Moapa Band of Paiute Indians
Encyclopedia
Paiute
Paiute refers to three closely related groups of Native Americans — the Northern Paiute of California, Idaho, Nevada and Oregon; the Owens Valley Paiute of California and Nevada; and the Southern Paiute of Arizona, southeastern California and Nevada, and Utah.-Origin of name:The origin of...
s, who live in southern Nevada
Nevada
Nevada is a state in the western, mountain west, and southwestern regions of the United States. With an area of and a population of about 2.7 million, it is the 7th-largest and 35th-most populous state. Over two-thirds of Nevada's people live in the Las Vegas metropolitan area, which contains its...
on the Moapa River Indian Reservation
Moapa River Indian Reservation
Moapa River Indian Reservation is an Indian reservation located northeast of Las Vegas, near Moapa. It is the land-base for the Moapa Band of Paiute Indians, a local band of Southern Paiute Indians. Moapa River Indian Reservation consists of 71,954 acres .As of the year 2000, the population was 206...
. They were in the past called the Moapats and the Nuwuvi.
Art and material culture
The Moapa were adept at basketry. They wore clothing made of leather, yuccaYucca
Yucca is a genus of perennial shrubs and trees in the family Asparagaceae, subfamily Agavoideae. Its 40-50 species are notable for their rosettes of evergreen, tough, sword-shaped leaves and large terminal panicles of white or whitish flowers. They are native to the hot and dry parts of North...
, and cliff-rose
Purshia
Purshia is a small genus of 5-8 species of flowering plants in the family Rosaceae, native to western North America, where they grow in dry climates from southeast British Columbia in Canada south throughout the western United States to northern Mexico. The classification of Purshia within the...
bark.
History
The Moapa practiced irrigation agriculture before contact with Europeans.The Moapa suffered from Spanish slave raiders attacks in the 18th and early 19th centuries.
In 1869 the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
relocated the Southern Paiutes to the Moapa area. Originally the entire Moapa River watershed and lands along the Colorado River
Colorado River
The Colorado River , is a river in the Southwestern United States and northwestern Mexico, approximately long, draining a part of the arid regions on the western slope of the Rocky Mountains. The watershed of the Colorado River covers in parts of seven U.S. states and two Mexican states...
(some of which area is now under Lake Mead
Lake Mead
Lake Mead is the largest reservoir in the United States. It is located on the Colorado River about southeast of Las Vegas, Nevada, in the states of Nevada and Arizona. Formed by water impounded by the Hoover Dam, it extends behind the dam, holding approximately of water.-History:The lake was...
) was assigned to the Moapa; however, in 1875 their reservation was reduced to 1000 acres (4 km²).
They latter suffered from decimation by disease in the 1920s and 1930s.
In 1941, they organized with a formal constitution. In 1980 the Moapa River reservation was expanded, with about 75000 acres (303.5 km²) added.
High rates of unemployment have plagued the reservation and caused some of the Moapa to relocate elsewhere.
Reservation
Their reservation is the Moapa River Indian ReservationMoapa River Indian Reservation
Moapa River Indian Reservation is an Indian reservation located northeast of Las Vegas, near Moapa. It is the land-base for the Moapa Band of Paiute Indians, a local band of Southern Paiute Indians. Moapa River Indian Reservation consists of 71,954 acres .As of the year 2000, the population was 206...
, located near Moapa Town, Nevada
Moapa Town, Nevada
Moapa Town is a census-designated place in Clark County, Nevada, United States. The population was 928 at the 2000 census. It is the largest town in Clark County by land area...
.