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Jicarilla Apache (,
Jicarilla language Jicarilla ( apj, Abáachi mizaa) is an Eastern Southern Athabaskan language spoken by the Jicarilla Apache. History The traditional homelands of the Jicarilla Apache (Tinde) were located in the northeast and eastern regions of New Mexico. The ...
: Jicarilla Dindéi), one of several loosely organized autonomous bands of the Eastern
Apache The Apache () are a group of culturally related Native American tribes in the Southwestern United States, which include the Chiricahua, Jicarilla, Lipan, Mescalero, Mimbreño, Ndendahe (Bedonkohe or Mogollon and Nednhi or Carrizaleño an ...
, refers to the members of the Jicarilla Apache Nation currently living in
New Mexico ) , population_demonym = New Mexican ( es, Neomexicano, Neomejicano, Nuevo Mexicano) , seat = Santa Fe , LargestCity = Albuquerque , LargestMetro = Tiguex , OfficialLang = None , Languages = English, Spanish ( New Mexican), Navajo, Ker ...
and speaking a
Southern Athabaskan language Southern Athabaskan (also Apachean) is a subfamily of Athabaskan languages spoken primarily in the Southwestern United States (including Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, and Utah) with two outliers in Oklahoma and Texas. The language is spoken to a ...
. The term ''jicarilla'' comes from
Mexican Spanish Mexican Spanish ( es, español mexicano) is the variety of Dialect, dialects and Sociolect, sociolects of the Spanish language spoken in Mexican territory. Mexico has the largest number of Spanish speakers, with more than twice as many as in a ...
meaning "little basket", referring to the small sealed baskets they used as drinking vessels. To neighboring Apache bands, such as the
Mescalero Mescalero or Mescalero Apache ( apm, Naa'dahéńdé) is an Apache tribe of Southern Athabaskan–speaking Native Americans. The tribe is federally recognized as the Mescalero Apache Tribe of the Mescalero Apache Reservation, located in south-cen ...
and Lipan, they were known as ''Kinya-Inde'' ("People who live in fixed houses"). The Jicarilla called themselves also ''Haisndayin'' translated as "people who came from below". because they believed themselves to be the sole descendants of the first people to emerge from the underworld, the abode of Ancestral Man and Ancestral Woman, who produced the first people. The Jicarilla believed ''Hascin'', their chief deity, was responsible for the creation of Ancestral Man and Ancestral Woman and also for the creation of the animals and the sun and moon. The Jicarilla Apache lived in a seminomadic existence in the
Sangre de Cristo Mountains ) , country= United States , subdivision1_type= States , subdivision1= , parent= Rocky Mountains , geology= , orogeny= , area_mi2= 17193 , range_coordinates= , length_mi= 242 , length_orientation= north-south , width_mi= 120 , w ...
and plains of southern
Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of t ...
and northern
New Mexico ) , population_demonym = New Mexican ( es, Neomexicano, Neomejicano, Nuevo Mexicano) , seat = Santa Fe , LargestCity = Albuquerque , LargestMetro = Tiguex , OfficialLang = None , Languages = English, Spanish ( New Mexican), Navajo, Ker ...
, and ranged into the
Great Plains The Great Plains (french: Grandes Plaines), sometimes simply "the Plains", is a broad expanse of flatland in North America. It is located west of the Mississippi River and east of the Rocky Mountains, much of it covered in prairie, steppe, an ...
starting before 1525 CE. They lived a relatively peaceful life for years, traveling seasonally to traditional hunting, gathering and cultivation along river beds. The Jicarilla learned about farming and pottery from the
Puebloan peoples The Puebloans or Pueblo peoples, are Native Americans in the Southwestern United States who share common agricultural, material, and religious practices. Currently 100 pueblos are actively inhabited, among which Taos, San Ildefonso, Acoma, Zun ...
and learned about survival on the plains from the
Plains Indians Plains Indians or Indigenous peoples of the Great Plains and Canadian Prairies are the Native American tribes and First Nation band governments who have historically lived on the Interior Plains (the Great Plains and Canadian Prairies) of N ...
and had a rich and varied diet and lifestyle. The Jicarilla's farming practices expanded to the point where they required considerable time and energy. As a result, the people became rather firmly settled and tended to engage in warfare less frequently than did other Eastern Apache groups. Starting in the 1700s colonial
New Spain New Spain, officially the Viceroyalty of New Spain ( es, Virreinato de Nueva España, ), or Kingdom of New Spain, was an integral territorial entity of the Spanish Empire, established by Habsburg Spain during the Spanish colonization of the Am ...
, pressure from other Native American tribes, such as the
Comanches The Comanche or Nʉmʉnʉʉ ( com, Nʉmʉnʉʉ, "the people") are a Native American tribe from the Southern Plains of the present-day United States. Comanche people today belong to the federally recognized Comanche Nation, headquartered in La ...
, and later
westward expansion The United States of America was created on July 4, 1776, with the U.S. Declaration of Independence of thirteen British colonies in North America. In the Lee Resolution two days prior, the colonies resolved that they were free and independe ...
of the
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
resulted in significant loss of property, expulsion from their sacred lands, and relocation to lands not suited for survival. The mid-1800s until the mid-1900s were particularly difficult, as tribal bands were displaced, treaties made and broken, subject to significant loss of life due to
tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease usually caused by '' Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body. Most infections show no symptoms, in ...
and other diseases, and lack of opportunities for survival. By 1887, they received their reservation, which was expanded in 1907 to include land more conducive to ranching and agriculture, and within several decades, they realized the rich
natural resources Natural resources are resources that are drawn from nature and used with few modifications. This includes the sources of valued characteristics such as commercial and industrial use, aesthetic value, scientific interest and cultural value. O ...
of the
San Juan Basin The San Juan Basin is a geologic structural basin located near the Four Corners region of the Southwestern United States. The basin covers 7,500 square miles and resides in northwestern New Mexico, southwestern Colorado, and parts of Utah a ...
under the reservation land. Tribal members transitioned from a seminomadic lifestyle and are now supported by their
oil and gas A fossil fuel is a hydrocarbon-containing material formed naturally in the Earth's crust from the remains of dead plants and animals that is extracted and burned as a fuel. The main fossil fuels are coal, oil, and natural gas. Fossil fuels ...
,
casino A casino is a facility for certain types of gambling. Casinos are often built near or combined with hotels, resorts, restaurants, retail shopping, cruise ships, and other tourist attractions. Some casinos are also known for hosting live entertai ...
gaming,
forestry Forestry is the science and craft of creating, managing, planting, using, conserving and repairing forests, woodlands, and associated resources for human and environmental benefits. Forestry is practiced in plantations and natural stands. Th ...
,
ranch A ranch (from es, rancho/Mexican Spanish) is an area of land, including various structures, given primarily to ranching, the practice of raising grazing livestock such as cattle and sheep. It is a subtype of a farm. These terms are most often ...
ing, and
tourism Tourism is travel for pleasure or business; also the theory and practice of touring (disambiguation), touring, the business of attracting, accommodating, and entertaining tourists, and the business of operating tour (disambiguation), tours. Th ...
industries on the reservation. The Jicarilla continue to be known for their
pottery Pottery is the process and the products of forming vessels and other objects with clay and other ceramic materials, which are fired at high temperatures to give them a hard and durable form. Major types include earthenware, stoneware and por ...
,
basketry Basket weaving (also basketry or basket making) is the process of weaving or sewing pliable materials into three-dimensional artifacts, such as baskets, mats, mesh bags or even furniture. Craftspeople and artists specialized in making baskets ...
, and
beadwork Beadwork is the art or craft of attaching beads to one another by stringing them onto a thread or thin wire with a sewing or beading needle or sewing them to cloth. Beads are produced in a diverse range of materials, shapes, and sizes, and vary b ...
.


