Maidu Heritage in Auburn
I’ve been thinking a lot about how to create experiences in history and culture. How do you instill in kids a sense of connectedness to our past and the world around us? Starting locally, any lesson in our history here in California must include Native American culture and The Goldrush. I have googled Native American dancing periodically, hoping to find a public event that will really capture the kids’ interest. Several times I came up empty, but a door opened for me yesterday.
This weekend was “Heritage Days” in Placer County. All the museums were free and most put on some sort of special event. In many cities I think twice about going somewhere when its a free day - that usually translates to “super crowded” days. In Placer County, though, I knew this wouldn’t be an issue. In the foothills of California, about an hour northeast of Sacramento, most cities of Placer County have always seemed like a place for folks who want to live away from the hustle and bustle of the capitol city. Things move a little more slowly there, but they do take the time to preserve history. I was very happy to have found the Maidu Interpretive Center in Roseville.
exploring a grinding rock
We came for the storytelling. A Center representative did a wonderful job of offering an interpretation of why foxes have a line under their noses (who knew) and another cute story of a brave turtle. I thought the Center had a good balance of interactive activities (such as guess the kind of fur inside the box by its feel) and those that required reading. Pictures on the wall illustrated how the Maidu made weapons, clothes, and the food they ate, as well as tasteful illustrations of how the goldminers later effected the population of their villages. For a small museum, it was a worthwhile place to come.
I bought a cd of Native American short stories that I plan to stash for an upcoming roadtrip. There were a lot of books with history and culture, but I wasn’t able to focus enough on their contents with the kids underfoot. So I have to admit some of the more interesting things I learned about the local Maidu came from the internet. I offer you a little flavor of our area’s Native American past, taken from the website I found. I hope this may entice you to learn (and share!) a little more of the roots where you live.
The Maidu Indians of the Sacramento Valley built large, circular, partially underground houses. These were from twenty to forty feet in diameter and from two to three feet deep. The Indians covered a pole and log framework with a heavy layer of earth, making a warm house. Several families lived in the larger houses. In the bigger villages there was generally a much larger house set aside as the village dance hall and sweat house. The Maidu didn’t know anything about farming as there was no need for it. There was ample food growing wild around them, and particularly utilized was the acorn. Though plentiful, acorns contain tannic acid which is actually toxic. The Maidu, however, learned that the acid could be leached out with water, thus making the dried acornmeal good for soups or baked into cakes. (Pictures of the houses and cooking baskets are on the website.)
One more thing worth mentioning about the museum is how helpful the staff was to me. I told the gal about my quest to find Native American dancing, and she pointed me to another website that provides a calendar of powwows, celebrations and festivals. There are a few coming up, I think they would be fantastic follow ups to yesterday’s trip. (Not to mention a blast, I’ve never been to one myself and can’t wait to go.) Today we headed out to Auburn to discover a little more about the goldminers. That will be another story altogether.
I wish I knew about all these great places/family outings when I actually lived in Sac. One day we will get back and take advantage of them, this one included.
Another great place in Placer County is Apple Hill (where I got married.) Beautiful apple orchards and a few small wineries. Nice scenic drive.
Got married at Apple Hill? How great! I’ve considered it but thought I might need an activity for the kids there. I’ll have to find a good farm where the kids can pick some off the tree or something. Sounds like a good weekend activity!
Visiting a Powwow would definitely be a great follow up for this trip. We went to one in northern Michigan, and it was great fun–the dancing, drumming and chanting would probably engage the kids…and powwows tend to be pretty family-friendly and family-centric.
That’s nice. I think sometimes local and small museum has a lot more to offer than we realize. Plus kids probably get more personal attention and probably learn more with smaller group than larger museum.