Swamp Cedars) Massacre of 1897

"In 1897, it is believed that vigilantes massacred an untold number of Native people in the Spring Valley near the cedars." Most of the massacres that occurred at Bahsahwahbee (Swamp Cedars) in Spring Valley occurred during festivals or other large gatherings. These attacks, by the federal government and vigilantes, greatly affected the Goshute people, creating more distrust of non-Goshute people.

1914

Deep Creek Reservation Established

In 1914, a permanent Goshute Indian Reservation was established south of Ibapah, Utah. "The creation of reservations ensured the Goshute's ownership of [a very small portion of] their traditional homeland, but the reservations also brought Indian agents and federal employees with the mission of reordering Goshute life along a white model." This was a significant event in causing the Goshute to give up their natural ways.

Source: Charlene Pete (CTGR-Education Director Education Dept. & Library)

1915 to 1955

1st Goshute Day School

In 1915, right below the Deep Creek Mountains, the government established a log cabin school to teach the Goshutes about "white culture as well as vocational skills including carpentry, basic farming, and livestock production. Girls were instructed in basic domestic skills to be used in their own homes as well as in working for whites." (p. 114) The focus of the school was to assimilate the Goshute children into western society and many children were resistant to attend. Not all children attended the Day School. Some chose to attend boarding schools, and some chose not to attend school at all. In 1955, the Day School burned down and a little white schoolhouse was built near the Tribal Offices.

You can see a list of the teachers who taught at this school in the Deep Creek Reflections book by Ronald Bateman. (p. 297, LINK to book)

Source: Charlene Pete (CTGR-Education Director Education Dept. & Library)

Read more: Utah Division of State History and Utah History Encyclopedia and A History of Tooele County. See an image of the Goshute Day School HERE

1917

Goshute Draft Resistance

During World War I, Native Americans were exempt from military service, however, they were still required to register. "The irony of enrolling themselves for potential military conscription after years of federal neglect was not lost on the Deep Creek Goshutes." Having established a reservation just three years prior after fighting for 60 years to remain on their original land, the requirement to register for military service created more contention between the federal government and the Goshute people.

June 18, 1934

Goshute Federal Corporation

The Corporate Charter of the Confederated Tribes of the Goshute Reservation was written on June 18, 1934, and ratified on March 29, 1941. John Syme was elected as the first Tribal Chair and helped write the corporate charter. In addition to the organization of their reservation in 1914, the election of a Tribal Council and Chair was an important transition from familial leadership to a collective governing body.

"Through perseverance, integrity and faith, the Goshute Federal Corporation's mission is to empower its people through creating sustainable and profitable business developments."

1939

Reservation Expanded

"The Deep Creek reservation was expanded to include the Eight Mile, Goldsmith, and Gash ranches in 1939."

1940s-1960s

Complications of Federal Recognition

The imposition of western land ownership & organization on Native groups has complicated the lives of current Confederated Tribes of the Goshute Reservation (CTGR) members. This is especially challenging for the CTGR and the Skull Valley Goshute. When these two groups were federally recognized, they chose to organize separately.

Charlene Pete (1961-), is from Shoshone ancestry. Her mother registered as a Skull Valley Goshute and her father registered in the Confederated Tribes of the Goshute Reservation. Charlene is registered with the CTGR, but her siblings are registered with the Skull Valley Goshute because their registration was more openly accessible at the time they were born. As a result of this, her siblings (born in the 1940s & 1950s) must connect with the Skull Valley Goshute to receive support and Native resources and cannot receive them through the CTGR.

Source: Charlene Pete (CTGR-Education Director Education Dept. & Library)

November 25, 1940

Constitution and Bylaws

Federal recognition of tribal sovereignty took place when a reservation was established for the Confederated Tribes of the Goshute Reservation in 1914 and in 1940 when their Constitution and By-Laws were ratified. Integral to the survival of Native Americans is their sovereignty. Although Tribal sovereignty predates the formation of the United States, the recognition of their sovereignty through federal recognition is necessary to guide interactions between these two sovereign states.

1949

Reservation Expanded

In 1949, a bill was passed expanding the Confederated Tribes of the Goshute Reservation by approximately 9,000 acres. The additional land, located between Tooele and Juab counties, serve as grazing land and provide better connection between the two counties for the Goshute people.

Mid 1900s

Boarding Schools

In the mid-1900s, many children chose or were forced to attend boarding schools including schools in Carson City, Nevada; San Bernardino, California and even the Dakotas. The focus of the boarding schools was on "assimilation" and on the teaching of trades over other subjects. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints also placed Native children in homes through their Indian Placement Program (IPP).

