Lake Mead National Recreation Area: An Ethnographic Overview

Summary

This ethnographic overview of Lake Mead National Recreation Area,

which will serve as companion to a forthcoming archeological overview

of the area, provides an ethnographic context for future archeological

research and for current interpretation.

The Recreation Area, which includes land in both Nevada and Arizona,

overlaps early Native American ethnic boundaries, as well as modern

state borders. Groups whose territories touched upon or fell within

current park boundaries include the Mojave, the Chemehuevi, the Southern

Paiute and the Hualapai. Each of these groups is first examined individually, in terms of territory occupied, environment exploited, subsistence practices and social organization; extensive lists of crops

cultivated, wild plants collected and animals hunted for food and other

uses are presented, as are several illustrations of tools, shelters and

containers made and used by the various groups. The author then

summarizes ways in which these groups interacted, citing instances of

trade, warfare and other intergroup contact. The author finds that

although each ethnic group had its own way of coping with and exploiting

its environment, these groups did not exist in isolation; trade among

them, for example, flowed primarily along an east-west axis (e.g.,

between the Mojave and the Hualapai), while relations among north-south

neighbors (such as the Hualapai and the Southern Paiute) tended to be

less friendly.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• WACC documents 1970-1979   •
• Lake Mead National Recreation Area, Arizona   •
• Arizona

Keywords

Temporal Coverage

Calendar Date: 1800 to 1975

Spatial Coverage

File Information