CSET Subtest 1: California History 1

Bering Strait

Many people believe this was once a land bridge connecting Russia and Alaska; the first Americans used this to settle in North America

California Indians

Spoke a great diversity of dialects. Largest concentration of Indians in North America. Similar physical traits and features. Primarily hunter/gatherer societies. Subsistence was based almost exclusively on availble resources.

When did the earliest peoples arrive in California?

About 15,000 years ago

Why were California's indigenous people isolated from the cultures that developed on the Great Plains?

Rugged topography: . mountains . deserts

Were California's indigenous people isolated from the cultures in Mexico?

Yes. It's the topography thing again.

Travel by foot within a region was easy or difficult?

Difficult--topography

Why did California have a patchwork of isolated and distinct tribal groupings?

Regional relations between groups were limited b/c travel was difficult

The geologic period during which people crossed the Bering Strait land bridge into North America?

Late Pleistocene or Early Ice Age 20,000 to 30,000 years ago

Is there controversy about when people arrived in California?

Yes. Evidence from the archaeological site at Calico could push the date to 50,000.

California Indian Language

Diverse set of dialects Remember the were isolated by the topography

Were there a large number of California Indians or a small number?

Large number: . Estimated: 150,000 - 300,000

How did the California Indian dwellings vary with location & climate?

North: frame & plank Southern desert: brush shelters Coast: earthen mounds

Relative to the Plains Indians, were the California Indians warlike?

No.

Were the weapons of the California Indians very sophisticated?

No. bow and arrow, obsidian points hunting blades, spears, harpoons, clubs, and throwing sticks

What did the California Indians eat?

Acorns . Oak trees were plentiful

Acorn Preparation

. dry . store . crack . leach before eating

Transportation reflected geographic factors. What 2 kinds of boats were used?

South: balsa & raft-type boats North: plank canoes

Shared heritage: How was lineage traced?

Paternal side

Shared heritage: What was smoked in ceremonies?

jimsonweed Native tobacco

Shared heritage: Were sweathouses used by men only or both men and women?

Men only

Shared heritage: Religions involved: . myths . creation stories annnnd

• Shamanism

• Influence of nature

Shaman

The single person who takes on the roles of priest, counselor, and physician and acts as a conduit to the supernatural world in a shamanist culture.

T/F: Shaman usually goes into a trance during rituals or when practicing divination & healing.

True

Shared heritage: Ceremonies dealt with turning points of life and rites of passage such as:

• Birth

• Death

• Puberty

• Marriage

• Hunting

Shared heritage: The fables, moral tales, included what animals?

Regional animals and natural phenomena: . coyote . raven . bear . snake . thunder

Shared heritage: Roles were sex differentiated:

Men: hunt, fish

Women: gather food & materials, killed small game

Shared heritage: Was the oral story tradition used?

Yes, by all California Indians

Northern California tribes

1. Yurok

2. Hupa

3. Modoc

4. Pomo

Central California tribes:

1. Maidu

2. Miwok

Coastal tribes:

1. Coastal Miwok

2. Esselen

3. Chumash

Desert tribes:

1. Mojave

2. Serrano

Sierra Nevada tribes:

1. Miwok

2. Mono

Material belongs found to be similar amongst the California Indians:

1. Subsistence agricultural implements

2. Receptacles

3. Musical instruments

4. Money

Examples of agricultural implements

• Mortar & pestle

• Metate

• Grinding slab

• Digging stick

Examples of receptacles

• Baskets--most famous

• Pottery

• Wood

• Stone bowls

Examples of musical instruments

• Drum

• Rattle

• Flute

• Rasp

• Bow

Examples of money

• Clam disks and Olivella shells

Spanish Conquest

Christopher Columbus convinced the King of Spain to sponsor his voyage to Asia by the Atlantic Ocean, and thus found the Americas. The Spanish took control of the Indians and began converting them to Catholicism. Soon, the Spanish slave trade started. Disease and malnutrition decimated the Indian population.

The Seven Cities of Cibola

The place were mythical North American towns supposedly so wealthy that streets were paved with gold.with Amazon like women who used golden weapons.

Why did Spain presume possession of California but pay it little attention?

Spain focussed on richer parts of empire in . Mexico . Peru . Phillipines

How did the Spanish end up exploring the Baja peninsula?

