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California Cultures > Native Americans

Added on 6/17/2008 By Calisphere View image

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Album California Cultures

Title: [Phelan with native Americans]
Contributing Institution: The Bancroft Library, University of California, Berkeley.

At the time of Spanish colonization in the late 1700s, California was home to more than 300,000 native people in more than 200 tribes. Their centuries-old way of life was brought to an end relatively quickly: native Californians soon established regular trading relationships with the Spanish, increasing coastal groups' power and prestige, giving them greater leverage in dealings with inland groups.

But Native Californians were not immune to Old World diseases. Smallpox, influenza, dysentery, malaria, measles, and syphilis spread from group to group. By 1848, such diseases had reduced California's native population by more than two-thirds. This catastrophic decline disrupted families, communities, and trading networks, weakening native resistance to Spanish, Mexican, and American intrusion.

For the complete selection of images, visit:
http://www.calisphere.universityofcalifornia.edu/calcultures/ethnic_groups/ethnic4.html

Learn more about the California Cultures Collection at:
http://www.calisphere.universityofcalifornia.edu/calcultures/

Calisphere is the University of California's free public gateway to a world of primary sources. More than 150,000 digitized items — including photographs, documents, newspaper pages, political cartoons, works of art, diaries, transcribed oral histories, advertising, and other unique cultural artifacts — reveal the diverse history and culture of California and its role in national and world history. Calisphere's content has been selected from the libraries and museums of the UC campuses, and from a variety of cultural heritage organizations across California. Visit Calisphere at: http://www.calisphere.org

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