History


Early history

The Jicarilla Apaches are one of the Athabaskan linguistic groups that migrated out of
Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
, by 1525 CE, and possibly several hundred or more years earlier, and lived in what they considered their land bounded by four sacred rivers in northern New Mexico and southern Colorado: the
Rio Grande The Rio Grande ( and ), known in Mexico as the Río Bravo del Norte or simply the Río Bravo, is one of the principal rivers (along with the Colorado River) in the southwestern United States and in northern Mexico. The length of the Rio G ...
,
Pecos River The Pecos River ( es, Río Pecos) originates in north-central New Mexico and flows into Texas, emptying into the Rio Grande. Its headwaters are on the eastern slope of the Sangre de Cristo mountain range in Mora County north of Pecos, New Mexico ...
,
Arkansas River The Arkansas River is a major tributary of the Mississippi River. It generally flows to the east and southeast as it traverses the U.S. states of Colorado, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Arkansas. The river's source basin lies in the western United Stat ...
, and
Canadian River The Canadian River is the longest tributary of the Arkansas River in the United States. It is about long, starting in Colorado and traveling through New Mexico, the Texas Panhandle, and Oklahoma. The drainage area is about .Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...
and the western portions of
Oklahoma Oklahoma (; Choctaw language, Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the nor ...
and
Kansas Kansas () is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its capital is Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita. Kansas is a landlocked state bordered by Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the ...
.Velarde Tiller, 28. They were found to be in the Chama Valley, New Mexico, and points east by the 1600s. Prior to that time, and the arrival of the Spanish, the Jicarilla lived a relatively peaceful existence.Pritzker, 12. In the 1600s, the Jicarillas were seminomadic, practicing seasonal
agriculture Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled people to ...
that they learned from the
Pueblo people The Puebloans or Pueblo peoples, are Native Americans in the Southwestern United States who share common agricultural, material, and religious practices. Currently 100 pueblos are actively inhabited, among which Taos, San Ildefonso, Acoma, Zun ...
and Spaniards of New Spain along the rivers that flow through their territory.Greenwald, 97. The
Apache The Apache () are a group of culturally related Native American tribes in the Southwestern United States, which include the Chiricahua, Jicarilla, Lipan, Mescalero, Mimbreño, Ndendahe (Bedonkohe or Mogollon and Nednhi or Carrizaleño an ...
are linked to the
Dismal River culture The Dismal River culture refers to a set of cultural attributes first seen in the Dismal River area of Nebraska in the 1930s by archaeologists William Duncan Strong, Waldo Rudolph Wedel and A. T. Hill. Also known as Dismal River aspect and Dism ...
of the western Plains,Cassells, pp. 236.. generally attributed to the Paloma and Quartelejo (also Cuartelejo) Apaches. Jicarilla Apache pottery has also been found in some of the Dismal River complex sites.Gibbon, p. 213. Some of the people of the Dismal River culture joined the
Kiowa Apache The Plains Apache are a small Southern Athabaskan group who live on the Southern Plains of North America, in close association with the linguistically unrelated Kiowa Tribe. Today, they are centered in Southwestern Oklahoma and Northern Texas and ...
in the
Black Hills The Black Hills ( lkt, Ȟe Sápa; chy, Moʼȯhta-voʼhonáaeva; hid, awaxaawi shiibisha) is an isolated mountain range rising from the Great Plains of North America in western South Dakota and extending into Wyoming, United States. Black Elk P ...
of
South Dakota South Dakota (; Sioux language, Sioux: , ) is a U.S. state in the West North Central states, North Central region of the United States. It is also part of the Great Plains. South Dakota is named after the Lakota people, Lakota and Dakota peo ...
. Due to pressure from the Comanche from the west and
Pawnee Pawnee initially refers to a Native American people and its language: * Pawnee people * Pawnee language Pawnee is also the name of several places in the United States: * Pawnee, Illinois * Pawnee, Kansas * Pawnee, Missouri * Pawnee City, Nebraska * ...
and
French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...
from the east, the Kiowa and remaining people of Dismal River culture migrated south, where they later joined the
Lipan Apache Lipan Apache are a band of Apache, a Southern Athabaskan Indigenous people, who have lived in the Southwest and Southern Plains for centuries. At the time of European and African contact, they lived in New Mexico, Colorado, Oklahoma, Texas, and ...
and Jicarilla Apache nations. By the 1800s, they were planting along the rivers, especially along the upper Arkansas River and its tributaries, a variety of crops, sometimes using
irrigation Irrigation (also referred to as watering) is the practice of applying controlled amounts of water to land to help grow Crop, crops, Landscape plant, landscape plants, and Lawn, lawns. Irrigation has been a key aspect of agriculture for over 5,00 ...
to aid in growing squash, beans, pumpkins, melons, peas, wheat, and corn. They found farming in the mountains safer than on the open plains. They primarily hunted buffalo into the 17th century, and thereafter hunted antelope, deer, mountain sheep, elk, and buffalo. From the wild, women gathered berries, agave, honey, onions, potatoes, nuts, and seeds.


Sacred land and creation story

From the Jicarilla
creation story A creation myth (or cosmogonic myth) is a symbolic narrative of how the world began and how people first came to inhabit it., "Creation myths are symbolic stories describing how the universe and its inhabitants came to be. Creation myths develop ...
, the land bounded by the four
sacred Sacred describes something that is dedicated or set apart for the service or worship of a deity; is considered worthy of spiritual respect or devotion; or inspires awe or reverence among believers. The property is often ascribed to objects (a ...
rivers was provided to them by the Creator, with select places for communicating with the Creator and spirits, sacred rivers and mountains to be respected and conserved, and very specific places for obtaining items for
ceremonial A ceremony (, ) is a unified ritualistic event with a purpose, usually consisting of a number of artistic components, performed on a special occasion. The word may be of Etruscan language, Etruscan origin, via the Latin ''Glossary of ancient Rom ...
rituals A ritual is a sequence of activities involving gestures, words, actions, or objects, performed according to a set sequence. Rituals may be prescribed by the traditions of a community, including a religious community. Rituals are characterized, ...
, such as white
clay Clay is a type of fine-grained natural soil material containing clay minerals (hydrous aluminium phyllosilicates, e.g. kaolin, Al2 Si2 O5( OH)4). Clays develop plasticity when wet, due to a molecular film of water surrounding the clay par ...
found southeast of
Taos Taos or TAOS may refer to: Places * Taos, Missouri, a city in Cole County, Missouri, United States * Taos County, New Mexico, United States ** Taos, New Mexico, a city, the county seat of Taos County, New Mexico *** Taos art colony, an art colo ...
, red
ochre Ochre ( ; , ), or ocher in American English, is a natural clay earth pigment, a mixture of ferric oxide and varying amounts of clay and sand. It ranges in colour from yellow to deep orange or brown. It is also the name of the colours produced ...
north of Taos and yellow ochre on a mountain near
Picuris Pueblo Picuris Pueblo (; Tiwa: P'įwweltha ’ī̃wːēltʰà is a historic pueblo in Taos County, New Mexico, United States. It is also a census-designated place (CDP) and a federally recognized tribe of Native American Pueblo people. The 2010 censu ...
. They believe the "heart of the world" is located near Taos. Traditional Jicarilla stories of White Shell Woman, Killer of the Enemies, Child of the Water and others feature places and nearby people special to them, such as the
Rio Grande Gorge The Rio Grande Gorge is a geological feature in northern New Mexico where the watercourse of the Rio Grande follows a tectonic chasm. Beginning near the Colorado border, the approximately gorge runs from northwest to southwest of Taos, New Mexico ...
,
Picuris Pueblo Picuris Pueblo (; Tiwa: P'įwweltha ’ī̃wːēltʰà is a historic pueblo in Taos County, New Mexico, United States. It is also a census-designated place (CDP) and a federally recognized tribe of Native American Pueblo people. The 2010 censu ...
, the spring and marsh near El Prado, Hopewell Lake and particularly of the
Taos Pueblo Taos Pueblo (or Pueblo de Taos) is an ancient pueblo belonging to a Taos-speaking (Tiwa) Native American tribe of Puebloan people. It lies about north of the modern city of Taos, New Mexico. The pueblos are considered to be one of the oldest c ...
and the four sacred rivers. The Jicarilla created
shrines A shrine ( la, scrinium "case or chest for books or papers"; Old French: ''escrin'' "box or case") is a sacred or holy sacred space, space dedicated to a specific deity, ancestor worship, ancestor, hero, martyr, saint, Daemon (mythology), daem ...
in sites that held spiritual meaning, sharing some of the Taos area sites with the Taos Pueblo. Of the connection to Taos, in 1865 Father
Antonio José Martínez Antonio José Martínez (January 17, 1793 – July 27, 1867) was a New Mexican priest, educator, publisher, rancher, farmer, community leader, and politician. He lived through and influenced three distinct periods of New Mexico's history ...
, a New Mexican priest, commented that the Jicarilla had a long history living between the mountains and the villages and making pottery as an important source of income. Clay for the pottery came from the Taos and Picuris Pueblo areas.


