Location: Central California, from Estero Bay in the north to Malibu Canyon in the south, and from Carizzo Plain in the east to the Santa Barbara Channel Islands in the west.
History: No cultivation, relied on hunting on wildlife and marine animals including, fish, shellfish, whales, seals, sea otters, shark, sea birds, albacore, tuna, sardines, deer, wild game, grizzly and black bear, mountain lion, fox, coyote, badger, quail, pigeons, and doves. The Chumash Indians also used animals for a variety of tools, such as needles, fishhooks, and sandpaper. Other tools that were made for hunting are, spear-thrower; atl-atl, bow and arrows and fishnets. Plank canoes; tomals may out of redwood trees were the most important tool for the Chumash, were used for fishing, and travel between different tribes along the coast and neighboring islands. Domed houses; ap, 30 feet in diameter houses were shelter for the Chumash Indians. The time of missionaries, about the 1700s the population was ten to twenty thousand, but the turn of the 20th century the population had dwindled to two hundred descendents. The Chumash Indians also minted their own bead money; anchum, made from the Olivella shell (also known as the Purple Olive) but only the indians that lived on the Channel Islands specialized in making the money. The Chumash also had a creative side, they made rock art in caves and on overhangs, the most abundant rock art is found in Los Padres National Forest, that are thousands of years old.
Best Known Feature: The Chumash Indians had many legends about the creation of man, and how the earth was made and also of “The Lone Woman of San Nicholas Island” which a woman was left on an island for twenty years until about 1835. When she was brought to Santa Barbara where she stayed until the time of her death seven weeks later when she contracted dysentery.
Daily Life: The Chumash Indians also wove baskets and gathered nuts, fruits, and plants for rituals and spiritual healing. These “healings” would be performed by a doctor of the tribe and he would “heal” the Indians that would be sick or need spiritual healing.
www.rain.org/~ktml/city/history.html
www.beachcalifornia.com/lompoc3.html
By: Becky Jo Corle