Ahwahneechee and the Mariposa Wars
The first humans of Yosemite were the Ahwahneechee, meaning “dwellers” in Ahwahnee. They were the only tribe living within the park boundaries, with other nearby tribes forming the larger Southern Sierra Miwok population. Their blended culture helped preserve their presence despite early American settlement and development pressures.
During conflict with settlers and miners, the Mariposa Battalion—led by James Savage and Captain John Boling—drove the Ahwahneechee from Yosemite in 1851, capturing tribe members including Chief Tenaya. Some escaped, others were relocated to reservations, and Tenaya and many remaining Ahwahneechee later joined the Mono Lake Paiutes. After Tenaya’s death in 1853, surviving Ahwahneechee were absorbed into neighboring tribes. Native people continued living in Yosemite in smaller numbers, adapting by working in tourism and local trade. In 1953 the National Park Service banned non-employee Natives from living in the park, and in 1969 the last Native residents were evicted and their village destroyed. A reconstructed “Indian Village of Ahwahnee” now stands near the Yosemite Museum.
By the late 1800s, only a few dozen to several hundred Native people remained. The last full-blooded Ahwahneechee, Totuya (Maria Lebrado), granddaughter of Chief Tenaya, died in 1931. Their legacy continues through descendants, museum exhibits, and cultural preservation efforts. Treaties proposed by Indigenous groups in 1851–1852 were never ratified. Today, the Southern Sierra Miwuk Nation continues seeking federal recognition, and National Park Service policies now aim to protect sacred sites and allow Native people to return and use park lands.