Pressures for Jicarilla Apache land

Due to increase in other populations,
Manifest Destiny Manifest destiny was a cultural belief in the 19th century in the United States, 19th-century United States that American settlers were destined to expand across North America. There were three basic tenets to the concept: * The special vir ...
, and
Indian Wars The American Indian Wars, also known as the American Frontier Wars, and the Indian Wars, were fought by European governments and colonists in North America, and later by the United States and Canadian governments and American and Canadian settle ...
, the Apaches' traditional cultural and economic lifestyle became strained. Many people died due to famine,
Indian Wars The American Indian Wars, also known as the American Frontier Wars, and the Indian Wars, were fought by European governments and colonists in North America, and later by the United States and Canadian governments and American and Canadian settle ...
, including the
Battle of Cieneguilla The Battle of Cieneguilla (pronounced sienna-GEE-ya; English: small swamp) was an engagement of the Jicarilla War involving a group of Jicarilla Apaches, possibly their Ute allies, and the American 1st Cavalry Regiment on March 30, 1854 near ...
and diseases not indigenous to the American continent for which they had no resistance. When the
Comanche The Comanche or Nʉmʉnʉʉ ( com, Nʉmʉnʉʉ, "the people") are a Native American tribe from the Southern Plains of the present-day United States. Comanche people today belong to the federally recognized Comanche Nation, headquartered in La ...
, who had obtained guns from the French, with their close allies and kin, the
Ute Ute or UTE may refer to: * Ute (band), an Australian jazz group * Ute (given name) * ''Ute'' (sponge), a sponge genus * Ute (vehicle), an Australian and New Zealand term for certain utility vehicles * Ute, Iowa, a city in Monona County along ...
, were pushing out onto the plains, they were pillaging the various eastern
Apache The Apache () are a group of culturally related Native American tribes in the Southwestern United States, which include the Chiricahua, Jicarilla, Lipan, Mescalero, Mimbreño, Ndendahe (Bedonkohe or Mogollon and Nednhi or Carrizaleño an ...
peoples (Jicarilla,
Mescalero Mescalero or Mescalero Apache ( apm, Naa'dahéńdé) is an Apache tribe of Southern Athabaskan–speaking Native Americans. The tribe is federally recognized as the Mescalero Apache Tribe of the Mescalero Apache Reservation, located in south-cen ...
and Lipan) occupying the southern plains for control. As they were pushed off the plain, the Jicarilla moved to the mountains and near the pueblos and Spanish missions where they sought alliance with the
Puebloan peoples The Puebloans or Pueblo peoples, are Native Americans in the Southwestern United States who share common agricultural, material, and religious practices. Currently 100 pueblos are actively inhabited, among which Taos, San Ildefonso, Acoma, Zun ...
and the Spanish settlers. For instance, in 1724 several Apache bands were annihilated by the Comanches who forced them to "give up half their women and children, and then they burned several villages, killing all but sixty-nine men, two women, and three boys." The Jicarillas were forced to seek a refuge into the eastern
Sangre de Cristo Mountains ) , country= United States , subdivision1_type= States , subdivision1= , parent= Rocky Mountains , geology= , orogeny= , area_mi2= 17193 , range_coordinates= , length_mi= 242 , length_orientation= north-south , width_mi= 120 , w ...
north of the
Taos Pueblo Taos Pueblo (or Pueblo de Taos) is an ancient pueblo belonging to a Taos-speaking (Tiwa) Native American tribe of Puebloan people. It lies about north of the modern city of Taos, New Mexico. The pueblos are considered to be one of the oldest c ...
in New Mexico. Some chose to move to the
Pecos Pueblo Pecos National Historical Park is a United States National Historical Park in San Miguel and Santa Fe Counties, New Mexico. The park, operated by the National Park Service, encompasses thousands of acres of landscape infused with historical ...
in New Mexico or joined the
Mescalero Mescalero or Mescalero Apache ( apm, Naa'dahéńdé) is an Apache tribe of Southern Athabaskan–speaking Native Americans. The tribe is federally recognized as the Mescalero Apache Tribe of the Mescalero Apache Reservation, located in south-cen ...
and Lipan bands in Texas. In 1779 a combined force of Jicarilla, Ute, Pueblo, and Spanish soldiers defeated the Comanche, who, after another seven years and several more military campaigns, finally sued for peace. Thereafter the Jicarilla were able to reestablish themselves in their old tribal territory in southern Colorado.