Source: Charlene Pete (CTGR-Education Director Education Dept. & Library)

1955

2nd Goshute Day School

When the first log Goshute Day School burned down in 1955, a new little white schoolhouse was built approximately 9 miles to the north near the tribal offices, closer to Ibapah.

More information about the school can be found in the Deep Creek Reflections book by Ronald Bateman. (p. 297, LINK to book)

Charlene Pete (CTGR-Education Director Education Dept. & Library)

1967

Maude Moon "Seasons" Recording

Maude Moon "was a well-known, prolific storyteller of traditional stories, characterized by their lyrical quality, rich dialogue, and complex vocabulary. A number of the narratives are ethnographic in nature and reflect her deep understanding of traditional lifestyle, including foraging practices, healthy living, life as a traditional Goshute woman, and her thoughtful reflections on how European contact had negatively affected her people. Her stories attracted the attention of scholars and, beginning in 1967, Professor Wick R. Miller at the University of Utah audio-recorded 42 narratives from Mrs. Moon..." Below you can click to listen to the recording of her retelling of "Seasons."

Listen to Audio

Transcript

Late 1960s

Ibapah Elementary

Having a school in Ibapah has been integral to keeping Goshute families together. Ibapah has had a schoolhouse since 1883 where local white ranching families attended. This was not on the Goshute reservation and Goshute children were not allowed to attend this school until 1969. At that time, Ibapah Elementary and the little white Goshute Day school were combined and Goshute families had to drive their children to Ibapah Elementary to attend school.

Rosa Naranjo, a Goshute tribal member who attended college returned and taught at Ibapah Elementary from 1975-1977. A new Ibapah Elementary School is currently under construction and will replace the 1961 building in 2022.

More information about the school can be found in the Deep Creek Reflections book by Ronald Bateman. (p. 297, LINK to book)

Source: Charlene Pete (CTGR-Education Director Education Dept. & Library)

1969

20th Century Developments

"In the second half of the twentieth century, lack of economic opportunity led the Goshutes to seek outside development. A now-defunct steel fabrication plant opened at Deep Creek in 1969. The Confederated Tribes of the Goshute Reservation currently manages an elk herd, and profits from the sale of hunting permits go back to the tribe."

1970s

Compensation for Land & Mineral Rights

In the 1970s, the Confederated Tribes of the Goshute Reservation (CTGR) appealed to the U.S. Government for compensation for approximately 6 million acres of aboriginal land taken from them as a result of the unfair Goship Friendship Treaty of 1863. Not only did they lose hunting and fishing access to this land but a significant amount of minerals were removed from the land, mostly silver.

The CTGR were awarded approximately $7 million in compensation for the land and the mineral rights. Initially, the Goshutes rejected this small award that totaled only $1 per acre of land but due to the pressing tribal needs and protracted court battle, they eventually accepted the settlement.

Source: Charlene Pete (CTGR-Education Director Education Dept. & Library)

Turning Point

The receipt of approximately $7 million compensation for their land and mineral rights was a major turning point for the Confederated Tribes of the Goshute Reservation. Although it was a sadly small amount of compensation for the land and resources they lost, these funds were essential for the survival and future self-determination of the Goshute. The funds were used to replace their small, worn tribal government building and to provide expanded essential services for tribal members. Additional tribal members were hired to meet enrollment, social service, educational, environmental, welfare and administrative needs. Education was especially important, and many tribal members attended college with these funds.

Source: Charlene Pete (CTGR-Education Director Education Dept. & Library)

1984

Reservation Expanded Again

"In 1984, the reservation grew again with the purchase of the Will Cession homestead and the Kelly Ranch. Today, the reservation covers approximately 112,870 acres of land in White Pine County, Nevada and the Juab and Tooele Counties of Utah."

1989

U.S. Military ECTC Proposal

In 1989, the U.S. military sought to construct Electronic Combat Test Capability facilities (ECTC) within the reservation land of the Confederated Tribes of the Goshute Reservation (CTGR). Being so close to the other military facilities and frequently experiencing disturbing flight traffic, the CTGR were concerned with the impact on their people, structures, land and elk herd. The elk restocking program on Ibapah Mountain was a long and painstaking process and would be sensitive to air traffic.

No military facilities were built on the CTGR land but conversations about the facilities led to more respectful use of the airspace over the reservation and fewer "fly-bys." This has also facilitated the exchange of information about Native artifacts that have been found on federally owned military land. Because of these conversations, a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) was agreed upon by both the CTGR and the air force. Memoranda such as these are important examples of how Native American sovereignty has been expressed and respected.

