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The information presented on these pages was
derived from sample archaeological excavations and construction monitoring
during an Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) cleanup project that took place
during August and September 2006.
Select the leaves at left to learn about specific artifacts recovered and
their meaning.
Location
The Elem Indian Colony is situated along the
southeastern shore of the eastern arm of Clear Lake, Lake County, California.
The reservation is located near the town of Clearlake Oaks and takes in a
small 50+ acre point of land that is surrounded on three sides by the lake.
The reservation has been
home to Native American people for ~14,000 years and has been home to the united
Southeastern Pomo communities of Elem, Kamdot, and Koi since 1872.
The Elem Community
The
Elem Native American community has been recognized by early explorers,
linguists, and ethnographers for 150 years.
There is evidence that Russians from Fort Ross and Salvadore Vallejo
visited Clear Lake in the 1820’s and 30’s.
There is also an account of Hudson’s Bay Company trappers passing
through the area in 1832-33 (Work 1945).  The
first published mention of the Southeastern Pomo village of Elem (?lem) seems to
have been by Gibbs (1853:109). Gibbs
accompanied Colonel Redick McKee (United States Indian Agent) through
northwestern California during the summer and fall of 1851.
During this expedition, the chief of the How-ku-ma tribe (Southeastern
Pomo village of Elem) participated in treaty negotiations with McKee. In 1871 and 1872, Stephen Powers traveled through California
and studied the Native cultures. He
visited Clear Lake and wrote about the Makh’el-chel (Southeastern Pomo)
(Powers 1877:214).
The Current Project
The information presented on these pages was
derived from sample archaeological excavations and construction monitoring
during an Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) cleanup project that took place
during August and September 2006.
All work took place within
the known boundaries of archaeological sites CA-LAK-76 and 2044.
Re-deposited soils from site CA-LAK-82 were also sampled.
The data recovered indicate
that large portions of LAK-76 were intact and contained significant amounts of
cultural material. The data suggest
that LAK-72 was a permanent year-round village location that has housed native
people from ~14,000 years ago to the present.
Prehistoric cultural
materials indicate the following activities were taking place at the site:
- The
manufacture of chipped stone tools,
- Gathering
and preparation of hard seeds (grains, pine nut, and sage seeds) and soft
nuts (acorns),
- Fishing,
fowling, hunting, and the gathering of freshwater shellfish.
- The
manufacture of shell beads and personal adornment items.
- Human
burial and other ceremonial activities.
- Trade
and exchange with outside groups.
Historic cultural materials
indicate the following activities were taking place at the site:
- Gardening/farming,
animal husbandry, and other agricultural activities.
- Fishing,
boating and other lake related activities.
- Stick
frame house construction and maintenance.
- Transportation
activities (both automobile and pre-automobile).
- Cultural
interaction with overseas Chinese.
- Household
activities (cooking, cleaning, etc.).
- Recreational
activities, both adult and children (games, toys, etc.).
- Ceremonial
activities (traditional).
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