Ollero and Llanero bands

The geography of the Jicarilla tribal territory consists of two fundamental environments which helped shape the basic social organization of the Tribe into two bands: the ''Llaneros'', or plains people, and the ''Olleros'', or mountain valley people.Griffin-Pierce, 380.Goddard, 8.Hook, Pegler, 116. Beginning in the 19th century, after being pushed out of the plains, the Jicarilla split into two bands: * The ''Olleros'', the
mountain people Hill people, also referred to as mountain people, is a general term for people who live in the hills and mountains. This includes all rugged land above and all land (including plateaus) above elevation. The climate is generally harsh, with s ...
-
pottery Pottery is the process and the products of forming vessels and other objects with clay and other ceramic materials, which are fired at high temperatures to give them a hard and durable form. Major types include earthenware, stoneware and por ...
making clan, a.k.a. ''Northern Jicarilla'', lived west of the Rio Grande along the Chama River of New Mexico and Colorado, settled down as farmers, became potters and lived partly in
Pueblo In the Southwestern United States, Pueblo (capitalized) refers to the Native tribes of Puebloans having fixed-location communities with permanent buildings which also are called pueblos (lowercased). The Spanish explorers of northern New Spain ...
-like villages (6 local groups). They began subsidizing their livelihood through sales of
mica Micas ( ) are a group of silicate minerals whose outstanding physical characteristic is that individual mica crystals can easily be split into extremely thin elastic plates. This characteristic is described as perfect basal cleavage. Mica is ...
ceous clay pottery and
basketry Basket weaving (also basketry or basket making) is the process of weaving or sewing pliable materials into three-dimensional artifacts, such as baskets, mats, mesh bags or even furniture. Craftspeople and artists specialized in making baskets ...
and learned to farm from their
Pueblo In the Southwestern United States, Pueblo (capitalized) refers to the Native tribes of Puebloans having fixed-location communities with permanent buildings which also are called pueblos (lowercased). The Spanish explorers of northern New Spain ...
neighbors. Ollero is Spanish for "potters". Their autonym, or name for themselves, is ''Saidindê'' for "Sand People" or "Mountain People" or "Mountain Dwellers"; The Spanish rendering is ''Hoyeros'' meaning "mountain-valley people".Griffin-Pierce, 380.Goddard, 8.Hook, Pegler, 116. The Capote Band of Utes (''Kapota'', ''Kahpota''), living east of the Great Divide south of the
Conejos River The Conejos River is a tributary of the Rio Grande, approximately long,U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed March 31, 2011 in south-central Colorado in the United States. It d ...
and east of the
Rio Grande The Rio Grande ( and ), known in Mexico as the Río Bravo del Norte or simply the Río Bravo, is one of the principal rivers (along with the Colorado River) in the southwestern United States and in northern Mexico. The length of the Rio G ...
west towards the
Sangre de Cristo Mountains ) , country= United States , subdivision1_type= States , subdivision1= , parent= Rocky Mountains , geology= , orogeny= , area_mi2= 17193 , range_coordinates= , length_mi= 242 , length_orientation= north-south , width_mi= 120 , w ...
, in the
San Luis Valley The San Luis Valley is a region in south-central Colorado with a small portion overlapping into New Mexico. The valley is approximately long and wide, extending from the Continental Divide on the northwest rim into New Mexico on the south. It co ...
, along the headwaters of the Rio Grande and along the
Animas River Animas River (''On-e-mas''; es, Río de las Ánimas) is a river in the western United States, a tributary of the San Juan River (Colorado River), San Juan River, part of the Colorado River, Colorado River System. The Animas-La Plata Water Pro ...
, centering in the vicinity of today Chama and Tierra Amarilla of
Rio Arriba County Rio Arriba County is a county in the U.S. state of New Mexico. As of the 2010 census, the population was 40,246. Its county seat is Tierra Amarilla. Its northern border is the Colorado state line. Rio Arriba County comprises the Española, N ...
, joined in an alliance with the Olleros (like the Muache with the Llaneros) against the Southern Plains Tribes like the Comanche and Kiowa (their former allies) and Southern Arapaho and Southern Cheyenne and maintained trade relations to
Puebloan peoples The Puebloans or Pueblo peoples, are Native Americans in the Southwestern United States who share common agricultural, material, and religious practices. Currently 100 pueblos are actively inhabited, among which Taos, San Ildefonso, Acoma, Zun ...
* The ''Llaneros'', the plains people clan, a.k.a. ''Eastern Jicarilla'', lived as
nomads A nomad is a member of a community without fixed habitation who regularly moves to and from the same areas. Such groups include hunter-gatherers, pastoral nomads (owning livestock), tinkers and trader nomads. In the twentieth century, the popu ...
in
tipis A tipi , often called a lodge in English, is a conical tent, historically made of animal hides or pelts, and in more recent generations of canvas, stretched on a framework of wooden poles. The word is Siouan, and in use in Dakhótiyapi, Lakȟó ...
, called ''kozhan'' by the Jicarilla, followed and hunted buffalo on the plains east of the Rio Grande centering along the headwaters of the Canadian River. During the winter they lived in the mountains between the Canadian River and the Rio Grande, camped and traded near
Picuris Pueblo, New Mexico Picuris Pueblo (; Tiwa: P'įwweltha ’ī̃wːēltʰà is a historic pueblo in Taos County, New Mexico, United States. It is also a census-designated place (CDP) and a federally recognized tribe of Native American Pueblo people. The 2010 census ...
,
Pecos, New Mexico Pecos is a village in San Miguel County, New Mexico, United States. The population was 1,392 at the 2010 census, shrinking slower than other parts of San Miguel County, partly because Pecos is within commuting distance of Santa Fe. The village i ...
and
Taos, New Mexico Taos is a town in Taos County in the north-central region of New Mexico in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. Initially founded in 1615, it was intermittently occupied until its formal establishment in 1795 by Nuevo México Governor Fernando Cha ...
(8 local groups). Their autonym, or name for themselves, is ''Gulgahén'' for "Plains People"; the Spanish picked it up as ''Llaneros'' - "Plains Dwellers".Goddard, 349-350.


Battle of Cieneguilla

The
Battle of Cieneguilla The Battle of Cieneguilla (pronounced sienna-GEE-ya; English: small swamp) was an engagement of the Jicarilla War involving a group of Jicarilla Apaches, possibly their Ute allies, and the American 1st Cavalry Regiment on March 30, 1854 near ...
(pronounced sienna-GEE-ya; English: small swamp) was an engagement of a group of Jicarilla Apaches, their
Ute Ute or UTE may refer to: * Ute (band), an Australian jazz group * Ute (given name) * ''Ute'' (sponge), a sponge genus * Ute (vehicle), an Australian and New Zealand term for certain utility vehicles * Ute, Iowa, a city in Monona County along ...
allies, and the
American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...
1st Cavalry Regiment on March 30, 1854 near what is now
Pilar, New Mexico Pilar (formerly Cieneguilla) is an unincorporated community in Taos County, New Mexico, United States. It is located on the Rio Grande. Etymology The original name of Cieneguilla is derived from the Spanish word "ciénaga", which means "marsh" ...
.


Background

By the mid-1800s tensions between the
Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Cana ...
, multiple Native American nations and westward expanding
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
settlers erupted as all sought and laid claim to land in the southwest. Diseases to which Native Americans had no
immunity Immunity may refer to: Medicine * Immunity (medical), resistance of an organism to infection or disease * ''Immunity'' (journal), a scientific journal published by Cell Press Biology * Immune system Engineering * Radiofrequence immunity desc ...
"decimated" their tribes, creating greater pressure for their lands to be taken from them. As tensions of Native Americans grew and numerous attempts to relocate them from their traditional hunting and gathering land and sacred homelands, the Jicarilla became increasingly hostile in their efforts to protect their lands.Oliva. The United States military developed a
defense system Defense or defence may refer to: Tactical, martial, and political acts or groups * Defense (military), forces primarily intended for warfare * Civil defense, the organizing of civilians to deal with emergencies or enemy attacks * Defense industr ...
of
forts A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''facere'' ...
and troops to restrict attacks on westward travelers. Fort Union was established, in part, to provide protection from the Jicarillas. The disruption and "mutual incomprehensions" of one another's culture led to warfare among the Spanish, Native American nations and Americans.Oliva. Leo E. Oliva, author of ''Fort Union and the Frontier Army in the Southwest'', notes that: "The three cultural groups in the Southwest had different concepts of family life, personal values, social relations, religion, uses and ownership of land and other property, how best to obtain the provisions of life, and warfare." Fort Union was established by Colonel
Edwin Vose Sumner Edwin Vose Sumner (January 30, 1797March 21, 1863) was a career United States Army officer who became a Union Army general and the oldest field commander of any Army Corps on either side during the American Civil War. His nicknames "Bull" or "Bul ...
who ordered Major
James Henry Carleton James Henry Carleton (December 27, 1814 – January 7, 1873) was an officer in the US Army and a Union general during the American Civil War. Carleton is best known as an Indian fighter in the Southwestern United States. Biography Carleton was ...
's Company K 1st
Dragoon Dragoons were originally a class of mounted infantry, who used horses for mobility, but dismounted to fight on foot. From the early 17th century onward, dragoons were increasingly also employed as conventional cavalry and trained for combat w ...
s on August 2, 1851 to protect of westward travelers between
Missouri Missouri is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee ...
and
New Mexico Territory The Territory of New Mexico was an organized incorporated territory of the United States from September 9, 1850, until January 6, 1912. It was created from the U.S. provisional government of New Mexico, as a result of ''Santa Fe de Nuevo México ...
on the
Santa Fe Trail The Santa Fe Trail was a 19th-century route through central North America that connected Franklin, Missouri, with Santa Fe, New Mexico. Pioneered in 1821 by William Becknell, who departed from the Boonslick region along the Missouri River, th ...
.
New Mexico Territory The Territory of New Mexico was an organized incorporated territory of the United States from September 9, 1850, until January 6, 1912. It was created from the U.S. provisional government of New Mexico, as a result of ''Santa Fe de Nuevo México ...
's Governor
William Carr Lane William Carr Lane (December 1, 1789January 6, 1863) was a doctor and the first mayor of St. Louis, Missouri, serving from 1823 to 1829 and 1837 to 1840. He later served as Governor of New Mexico Territory, from 1852 to 1853. Born in Fayette C ...
made treaties with the Jicarilla and other Native American tribes of New Mexico to relocate to reservations and peacefully take up agriculture on new lands and in agreed for payments to recompense for loss of access to their hunting, gathering and sacred homeland. The United States government, however, pulled the funding for this agreement, betraying the Native American tribal members. Further complicating the situation, all the crops planted by the tribal members failed and the people continued raiding for survival.


