Arizona in 1776: An Indigenous Land Amidst Shifting Empires
During the American Revolution in 1776, the land now known as Arizona was overwhelmingly Indigenous territory. Although colonists on the east coast declared independence from British rule, the Southwest remained largely untouched by that conflict, existing as a complex interplay of Indigenous lifeways and the expanding influence of Spain.
A Landscape Without Borders
“There was ‘no such thing as Arizona in 1776,’” explains Maurice Crandall, a member of the Yavapai-Apache Nation and a history professor at Arizona State University. “The land is overwhelmingly Indigenous.” At the time, the concept of Arizona as a defined geographical entity did not exist. The region was part of Sonora y Sinaloa, the farthest northern province of New Spain 1.
Spanish Presence and Indigenous Adaptation
Although Spain claimed dominion over a vast territory, its military presence in what is now Arizona was concentrated in the areas around Tubac, Tucson and Yuma, known as Pimería Alta, or “land of the Pimas,” as the O’odham people were once called 1. Tribes north and northwest of Tucson had minimal contact with Spanish explorers, settlers, or missionaries, continuing their traditional ways of life for millennia. Those south of Tucson experienced the effects of Spanish presence, while tribes in the northeast adapted to new introductions like horses, sheep, and crafts from both Spaniards and neighboring tribes.
Life in Pimería Alta
The town of Tucson, known to the O’odham as S-cuk Ṣon (“Black Base”), was a young settlement in 1776, having been moved from Tubac around 25 years after the Pima Revolt of 1851 1. It became a haven for the Sobaipuri people, an O’odham band fleeing Apache raids in the San Pedro Valley.
Apache “Peace Camps”
A unique aspect of Spanish residency was the establishment of Apache “Peace Camps” or “establecimientos” near presidios. These camps provided Apaches with supplies, food, and money, a strategy Spain employed to reduce conflict. “Spain realizes it’s cheaper and easier and less loss of lives if they try to basically bribe Apaches to be peaceful rather than fight them,” Crandall said 1. However, these camps were often temporary, with families and elders remaining while others raided neighboring communities.
The Yuma Crossing and Quechan Resistance
Further west, the Yuma Crossing was a critical point for travel across the Colorado River. In 1776, Juan Bautista de Anza’s expedition journeyed through the area en route to Monterey and the Alta California missions 1. Initially, the Quechan people were friendly, but relations soured, leading to a revolt in 1781 where the Quechan killed over 100 Spanish settlers, priests, and soldiers, ultimately regaining control of their lands.
Life in Central and Northern Arizona
In central Arizona, bands of Yavapai and Western Apache peoples maintained their traditional lifestyles with limited European contact. They moved between summer and winter dwellings, hunting, gathering, and cultivating agave. Occasional missionaries, like Father Garcés, passed through, but found limited success in converting the Yavapai and Dilzhę́’é peoples. Further north, the Hopi people successfully resisted Spanish encroachment, even supplying guides to hasten the departure of the Escalante expedition in 1776. However, they were not immune to the devastating effects of smallpox, which ravaged their villages in 1780.
Indigenous Influence on a New Nation
While Southwestern tribes navigated their own realities, Indigenous peoples on the eastern side of the continent influenced the birth of the United States. The Haudenosaunee Confederacy, with its democratic principles, impressed the Founding Fathers, with Benjamin Franklin reportedly asking why the 13 colonies couldn’t emulate their system 3.
Enduring Nations
Two and a half centuries after the birth of the United States, Native nations in the Southwest continue to thrive, having persevered through war, famine, disease, and colonization, retaining their unique cultures and communities 1.