The History of Chumash Indian Tribe

The Chumash people lived in different times and have made their presence known throughout the California region. The points below shows the History of Chumash Indian Tribe timeline of the Chumash people. This timeline consists of detailed facts, dates and famous landmarks of the Chumash people, as well as what happened to this tribe during that specific year.

History of Chumash Indian Tribe

Following points show the History of Chumash Indian Tribe

  • AD 700: The Chumash people’s first settlement was in Santa Barbara Bay
  • 1542: Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo explores California, making the first European contact with the Chumash people and claiming the land for Spain.
  • 1769: A Spanish land expedition led by Gaspar de Portola left Baja California and reached the Santa Barbara Channel, a region situated by the Chumash, marks the second European engagement with the tribe.
  • 1770: Spanish started settling on the territory of the Chumash.
  • 1776: The Santa Barbara Mission was built and the Spanish mission system was established in Southern California
  • The 1790’s: The Spanish began raiding Chumash villages intending for the Chumash to convert and forcing them to work as slaves under Spanish missions.
  • 1796 – 1823: The Chumash are forcibly transferred to the following missions:
  • San Luis Obispo
  • Mission La Purisima
  • Mission Santa Ynez
  • Mission Santa Barbara
  • Mission San Buenaventura
  • The 1800’s: The Spanish completely devastated the Chumash culture
  • 1812: Massive earthquake occurred, creating tidal waves. Many Chumash moves further inland
  • 1821: Mexico wins its independence from Spain and takes control of the Chumash regions Alta and Baja California
  • 1824: The Chumash Revolt of 1824 occurred, involving Chumash revolutions at Missions Santa Ines, La Purisima, and Santa Barbara. The revolt was sparked due to the routine whipping of an Indian at the Santa Ynez mission, which escalated as Chumash rebelled against the ill-treatment and forced labor imposed by the Spanish priests and soldiers.
  • 1824: The uprising failed after four months of conflict. The Chumash leaders were then sentenced to 10 years of chain-gang labor
  • 1833: Cholera and Malaria epidemics break out, killing many Chumash people
  • 1833: American fur trappers discovered a village of Chumash living near Walker Pass who escaped from the Spanish settlements during the 1824 revolution
  • 1838: Smallpox breakout, spreads amongst the Chumash for a full year
  • 1838: The Alta California missions are closed as religious and farming communes
  • 1841: The California Trail opens for the first time
  • 1846: Applegate Trail opens
  • 1848: California is returned to the U.S.following the Treaty of Guadalupe
  • 1848: Gold was discovered at Sutter’s timber Mill, marking the beginning of the California Gold rush
  • 1848: The white settlers and gold prospectors brought more diseases to the Native Indians (including the Chumash) who settled in the neighboring areas of the westward trails

In History of Chumash Indian Tribe, during the 1800’s, people of the Chumash lived on the Zanjade Cota Reservation and then on the Santa Ynez Reservation in California.The Chumash Tribe was considered as one of the most famous Indian tribes in America. Their rich and tragic history deserves all the recognition to be studied and further documented.

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