Battle and aftermath

In March 1854 Lobo Blanco, a Jicarilla chief, led a band of 30 warriors to raid the horse herd of a contractor for Fort Union; a detachment of 2nd U.S. Dragoons, led by Lieutenant David Bell, pursued the raiders, engaging a fight on the Canadian River and killing many of them, including the chief, who was repeatedly wounded and finally killed by crushing him under a boulder (March 4). In late March, Maj. George A. Blake, commanding officer at Burgwin Cantonment, sent a detachment of 1st U.S. Dragoon of 60 men (company I and part of company F) to patrol along the Santa Fe trail, and on March 30, 1854, a combined force of about 250 Apaches and Utes fought the U.S.
dragoon Dragoons were originally a class of mounted infantry, who used horses for mobility, but dismounted to fight on foot. From the early 17th century onward, dragoons were increasingly also employed as conventional cavalry and trained for combat w ...
s, led by Lieutenant John Wynn Davidson, near
Pilar, New Mexico Pilar (formerly Cieneguilla) is an unincorporated community in Taos County, New Mexico, United States. It is located on the Rio Grande. Etymology The original name of Cieneguilla is derived from the Spanish word "ciénaga", which means "marsh" ...
, then known as Cieneguilla. The battle lasted for 2,Gorenfeld, Will. or 4 hours according to surviving soldier James A. Bennett (aka James Bronson). The Jicarilla, led by their principal chief, Francisco Chacon, and Flechas Rayadas, fought with flintlock rifles and
arrow An arrow is a fin-stabilized projectile launched by a bow. A typical arrow usually consists of a long, stiff, straight shaft with a weighty (and usually sharp and pointed) arrowhead attached to the front end, multiple fin-like stabilizers c ...
s, killing 22 and a wounding another 36 of 60 dragoon soldiers, who then retreated to
Ranchos de Taos Ranchos de Taos is a census-designated place (CDP) in Taos County, New Mexico. The population was 2,390 at the time of the 2000 census. The historic district is the Ranchos de Taos Plaza, which includes the San Francisco de Asis Mission Chu ...
lighter by 22 horses and most of the troops' supplies.Haley, James L. Lieutenant Colonel
Philip St. George Cooke Philip St. George Cooke (June 13, 1809 – March 20, 1895) was a career United States Army cavalry officer who served as a Union General in the American Civil War. He is noted for his authorship of an Army cavalry manual, and is sometimes called ...
of the 2nd Dragoons Regiment at once organized an expedition to pursue the Jicarilla. With the help of 32 Pueblo Indian and Mexican scouts under Captain James H. Quinn, with
Kit Carson Christopher Houston Carson (December 24, 1809 – May 23, 1868) was an American frontiersman. He was a fur trapper, wilderness guide, Indian agent, and U.S. Army officer. He became a frontier legend in his own lifetime by biographies and n ...
as the principal guide. After a winter pursuit through the mountains, Cooke caught up with the Jicarilla, whose leader, Flechas Rayadas offered an agreement for peace in exchange for the horses and guns the Jicarilla acquired from the Battle, but the arrangement was not accepted. On April 8, Cooke Chief fought tribal members at their camp in the canyon of Ojo Caliente. Dispersing in small bands, the Jicarilla evaded further pursuit, but many died from the harsh cold weather. A large unit under Maj. James H. Carleton fought again the Jicarillas near Fisher's Peak, in the Raton Mountains, killing several Jicarillas, and Francisco Chacon replied by trying an ambush against the soldiers with 150 warriors, but the Jicarillas were bypassed: five warriors were killed and six wounded, and seventeen among women and children were scattered and probably died of cold and hunger during the flight. In May, Francisco Chacon sent word to Santa Fe for peace and surrendered at Abiquiu.


Jicarilla reservation

Following westward expansion of the United States and the resulting impacts to their livelihoods, attempts began in the mid-1850s to relocate the Jicarilla Apache, who became increasingly hostile to these pressures. In addition, relations with the Spanish also became hostile when the Spanish captured and sold Apache tribal members into slavery. After years of warfare, broken treaties, relocation and being the only southwestern tribe without a reservation, the two Jicarilla Llanero and Ollero bands united in 1873 and sent a delegation to
Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
to appeal for a reservation. Eventually United States President
Grover Cleveland Stephen Grover Cleveland (March 18, 1837June 24, 1908) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 22nd and 24th president of the United States from 1885 to 1889 and from 1893 to 1897. Cleveland is the only president in American ...
created the Jicarilla Apache Reservation through a United States
executive order In the United States, an executive order is a directive by the president of the United States that manages operations of the federal government. The legal or constitutional basis for executive orders has multiple sources. Article Two of th ...
signed on February 11, 1887. Although they had finally obtained a reservation, it was spiritually disheartening to realize that they would no longer roam on their traditional holy lands and have access to the sacred places. Once settled, they occupied separate areas of the Reservation. The animosities stemming from this period have persisted into the twentieth century, with the Olleros usually identified as progressives and the Llaneros as conservatives. The land on the reservation, except that held by non-tribal members, was not suitable for
agriculture Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled people to ...
. As a means of survival, timber from the reservation was sold. In 1907 additional land was secured for the reservation, for a total of , that was suitable for sheep ranching which became profitable in the 1920s. Until that time, many people suffered from
malnutrition Malnutrition occurs when an organism gets too few or too many nutrients, resulting in health problems. Specifically, it is "a deficiency, excess, or imbalance of energy, protein and other nutrients" which adversely affects the body's tissues a ...
and up to 90% of the tribe members had
tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease usually caused by '' Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body. Most infections show no symptoms, in ...
in 1914; By the 1920s it seemed likely that the Jicarilla Apache nation may become extinct due to
trachoma Trachoma is an infectious disease caused by bacterium ''Chlamydia trachomatis''. The infection causes a roughening of the inner surface of the eyelids. This roughening can lead to pain in the eyes, breakdown of the outer surface or cornea of ...
, tuberculosis, and other diseases. After several difficult ranching periods, many of the previous sheep herders relocated to the tribal headquarters in
Dulce, New Mexico Dulce ( or ; apj, Lóosi) is a census-designated place (CDP) in Rio Arriba County, New Mexico, United States. The population was 2,743 at the 2010 census, almost entirely Native American. It is the largest community and tribal headquarters of ...
. The Jicarilla suffered due to lack of economic opportunities for decades.Pritzker, 13.Griffin-Pierce, 381. Oil and gas development began on the reservation after World War II resulting in up to $1 million annually, some of which was set aside for a tribal
scholarship A scholarship is a form of financial aid awarded to students for further education. Generally, scholarships are awarded based on a set of criteria such as academic merit, diversity and inclusion, athletic skill, and financial need. Scholarsh ...
fund and to develop the Stone Lake Lodge facility. In 1982, the
United States Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that involve a point o ...
ruled in ''
Merrion v. Jicarilla Apache Tribe ''Merrion v. Jicarilla Apache Tribe'', 455 U.S. 130 (1982), was a case in which the Supreme Court of the United States holding that an Indian tribe has the authority to impose taxes on non-Indians that are conducting business on the reservation as ...
'', that the tribe had the authority to impose
severance taxes Severance taxes are taxes imposed on the removal of natural resources within a taxing jurisdiction. Severance taxes are most commonly imposed in oil producing states within the United States. Resources that typically incur severance taxes when e ...
on oil companies that were drilling for oil and natural gas on reservation land. As a means of repayment for lost tribal lands, the Jicarilla received a settlement in 1971 for $9.15 million. The Jicarilla Apache made a claim for compensation to the U.S. Government when the
Indian Claims Commission The Indian Claims Commission was a judicial relations arbiter between the United States federal government and Native American tribes. It was established under the Indian Claims Act of 1946 by the United States Congress to hear any longstanding clai ...
was created. A two-volume technical report was submitted to the Commission on Spanish and Mexican grants, both unconfirmed and confirmed as part of the case. The tribe was awarded $9,150,000 in the Commission's final judgment of April 20, 1971. In 2019, the census showed that there were 3,353 people living on the reservation. A site for New Mexico states that there are about "2,755 tribal members, most of whom live in the town of Dulce."


