The Barona Group of Capitan Grande Band of Mission Indians of the Barona Reservation is a federally recognized tribe of

Kumeyaay The Kumeyaay, also known as Tipai-Ipai or by their historical Spanish name Diegueño, is a tribe of Indigenous peoples of the Americas who live at the northern border of Baja California in Mexico and the southern border of California in the Unit ...

Indians, who are sometimes known as

Mission Indians Mission Indians are the indigenous peoples of California who lived in Southern California and were forcibly relocated from their traditional dwellings, villages, and homelands to live and work at 15 Franciscan missions in Southern California and ...

Reservations

In 1875, the tribe along with the

Viejas Group of Capitan Grande Band of Mission Indians The Viejas (Baron Long) Group of Capitan Grande Band of Mission Indians of the Viejas Reservation, also called the Viejas Band of Kumeyaay Indians, is a federally recognized tribe of Kumeyaay Indians. Reservations In 1875, the Viejas Band share ...

, controls the

Capitan Grande Reservation The Capitan Grande Reservation is a Kumeyaay Indian reservation in San Diego County, California, jointly controlled by the Barona Group of Capitan Grande Band of Mission Indians and Viejas Group of Capitan Grande Band of Mission Indians. The reser ...

, which consisted of barren, uninhabitable mountain lands. The

El Capitan Reservoir El Capitan Reservoir is a reservoir in central San Diego County, California. It is in the Cuyamaca Mountains, about northeast of the city of San Diego and two miles northwest of the town of Alpine. The reservoir is formed by El Capitan Dam ...

, forcibly purchased from the two tribes to provide water for

San Diego San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the List of United States cities by population, eigh ...

, submerged what habitable land existed on the reservation. The two tribes jointly control this reservation. It is undeveloped but serves as an ecological preserve. The Barona Reservation () is a federal

Indian reservation An Indian reservation is an area of land held and governed by a federally recognized Native American tribal nation whose government is accountable to the United States Bureau of Indian Affairs and not to the state government in which it ...

located in

San Diego County, California San Diego County (), officially the County of San Diego, is a county in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 3,298,634, making it California's second-most populous county and the fi ...

, near Lakeside and the

Cleveland National Forest Cleveland National Forest encompasses 460,000 acres (), mostly of chaparral, with a few riparian areas. A warm dry mediterranean climate prevails over the forest. It is the southernmost U.S. National Forest of California. It is administered by ...

. It takes its name from the Mexican land grant Cañada de San Vicente y Mesa del Padre Barona, named in turn after Padre José Barona, a friar at

Mission San Diego de Alcalá Mission Basilica San Diego de Alcalá ( es, Misión San Diego de Alcalá) was the second Franciscan founded mission in The Californias (after San Fernando de Velicata), a province of New Spain. Located in present-day San Diego, California, it ...

from 1798 until he transferred to Mission San Juan Capistrano in 1811. Founded in 1932, the reservation covers . Much of the highland valley has good farmland, the reservation hosts several ranches, a chapel, tribal offices, community center, and ball park, created by the tribe. In 1973, 125 of the 156 enrolled members lived on the reservation. The nearest community is

San Diego Country Estates San Diego Country Estates, commonly referred to as ''the Estates'', is a valley resort populace composed of several neighborhoods associated with the unincorporated community of Ramona, California. The Estates are a census-designated place in No ...

, which adjoins the reservation's northeast side.

Government

The Barona Band of Mission Indians is headquartered in

Lakeside, California Lakeside is a census designated place (CDP) in San Diego County, California. The population was 20,648 at the 2010 census, up from 19,560 as of the 2000 census. History Lakeside was home to the Kumeyaay prior to European contact, who cal ...

. They are governed by a democratically elected, seven-person tribal council, who serve four-year terms. As of January 2021, the council members are: * Raymond Welch, Chairman * Mary Beth Glasco, Vice-Chairwoman * Delia Castillo, Councilwoman * Clayton Curo, Councilman * Tawyna Phoenix, Councilwoman * Manuel Navarro, Councilman * Joseph Yeats, Councilman

Economic development

The tribe owns and operates the Barona Resort and Casino, AmBience Day Spa, Barona Creek Golf Club, Barona Steakhouse, Sage Café, Seasons Fresh Buffet, HoWan Noodle Shop, and several other restaurants, all in Lakeside.

Bibliography

* * * *

References

External links

Barona Band of Mission Indians
official website {{authority control Kumeyaay California Mission Indians Native American tribes in San Diego County, California Native American tribes in California Federally recognized tribes in the United States East County (San Diego County)