Museum of Riverside

Gallery Talk

 

Spring Rancheria: A Transient Cahuilla Village in Early Riverside
Presentation by John Goodman, Archaeologist
June 7, 2015 | 2:00 - 3:30 pm | Riverside Metropolitan Museum | Free

Learn more about the Cahuilla Indians that resided on the outskirts of early Riverside along the Santa Ana River in the late 1800s. Speaker Archaeologist John Goodman, who led the excavation of the Cahuilla’s Spring Rancheria, will talk about how the Cahuilla Indians lived during the 1870s – 1890s and their attempts to assimilate into Angloamerican society. The presentation will begin at 2:00 pm and is free and open to the public. The Museum has a permanent display featuring artifacts from the excavation as well as a special exhibit, "Cahuilla Continuum" that tells the story of the Cahuilla people.

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About the Exhibit
The CAHUILLA CONTINUUM: TÚKU, ÍVAX, TÚLEKA*  exhibition tells the story of a Southern California Native people---the Cahuilla. The past, present, and future of this vital, indigenous community is brought to life through baskets, branding irons, ollas, regalia, paintings, photographs, and stories. The exhibit features over 160 objects from the Riverside Metropolitan Museum, National Museum of the American Indian, Cabazon Band of Mission Indians Cultural Museum, and private collectors with members of the Cahuilla community playing a pivotal role in both the development and production of the exhibition.

The Cahuilla say they have been in Southern California since the beginning of time. They have made inland Southern California their home-- taking care of the land, water, trees, plants, and animals. Adapting to life on the desert floor in the heat and on tops of mountains in the cold, their culture, language, and religion are an extension of their environment. Through their basketry, ceramics, songs, and dances, they preserve their heritage and teach their history and laws. In these ways, they prepare for the future. Within the last 25 years, a revitalization of Cahuilla culture has emerged and Cahuilla Continuum: Túku,  Ívax, Túleka is an extension of that idea and thought. There are nine federally-recognized Cahuilla reservations in Southern California: Agua Caliente, Augustine, Cahuilla, Cabazon, Los Coyotes, Morongo, Ramona, Santa Rosa, and Torres Martinez. Cahuilla also live on other reservations, all of which are actively preserving the natural resources of the state, their heritage, and their sovereignty for future generations.

 [*Yesterday, Today, Tomorrow]