Tribal government

The Jicarilla Apache are a federally recognized tribal entity who in 1937 organized a formal government and adopted a
constitution A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organisation or other type of Legal entity, entity and commonly determine how that entity is to be governed. When ...
. Traditional tribal leaders were elected as their first tribal council members. In 2000 the tribe officially changed their name to the Jicarilla Apache Nation. Veronica E. Velarde Tiller, author of ''Culture and Customs of the Apache Indians'' writes: "All the powers of the tribal governments reflected the traditional values of the Apache people. The protection, preservation, and conservation of the bounty of 'Mother Earth', and all its inhabitants is sacred value shared by all Indian people, and the Apaches were most eager to have this concept incorporated into their tribal constitution."Velarde Tiller, 122. An important value of sharing was integrated into the constitution, whereby the Apache Indians declare that the resources of the reservation are "held for the benefit of the entire tribe". Further, all land on the reservation is held by the Jicarilla Apache Reservation, one of only two reservations in the United States where land is not owned by individuals but by the tribal nation as a whole. Tribal members are individuals that are at least 3/8 Jicarilla Apache. The government is made up of the following branches: *
executive Executive ( exe., exec., execu.) may refer to: Role or title * Executive, a senior management role in an organization ** Chief executive officer (CEO), one of the highest-ranking corporate officers (executives) or administrators ** Executive dire ...
, with a president and vice-president serving four-year terms *
legislative A legislature is an assembly with the authority to make laws for a political entity such as a country or city. They are often contrasted with the executive and judicial powers of government. Laws enacted by legislatures are usually known as p ...
, with eight members serving staggering four-year terms *
judicial The judiciary (also known as the judicial system, judicature, judicial branch, judiciative branch, and court or judiciary system) is the system of courts that adjudication, adjudicates legal disputes/disagreements and interprets, defends, and app ...
, tribal
court A court is any person or institution, often as a government institution, with the authority to adjudicate legal disputes between parties and carry out the administration of justice in civil, criminal, and administrative matters in accordance ...
and
appellate court A court of appeals, also called a court of appeal, appellate court, appeal court, court of second instance or second instance court, is any court of law that is empowered to hear an appeal of a trial court or other lower tribunal. In much of ...
judges assigned by the president. Its capital is Dulce, which comprises over 95 percent of the reservation's population, near the extreme north end. Most tribal offices are located in Dulce.


Reservation

The Jicarilla Apache Indian Reservation, at , is located within two northern
New Mexico ) , population_demonym = New Mexican ( es, Neomexicano, Neomejicano, Nuevo Mexicano) , seat = Santa Fe , LargestCity = Albuquerque , LargestMetro = Tiguex , OfficialLang = None , Languages = English, Spanish ( New Mexican), Navajo, Ker ...
counties: *
Rio Arriba County Rio Arriba County is a county in the U.S. state of New Mexico. As of the 2010 census, the population was 40,246. Its county seat is Tierra Amarilla. Its northern border is the Colorado state line. Rio Arriba County comprises the Española, N ...
*
Sandoval County Sandoval County is located in the U.S. state of New Mexico. As of the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census, the population was 131,561, making it the fourth-most populous county in New Mexico. The county seat is Bernalillo, New Mexico, Bernali ...
. from the Colorado border south to
Cuba, New Mexico Cuba is a village in Sandoval County, New Mexico, United States. As of the 2010 census, the village population was 735. It is part of the Albuquerque Metropolitan Statistical Area. Description Located along the busy U.S. Route 550, Cuba has ...
. The reservation sits along
U.S. Route 64 U.S. Route 64 (US 64) is an east–west United States highway that runs for 2,326 miles (3,743 km) from Nags Head in eastern North Carolina to just southwest of the Four Corners in northeast Arizona. The western terminus is at U.S. Route 1 ...
and N.M. 537.King, PT232. The reservation has a land area of 1,364.046 sq mi (3,532.864 km²) and had a population of 2,755 as of the 2000 census. The southern half of the reservation is open plains and the northern portion resides in the treed Rocky Mountains. Mammals and birds migratory paths cross the reservation seasonally, including mountain lion, black bear, elk, Canada geese and turkey. Rainbow, brown and cutthroat trout are stocked in seven lakes on the reservation, but annual conditions such as low precipitation result in high pH-levels. From 1995 to 2000 the lake levels were severely low due to
drought A drought is defined as drier than normal conditions.Douville, H., K. Raghavan, J. Renwick, R.P. Allan, P.A. Arias, M. Barlow, R. Cerezo-Mota, A. Cherchi, T.Y. Gan, J. Gergis, D.  Jiang, A.  Khan, W.  Pokam Mba, D.  Rosenfeld, J. Tierney, an ...
; As a result, most of the fish were killed off during those years. The reservation sits on the
San Juan Basin The San Juan Basin is a geologic structural basin located near the Four Corners region of the Southwestern United States. The basin covers 7,500 square miles and resides in northwestern New Mexico, southwestern Colorado, and parts of Utah a ...
, which is rich in
fossil fuel A fossil fuel is a hydrocarbon-containing material formed naturally in the Earth's crust from the remains of dead plants and animals that is extracted and burned as a fuel. The main fossil fuels are coal, oil, and natural gas. Fossil fuels m ...
s. The basin is the largest producer of oil along the
Rocky Mountains The Rocky Mountains, also known as the Rockies, are a major mountain range and the largest mountain system in North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch in straight-line distance from the northernmost part of western Canada, to New Mexico in ...
and the second largest producer of
natural gas Natural gas (also called fossil gas or simply gas) is a naturally occurring mixture of gaseous hydrocarbons consisting primarily of methane in addition to various smaller amounts of other higher alkanes. Low levels of trace gases like carbo ...
in the United States.