In 1530s Cortes was in search of Seven Cities of Cibola

What was Spain's reason to explore?

Conquest & Wealth

Cabrillo discovered what 4 spots?

1. San Diego Bay

2. Santa Barbara Islands

3. Point Conception

4. Point Reyes

What kind of passage was Cabrillo searching for?

A water passage between the Pacific and Atlantic

Sir Francis Drake

English explorer/pirate who circumnavigated the globe from 1577 to 1580 and was sent by Queen Elizabeth I to raid Spanish ships/settlements for gold

What inspired Spain to finally colonize California?

Drake's claim in 1579 and the threat by England

What were the next 2 safe harbors discovered by Spain at this time?

Monterey and San Francisco

Did Spain do much more colonization of California after finding Monterey & San Francisco?

Not so much for the next 100 years

What was Spain's response to Russian explorations?

Renewed Spain's interest in colonizing California

Russia was interest in what "product"

Fur

Fort Ross

Ivan Kuskov and a group of fur trapper built this fort near San Francisco., a trading post, near Bodega Bay, built by Russians in 1812. It was a base for sea otter hunters. they sold tools in exchange for salt, wheat, and other foods

Russian Fur interests in Alaska

Pushed southward

Who else, beside Spain, viewed Russian exploration as a threat?

American government

What was the US government's response to the Russian threat?

Monroe Doctrine

What was the purpose of the Monroe Doctrine?

Restricted European colonization of the Americas

How did Spain react to potential Russian, British, American presence?

Established presidios & pueblos in valleys around San Francisco Bay

What's a presidio?

Military fort

What's a pueblo?

Small settlement

Where did the Jesuits establish their 5 permanent settlements?

Baja in the early 1700's

Who established the missions along the El Camino Real?

Franciscan Friars

When did the Franciscan Friars complete the last mission?

1823

Where is the southern-most mission?

San Diego

Where is the northern-most mission?

Sonoma

How far between the 21 missions?

One day's journey

List 3 reasons Spain & the Franciscans built their missions.

1. Convert Indians to Christianity

2. Establish cultural & agricultural centers

3. Populate Alta California for Spain

How did Spain and the Church subdue the Indians?

"Both the sword and the cross were used to subdue the Indians"

Who is credited with developing the mission system?

Father Serra

Father Serra

The Spanish missionary who founded 21 missions in California, in 1769, he founded Mission San Diego, the first of the chain.

How are Serra's lasting contributions perceived?

Serra's contributions are controversial

What changed in the mission system in the 1830s?

The mission system began a secularization process

What was the result of the secularization of the mission system?

Most mission property was privately owned

Mission Summary: 3 Purposes for building the missions

1. Create permanent, self-sufficient Spanish settlements

2. Defend Spanish empire in Mexico

3. Convert indigenous people

Mission Summary: 3 Characteristics of the organization of the missions

1. Locate in areas w/high concentration native population

2. All buildings built with materials on hand

3. Each mission cultivated food

What foodstuffs were cultivated?

• Cereal Grains * Grapes

• Fruit * Olives

• Livestock

Mission Summary: 3 Positive Outcomes

1. Provided presidios w/food & goods

2. Some enjoyed great economic success

3. Gave Spanish a foothold in California

Mission Summary: 3 Negative Outcomes

1. Fatally exposed Indians to European diseases

2. Destroyed native culture

3. Exploited indigenous labor force

The Land-Grant System

The Spanish, and later the Méxican government encouraged settlement of territory now known as California by the establishment of large land grants called ranchos. Devoted to raising cattle and sheep, the owners of the ranchos attempted to pattern themselves after the landed gentry of Spain. Their workers included Californian Native Americans who had learned to speak Spanish, many of them former Mission residents. The ranchos established land-use patterns that are recognizable in the California of today.

Ranchos

Owned by Californios, huge properties in California worked by Native Americanss in return for food, shelter

Jedidiah Smith

Mountain man, trapper, and trader known for exploring the Rockies. He opened up the west with his discovery of the South Pass, which was wider and less steep than previous passes and which allowed wagon trails to run through it.