Source: Charlene Pete (CTGR-Education Director Education Dept. & Library)

August 1, 1996

Protection of Sacred Land

On August 1, 1996, the Senate passed a law allowing for the exchange of approximately 7000 acres along the southern border of the Goshute reservation. The addition of these lands was significant for protecting objects and land of great cultural significance including antiquities and sacred gathering places.

Source: Charlene Pete (CTGR-Education Director Education Dept. & Library)

1997

Nuclear Rod Storage

Even after the establishment of reservation land, encroachment onto Native land and resources has continued. In the 1990s, a Private Fuel Storage company came to the Confederated Tribes of the Goshute Reservation to build a fuel storage installation on their land that would store spent nuclear rods from various nuclear power plants throughout the U.S. They strongly opposed the construction of this facility citing safety and ecological concerns. In the end, it was not built on CTGR land.

2006

BIA Signs Away Goshute Right to Protest

The stated purpose of the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) is to work on behalf of Native groups; however, the BIA's decisions do not always reflect the wishes of the Native groups they represent. One of these examples is the protection of Native water rights in Nevada. In 2006, the Goshutes began a lengthy and protracted fight for their water rights that still continues today. This fight began when the BIA failed to consult with them and signed away their right to protest the removal of their water.

2011

Protest Against Transfer of Water Rights

For five years, the Confederated Tribes of the Goshute Reservation fought just for the opportunity to protest the removal of their water rights. Although applications for water rights were first filed by the Southern Nevada Water Authority (SNWA) in 1989, they were not officially acted on until 2006. It took another five years of legal battles just to give the Goshutes the chance to legally protest SNWA's removal of water from their land. (p. 1-8)

July 1, 2011

Aipimpa Book Shared as Evidence in Water Hearing

The value of water to the Confederated Tribes of the Goshute Reservation (CTGR) is understood by even the youngest members of their community. At a six-week evidentiary hearing in the summer of 2011, the CTGR presented testimonies and evidence of the negative impact water removal would have. This included the book, Aipimpa, created by Ibapah school children. Aipimpa, the chalky creek that winds through the valley, like the Goshute language, is essential to their survival and threatened by modern encroachment

By Ibapah Elementary Students and Staff

Read the book: Aipimpa

2012

Water Taken with "Mitigation"

Unfortunately, despite arguments detailing the irreparable harm taking water from Spring Valley would do, the Southern Nevada Water Authority (SNWA) was allowed to proceed with their pipeline with a mitigation plan. In later hearings, it became clear that the SNWA mitigation plan was not based on good data and mitigation efforts wouldn't even begin until irreparable damage had occurred. (p. 12-30)

As described by one of the attorneys regarding the mitigation plan: "A declaration of good intentions is all it is. There is no proof that it can do anything to avert disaster."

February 20, 2014

Lawsuit Challenging 2012 Decision

Recognizing that they could not trust federal agencies to represent their best interests, the Confederated Tribes of the Goshute Reservation joined a "broad coalition of Tribes, ranchers, farmers and environmentalists" suing the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and the federal Department of the Interior (DOI) challenging the BLM's decision to allow the pipeline to move forward.

"Without any notification or government-to-government consultation, federal agencies signed away our Tribal rights and resources by entering Stipulated Agreements with SNWA," Chairwoman Greymountain continued. "In fact, they withdrew Tribal protests in the Nevada State Engineer's proceeding without the Tribe's consent," she added.

2015

Sacred Circle Healthcare Clinic

The Goshute people take very seriously the rights and responsibilities that are inherent in their sovereign government. One of these responsibilities is providing healthcare for their people and other Native groups, including Alaska Natives and any others who seek their services.

Sacred Circle Healthcare became a CTGR entity in 2015 with four offices in Utah-two offices in Salt Lake City, one in West Valley and one in Ibapah.

Their mission: "Preserving the Goshute heritage of protecting and caring for family, we extend that tradition to all underserved populations in our local communities. We refuse to let access, ethnicity, or socioeconomic status restrict someone from receiving complete healthcare."

2019

The Fight to Protect Sacred Land

The Las Vegas water pipeline battle is a life-or-death fight for the Goshute as they seek to preserve their water rights. Not only is water essential to their survival, but it also supports a sacred stand of trees where three massacres of the Goshute people have occurred.

"American Indians, we're very resilient. We've lived through very hard times. We survived ... but taking our water away? I'm not sure we can survive that." ~Rupert Steele (Chairman, Confederated Tribes of the Goshute Reservation)

Click the link below to read the article and watch the video:

Reno Gazette Journal