Culture

The Jicarilla are traditionally
matrilocal In social anthropology, matrilocal residence or matrilocality (also uxorilocal residence or uxorilocality) is the societal system in which a married couple resides with or near the wife's parents. Thus, the female offspring of a mother remain l ...
and are organized into
matrilineal Matrilineality is the tracing of kinship through the female line. It may also correlate with a social system in which each person is identified with their matriline – their mother's Lineage (anthropology), lineage – and which can in ...
clans. They have incorporated some practices of their
Pueblo In the Southwestern United States, Pueblo (capitalized) refers to the Native tribes of Puebloans having fixed-location communities with permanent buildings which also are called pueblos (lowercased). The Spanish explorers of northern New Spain ...
neighbors into their own traditions. They are renowned for their fine basket making of distinctive diamond, cross or zig-zag designs or representations of deer, horses or other animals. They are known for their beadwork and keeping
Apache fiddle The Apache fiddle (Apache: tsii' edo'a'tl, "wood that sings") is a bowed string instrument used by the indigenous Apache people of the southwestern United States. The instrument consists of a plant stalk, such as that of the agave or mescal plant ...
-making alive.Pritzker, 14. As of 2000, about 70% of the tribe practice an organized religion, many of whom are
Christians Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...
. Jicarilla is spoken by about one half of the tribal members, most by older men and women.Pritzker, 15. Ceremonial practices consist of: * Puberty feast, called "keesta" in Jicarilla, is a
rite of passage A rite of passage is a ceremony or ritual of the passage which occurs when an individual leaves one group to enter another. It involves a significant change of status in society. In cultural anthropology the term is the Anglicisation of ''rite ...
ceremony for girls or young women. Annual events include: * Little Beaver Celebration with a
pow-wow A powwow (also pow wow or pow-wow) is a gathering with dances held by many Native American and First Nations First Nations or first peoples may refer to: * Indigenous peoples, for ethnic groups who are the earliest known inhabitants of an ...
,
rodeo Rodeo () is a competitive equestrian sport that arose out of the working practices of cattle herding in Spain and Mexico, expanding throughout the Americas and to other nations. It was originally based on the skills required of the working va ...
, draft horse pull and a five-mile race mid-July. * Stone Lake Fiesta with
ceremonial dance Ceremonial dance is a major category or classification of dance forms or dance styles, where the purpose is ceremonial or ritualistic. It is related to and overlaps with sacred dance and ecstatic dance. Definition History Description L ...
s, rodeo and footraces each September 14 and 15.


Economy

The Jicarilla Apache Nation's economy is based upon
mining Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the Earth, usually from an ore body, lode, vein, seam, reef, or placer deposit. The exploitation of these deposits for raw material is based on the economic via ...
,
forestry Forestry is the science and craft of creating, managing, planting, using, conserving and repairing forests, woodlands, and associated resources for human and environmental benefits. Forestry is practiced in plantations and natural stands. Th ...
,
gaming Gaming may refer to: Games and sports The act of playing games, as in: * Legalized gambling, playing games of chance for money, often referred to in law as "gaming" * Playing a role-playing game, in which players assume fictional roles * Playin ...
,
tourism Tourism is travel for pleasure or business; also the theory and practice of touring (disambiguation), touring, the business of attracting, accommodating, and entertaining tourists, and the business of operating tour (disambiguation), tours. Th ...
,
retail Retail is the sale of goods and services to consumers, in contrast to wholesaling, which is sale to business or institutional customers. A retailer purchases goods in large quantities from manufacturers, directly or through a wholesaler, and t ...
and
agriculture Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled people to ...
,Warren, Tiller, 11. including: * Oil and gas wells, owned and operated by the tribe.Warren, Tiller, 10-11. A 50 MW
solar farm Solar may refer to: Astronomy * Of or relating to the Sun ** Solar telescope, a special purpose telescope used to observe the Sun ** A device that utilizes solar energy (e.g. "solar panels") ** Solar calendar, a calendar whose dates indicate t ...
is being constructed on tribal lands. * Timber. * Cattle and sheep ranching.Warren, Tiller, 12. * Reservation government employees, which include about 50% of tribal members. * Dulce business employees. * Traditional arts, including basketry and pottery. * Tribe-owned Apache Nugget Casino north of
Cuba, New Mexico Cuba is a village in Sandoval County, New Mexico, United States. As of the 2010 census, the village population was 735. It is part of the Albuquerque Metropolitan Statistical Area. Description Located along the busy U.S. Route 550, Cuba has ...
and the Best Western Jicarilla Inn and Casino in Dulce. * The tribe also owns and operates radio station KCIE (90.5 FM) in Dulce, NM. Although the mid twentieth century brought additional economic opportunities, high
unemployment Unemployment, according to the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development), is people above a specified age (usually 15) not being in paid employment or self-employment but currently available for Work (human activity), w ...
and a low
standard of living Standard of living is the level of income, comforts and services available, generally applied to a society or location, rather than to an individual. Standard of living is relevant because it is considered to contribute to an individual's quality ...
prevails for tribal members. From the ''Tiller's Guide to Indian Country: Economic Profiles of American Reservations'', 2005 edition:Velarde Tiller, 82. :
Unemployment rate Unemployment, according to the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development), is people above a specified age (usually 15) not being in paid employment or self-employment but currently available for work during the referen ...
– 14.2% :
Labor force The workforce or labour force is a concept referring to the pool of human beings either in employment or in unemployment. It is generally used to describe those working for a single company or industry, but can also apply to a geographic regio ...
– 1,1051 The Jicarilla people live in houses with a lifestyle similar to other Americans. The cost of food at local grocery stores is higher than found near larger U.S. cities. They have access to all
modern conveniences Convenient procedures, products and services are those intended to increase ease in accessibility, save resources (such as time, effort and energy) and decrease frustration. A modern convenience is a labor-saving device, service or substance ...
and avail themselves according to their desires and financial ability. High unemployment and poverty level income rates have resulted in high
crime rates Crime statistics refer to systematic, quantitative results about crime, as opposed to crime news or anecdotes. Notably, crime statistics can be the result of two rather different processes: * scientific research, such as criminological studies, vi ...
, greatly contributed by a high incidence of lcoholabuse, averaging 1.7% of the United States Native American population and as high as 30% in some rural areas or reservations.


Education

Children attend a public school on the reservation. Until the 1960s few children graduated high school; the
Bureau of Indian Affairs The Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), also known as Indian Affairs (IA), is a United States federal agency within the Department of the Interior. It is responsible for implementing federal laws and policies related to American Indians and A ...
educational programs and the Chester A. Faris
scholarship A scholarship is a form of financial aid awarded to students for further education. Generally, scholarships are awarded based on a set of criteria such as academic merit, diversity and inclusion, athletic skill, and financial need. Scholarsh ...
programs from oil and gas revenues since the 1960s provide opportunities for
higher education Higher education is tertiary education leading to award of an academic degree. Higher education, also called post-secondary education, third-level or tertiary education, is an optional final stage of formal learning that occurs after completi ...
. In the 1970s some tribal members obtained
graduate degrees Postgraduate or graduate education refers to academic or professional degrees, certificates, diplomas, or other qualifications pursued by post-secondary students who have earned an undergraduate (bachelor's) degree. The organization and struc ...
. Educational assistance offices were created by Apache tribes in the 1980s to help students navigate their educational career. Portions of the reservation in
Rio Arriba County Rio Arriba County is a county in the U.S. state of New Mexico. As of the 2010 census, the population was 40,246. Its county seat is Tierra Amarilla. Its northern border is the Colorado state line. Rio Arriba County comprises the Española, N ...
are zoned to
Dulce Independent Schools Dulce Independent Schools (School District 21) is a school district headquartered in Dulce, New Mexico. It is on the property of the Jicarilla Apache Reservation. The district serves Dulce and Lumberton. History In the halfway point 2019-2020 sc ...
,
Chama Valley Independent Schools Chama Valley Independent School District 19 (CVISD), also known as Chama Valley Independent Schools, is a school district headquartered on the property of Escalante Middle/High School in Tierra Amarilla, New Mexico. Its boundary includes Tierra Am ...
, and
Jemez Mountain Public Schools Jemez or Jémez may refer to *Jemez Pueblo, New Mexico, a census-designated place in the United States **Jemez Springs, New Mexico, a village **Jemez Mountains **Jemez Mountains salamander (''Plethodon neomexicanus'') **Jemez Mountains Electric C ...
. Portions of the reservation in
Sandoval County Sandoval County is located in the U.S. state of New Mexico. As of the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census, the population was 131,561, making it the fourth-most populous county in New Mexico. The county seat is Bernalillo, New Mexico, Bernali ...
are zoned to
Cuba Independent Schools Cuba Independent School District, also known as Cuba Independent Schools, is a school district based in Cuba, New Mexico. It operates Cuba Elementary School, Cuba Middle School, and Cuba High School. Located in Sandoval County, the district incl ...
.


