Deeper Than Gold: A Guide to Indian Life in the Sierra Foothills [Paperback]

Brian Bibby (Author), Dugan Aguilar (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 1, 2004

Brian Bibby brings together the present and the past--both ancient and recent--in a fascinating compilation of anecdote, myth, recollection, and reflection.

Five years in the making and the result of almost thirty years of dedicated work among California's native communities, Deeper Than Gold is a tribute to the people who know Gold Country best. Witness a visual history with family photographs from private albums and stunning original work by renowned photographer Dugan Aguilar (of Paiute/Pit River/Maidu heritage). This gorgeously designed book offers an intimate view of the remarkable and persistent people of Gold Country whose culture continues to evolve and thrive in the area around Highway 49.

Editorial Reviews

Review

''Nobody knows more about Native California than Brian Bibby....Deeper Than Gold is a precious, wonderful marvel of a book about the history and cultures of the many Indian peoples who make their homes even today in California's Sierra Nevada.'' --Orin Starn, author of Ishi's Brain: In Search of America's Last ''Wild'' Indian

''Hard to put down. The style of writing is clean and brisk and the pictures personal. I found myself wanting to ask questions of the people looking back at me in these pages...'' --The Mariposa Sentinel

About the Author

About the Author & Photographer

Dugan Aguilar
Dugan Aguilar is a Pauite/Pit River/Maidu photographer whose work celebrates the perseverance of Native American culture. He has exhibited his work at the Institute for Indian Arts, the California State Indian Museum, and the C.N. Gorman Museum. He is the recipient of several awards from the Santa Fe Indian Market.

Brian Bibby
Brian Bibby has worked for over twenty-five years with elders of many of California's Native communities. A longtime scholar of the song, dance, language, and artistic traditions of Native California, he has taught at a number of institutions and has served as a consultant and guest curator for many cultural and folk arts programs in California. He is also the author of Heyday's The Fine Art of California Indian Basketry and Precious Cargo: California Indian Cradle Baskets and Childbirth Traditions.

Product Details

• Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: Heyday (January 1, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0930588967
• ISBN-13: 978-0930588960
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 9 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 1.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,736,958 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars I was surprised that the book had wrong tribal identification., December 20, 2005

By 

Walter - See all my reviews

This review is from: Deeper Than Gold: A Guide to Indian Life in the Sierra Foothills (Paperback)

I was surprised the book had wrong tribal identification for Les James.

Les James is not a Southern Sierra Miwok, but a Chuchansi and Casson Yokut. Yokuts are not Miwoks.

The same with some of the other people.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars I bought this book to see what reviews were about. Now I know., July 12, 2006

By 

California Indian Baskets (Mono Lake) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Deeper Than Gold: A Guide to Indian Life in the Sierra Foothills (Paperback)

I bought this book after I read the reviews below to see for myself and started to investigate their reviews.

First I must say that Dugan Aguilars photos are some of the best photos of Native Californians around. There are some very beautiful photos by him.

Now the last part of the book I have to agree. I am related to some of those people and found it interesting that they are going for federal recognition, because I always thought they were already enrolled members of Paiute tribes. At least their children are.

The tribal ancestry is off in the back part of the book, but the photos are excellent. The last part...well that is a different story. How could they be original Miwok people of Yosemite when the original inhabitants of Yosemite were Paiutes? You can't be an original Yosemite Indian and be Miwok.

I know that is what the park is telling people, but they should read Lafayette H. Bunnell's book the Discovery of the Yosemites. That has the true story of the first conversations between Chief Tenaya and the good doctor.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Uhhh...Chief Bautista story Uncomplete., December 26, 2005

By 

Interested in REAL History "not fantasy" - See all my reviews

This review is from: Deeper Than Gold: A Guide to Indian Life in the Sierra Foothills (Paperback)

Uhhh...Regarding the story of Chief Bautista in Deeper than Gold.

Sure Chief Bautista was one of the chiefs to first fight Major James Savage and the whites, which was short-lived...BUT LATER...

Chief Bautista and Major James Savage became great friends. Bautista was Savage's right hand man. He helped Savage keep the Indians in line. Where was that in the book?

He gave Major Savage his women to seal their friendship.

Chief Bautista or Vow-chester made his people work for Savage in Savage's gold mines around Sonora and Mariposa. Where was that in the book?

Chief Bautista was also Major James Savage's cook.

Chief Bautista also had his men capture run-away Indians and bring them back. The whites heaped praise on Chief Bautista for his assistance.

Chief Bautista used his influence to keep the Indians in line, but he could not keep the Chowchilla Yokuts and Chief Tenaya's band in line for the whites.

March 1851, after Savage's trading post was attacked and burned in Dec. 1850, the whites asked Chief Bautista to make the other surrounding chiefs sign a peace treaty. Some of the whites distrusted Bautista because they distrusted ALL Indians and remembered years ago he had fought them.

To show them he could be trusted Bautista brought all the neighboring chiefs in to sign. All but two who he had NO control of the Chowchilla Yokuts and the Ahwahneechees refused to listen.

That is when the name of the "Yosemites" was first documented.

Chief Bautista, along with Russio, named the Ahwahneechees the "Yosemites" because they were afraid of them. Yosemite in their language meant "The Killers or "The Grizzlies". Bautista and the other neighboring chiefs were afraid of them and would never enter Yosemite Valley.

In the Stockton Republic, in the same week of March 1851, Chief Bautista was quoted in another version of the Ahwahneechees calling them the "Monahs" which meant they were Monos. He mentioned the Chowchilla Yokuts and the Ahwahneechees (Monahs)in the Stockton Republic and in Bunnell's Book.

After Chief Bautista had brought all the neighboring chiefs to sign the Fremont "Peace" treaty those doubting whites changed their mind about Chief Bautista's alliance.

Also in the Stockton newspapers there is something that was never mentioned before in Lafayette Bunnell's book "The Discovery of the Yosemite, 1851". You see not only was it Major James Savage and the Mariposa Battalion who went after Chief Tenaya and the Yosemite Indians, but mentioned in the Stockton newspaper were also "100 of Savage's Indians".

Without the help of those Indians the whites stated that they would have never captured Chief Tenaya and his people. They helped find them.

For his service in assistance in capturing Chief Tenaya and the Yosemites, Chief Bautista received "a scarf, a shirt and a pair of pantaloons".

Where is that in Deeper than Gold?

I heard Brian Bibby is now a Honary Miwok.

Maybe that is why he forgot that part of the story?