Kit Carson

United States frontiersman who guided Fremont's expeditions in the 1840s and served as a Union general in the Civil War (1809-1868), an American frontiersman. He gained notoriety for his role as John C. Fremont's guide in the American West.

John C. Fremont

Commissioned by the Senate to document and survey the west. His descriptions were to make the West look as nice as possible. His famous stories glorified the West and all the abundance of land and possible wealth, , Dashing explorer/adventurer who led the overthrow of Mexican rule in California after war broke out

Mexican American War

The Mexican-American War was an armed conflict between the United States and Mexico from 1846 to 1848 in the wake of the 1845 U.S. annexation of Texas. Mexico claimed ownership of Texas as a breakaway province and refused to recognize the secession and subsequent military victory by Texas in 1836.

The Bear Flag Revolt

A short-lived independence rebellion precipitated by American settlers in California's Sacramento Valley against Mexican authorities. The Americans issued a declaration of independence and hoisted a flag, white with a grizzly bear facing a red star. The innsurectionists elected Frémont to head the "Republic of California." The Republic was quick to fall. Commandor Sloat claimed California for the United States, and replaced the bear flag with the American flag.

The Treaty of Guadalupe Hildago

Ended the War with Mexico and included the Mexican Cession transfer of California and the future states of New Mexico, Arizona, Nevada, Colorado, Wyoming, Utah to U.S. control.

James W. Marshall

One of Sutter's employees; detected flakes of heavy yellow metal at the botton of a wooden canal used to divert water from the American River

Sutter's Fort

John Sutter was an immigrant that settled in California. He started a settlement called New Helvetia. he built a fort on land that the governer gave him, and people who crossed the Sierra Nevada sometimes ended up here.

John Sutter

An immigrant who was instrumental in the early settlement of Califonria by Americans, he had originally obtained his lands in Northern California through a Mexican grant. Gold was discovered by workmen excavating to build a sawmill on his land in the Sacramento Valley in 1848, touching off the California gold rush.

Gold Fever

The rush to secure gold, especially alluvial gold, in order to acquire immediate riches and the associated social status. New flood into Golden state, soon apply to become free state, tip the balance, set off sectional debate on slavery

The Compromise of 1850

Compromise that made . . .

1. California admitted as a free state

2. Fugitive Slave Law

3. Slave Trade banned in Washington 4.Popular Sovereignty in New Mexico and Utah

Transcontinental Railroad

Completed in 1869 at Promontory, Utah, it linked the eastern railroad system with California's railroad system, revolutionizing transportation in the west. Chinese on the Cental Pacific and Irish on the Union Pacific.

Railroad's Big Four

The Big Four was the name popularly given to the chief entrepreneurs in the building of the Central Pacific Railroad, the western portion of the First Transcontinental Railroad in the United States.However, the four of them preferred to be known as "The Associates". Controlled the railroad industry and California Politics

Bank of California

During the California economic depression of the 1870s, the collapse of this further weakened the California economy.

Chinese Exclusion Act

Law passed in 1882 that prohibited Chinese laborers from entering the country, but did not prevent entry of those who had previously established U.S. residence

Anti Chinese Sentiment

Anti-Chinese sentiment only increased when the completion of the transcontinental railroad freed up 9,000 Chinese laborers, fueling the hostility of American workers who, like the miners before them, resented Chinese immigrants for the economic competition they presented and blamed them for the bad economy.

Chinese Immigrants

Chinese immigrants began arriving in America in significant numbers in the 1850s, most from the southern provinces of China where war, persecution and famine caused the deaths of millions. American businessmen actively sought Chinese laborers in mines and other industries, using them to provide much of the labor for building the transcontinental railroads. While the Chinese were first praised as diligent workers, praise later turned to hostility as the railroad was completed and competition for other jobs increased. Anti-Chinese political activity and violence erupted between 1880-1900 throughout the West, resulting in scores of deaths.

Workingmans Party

Nativist, Anti-Chinese, and anti Big Business.

California Land Boom 1880's

The railroads ended the region's isolation. The railroad made transportation cheaper and easier, causing a land boom in the 1880s. During the "Boom of the 80s," thousands of farmers and opportunity seekers moved to southern California.

Yellow Peril

A supposed threat to the US posed by Japan and China. Fear of asian immigration and Japan's rising military power.