Notable people

* Francisco Chacon, 19th century chief, leader of the Jicarilla uprising in 1854 * Flechas Rayadas, 19th century chief, involved in the Jicarilla uprising of 1854 * Lobo Blanco, 19th century chief killed in 1854 *
Viola Cordova Viola Cordova (October 20, 1937 – November 2, 2002), a philosopher, artist, and author, member of the Jicarilla Apache tribe, was one of the first Native American women to earn a PhD in philosophy. Early life Viola Cordova grew up in Taos, N ...
(born 1937), philosopher * Tammie Allen (born 1964), potter


See also

*
Jicarilla language Jicarilla ( apj, Abáachi mizaa) is an Eastern Southern Athabaskan language spoken by the Jicarilla Apache. History The traditional homelands of the Jicarilla Apache (Tinde) were located in the northeast and eastern regions of New Mexico. The ...
*
Battle of Cieneguilla The Battle of Cieneguilla (pronounced sienna-GEE-ya; English: small swamp) was an engagement of the Jicarilla War involving a group of Jicarilla Apaches, possibly their Ute allies, and the American 1st Cavalry Regiment on March 30, 1854 near ...
*
Dulce Base Dulce Base is the subject of a conspiracy theory claiming that a jointly-operated human and alien underground facility exists under Archuleta Mesa on the Colorado–New Mexico border near the town of Dulce, New Mexico, in the United States. Cla ...
* KCIE (FM) *
List of Indian reservations in the United States This is a list of Indian reservations and other tribal homelands in the United States. In Canada, the Indian reserve is a similar institution. Federally recognized reservations There are 326 Indian Reservations in the United States. Most of t ...
*
Mescalero Mescalero or Mescalero Apache ( apm, Naa'dahéńdé) is an Apache tribe of Southern Athabaskan–speaking Native Americans. The tribe is federally recognized as the Mescalero Apache Tribe of the Mescalero Apache Reservation, located in south-cen ...
*
Morris Edward Opler Morris Edward Opler (May 3, 1907 – May 13, 1996), American anthropologist and advocate of Japanese American civil rights, was born in Buffalo, New York. He was the brother of Marvin Opler, an anthropologist and social psychiatrist. Morris ...
, ethnographer who wrote about the Jicarilla * ''
A Gunfight ''A Gunfight'' is a 1971 American Western film directed by Lamont Johnson, starring Kirk Douglas and Johnny Cash. The film was financed by the Jicarilla Apache Tribe, although there are no leading Native American characters in the story. ...
'', 1971 film financed by the Jicarilla Apache tribe


Notes


References

;General * Brooks, Clinton E.; Reeve, Frank D.; Bennett, James A. (1996). Forts and Forays: James A. Bennett, A Dragoon in New Mexico, 1850—1856. University of New Mexico Press. . * Cassells, E. Steve. (1997). ''The Archeology of Colorado'', Revised Edition. Boulder, Colorado: Johnson Books. . * Carlisle, Jeffrey D. (May 2001)
"Spanish Relations with the Apache Nations east of the Rio Grande"
University of North Texas. * Carter, Harvey Lewis. (1990
''"Dear Old Kit": The Historical Christopher Carson''
University of Oklahoma Press. . * Davidson, Homer K. (1974). Black Jack Davidson, A Cavalry Commander on the Western Frontier: The Life of General John W. Davidson. A. H. Clark Co. Page 72. . * Eiselt, B. Sunday. (2009) ''The Jicarilla Apaches and the Archaeology of the Taos Region''. Between the Mountains – Beyond the Mountains. Papers of the Archaeological Society of New Mexico Vol. 35, Albuquerque. * Gibbon, Guy E.; Ames, Kenneth M. (1998
''Archaeology of Prehistoric Native America: An Encyclopedia''.
. * Goddard, Pliny E. (1911)
''Jicarilla Apache texts''
Anthropological papers of the American Museum of Natural History (Vol. 8). New York: The American Museum of Natural History. * Gorenfeld, Will. (Feb, 2008). "The Battle of Cieneguilla." ''Wild West magazine.'' * Greenwald, Emily. (2002). ''Reconfiguring the reservation: The Nez Perces, Jicarilla Apache and the Dawes Act.'' University of New Mexico Press. . * Griffin-Pierce, Trudy. (2000)
''Native Peoples of the Southwest''
University of New Mexico Press. . * Hook, Jason; Pegler, Martin. (2001)
''To Love and Die in the West: the American Indian Wars, 1860-90''.
Chicago: Fitzroy Dearborn Publishers. . * Kessel, William B.; Wooster, Robert. (ed.) (2005). ''Encyclopedia of Native American Wars and Warfare''. New York: Facts on File. . * King, Lesley S. (2011)
''Frommer's New Mexico''
Hoboken, NJ: Wiley Publishing. . * Martin, Craig. (ed.) (2002)
''Fly Fishing in Northern New Mexico''.
University of New Mexico Press. . * Oliva, Leo E. (1993

National Park Service Online Books. * Pritzker, Barry M. (2000)
''A Native American Encyclopedia: History, Culture, and Peoples''.
Oxford: Oxford University Press. . * Rajtar, Steve. (1999) ''Indian War Sites: A Guidebook to Battlefields, Monuments, and Memorials.'' Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company, Inc. * Velarde Tiller, Veronica E. (2011) ''Culture and Customs of the Apache Indians''. Santa Barbara, CA: Greenwood of ABC-CLIO. . * Warren, Nancy Hunter; Velarde Tiller, Veronica E. (2006)
''The Jicarilla Apache: A Portrait.''
University of New Mexico Press. .


Further reading

* Opler, Morris. (1941). A Jicarilla expedition and scalp dance. (Narrated by Alasco Tisnado). * Opler, Morris. (1942). ''Myths and tales of the Jicarilla Apache Indians''. * Opler, Morris. (1947). Mythology and folk belief in the maintenance of Jicarilla Apache tribal endogamy. * Phone, Wilma; & Torivio, Patricia. (1981). ''Jicarilla mizaa medaóołkai dáłáéé''. Albuquerque: Native American Materials Development Center. * Phone, Wilhelmina; Olson, Maureen; & Martinez, Matilda. (2007). ''Dictionary of Jicarilla Apache: Abáachi Mizaa Iłkee' Siijai''. Axelrod, Melissa; Gómez de García, Jule; Lachler, Jordan; & Burke, Sean M. (Eds.). UNM Press. . * Tuttle, Siri G.; & Sandoval, Merton. (2002). Jicarilla Apache. ''Journal of the International Phonetic Association'', ''32'', 105-112. * Wilson, Alan, & Vigil Martine, Rita. (1996). ''Apache (Jicarilla)''. Guilford, CT: Audio-Forum. . (Includes book and cassette recording).


External links


Jicarilla Apache Nation website

Jicarilla Apache Culture
(Jicarilla Apache Cultural Affairs Office)



(University of Virginia Electronic Text Center)

(University of Virginia Electronic Text Center)

(University of Virginia Electronic Text Center)
Jicarilla Texts
(Internet Sacred Text Archive)
Jicarilla Apache Nation
(New Mexico Magazine)
Jicarilla Apache Nation History
(Apache Nugget Corporation)
Jicarilla Apache Pottery/Walking Spirit Pottery
(Sample of Micaceous Clay Pottery)
Jicarilla Apache Oil and Gas Administration
(Jicarilla Natural Resources)
Jicarilla Apache Game and Fish
(Jicarilla Hunting and Wildlife) {{authority control * Apache tribes Federally recognized tribes in the United States Native American tribes in Colorado Native American tribes in New Mexico Northern Rio Grande National Heritage Area