Native American Indian Tribes of Sonoma County
Sonoma County, also known as the wine country, and its total of approximately 1,800 square miles was officially founded in 1850. However, the area’s scenic beauty, rich soil, hospitable year-round climate and easy access to ocean and river fishing as well as plentiful hunting grounds attracted inhabitants for many centuries. The Pomo, the Coast Miwok, the Patwin and the Wappo Indian tribes were its earliest known and documented inhabitants dating as far back as 8,000 BC. And these early Native American Indian tribes who enjoyed their prosperous lives in peace and harmony until European settlers, most specifically the Spaniards, arrived in the 19th century.
The Pomo Indians …
The Pomo Indians were actually comprised of seventy smaller tribes each with its own language and distinct territory within the region. What quite literally wove them all together was their art – the art of basket weaving practiced by both men and women. Everything about their life styles, their cultures and their livelihoods were directly connected to their baskets and revolved around their crafting. The seventy basket making tribes of the Pomo Indians all utilized similar materials, used the same techniques and derived at shapes which were quite alike.
The Pomo Indians were invaded in the 18th century by brutal Russian fur-traders and, with the discovery of gold in 1848, by Americans. Their population was greatly reduced by murderous massacres, forced and debilitating labor as well as the white man’s diseases. Due to the American Indian Reservations and Trust Areas of 1996, today’s Pomo Indians acquired a federally protected reservation.
The Coast Miwok Indians …
The Coast