for a champagne reception and a and our 50th anniversary. thank you. [applause] you are watching american history tv all week and every weekend on c-span3. to join the conversation, like us on facebook at c-span history. >> we will visit the santa monica history museum to learn about the area's earliest inhabitants, the tongva. the city of santa monica's geography is something that has

always drawn people to the area. the ocean has always been a great source of abundance, from to all sorts of things that help people survive and create a culture. , there areeles basin originally where large rivers in los angeles which has changed over time, but they supported a large community of indigenous people in los angeles, extending to santa monica. the earliest community of residence where the tongva people, the indigenous or native american people who were here in los angeles. they are still here today, which we like to stress that. the tongva lived in santa monica and the los angeles basin. they had a very large tribal valleyom the san gabriel

to the northern parts of orange county, all the way out to the islands in santa monica bay, san nicolas island and santa catalina. they also extend as far as malibu and border with chumash territory. the indigenous people in santa "tongva" comese from several different sounds in the language that mean "mother earth" and "place within that earth." they are known for being very connected with their land. were a veryeople wealthy society due to the abundant natural world they were surrounded with. they were able to stay in one place. they were not migratory. they traded with surrounding

tribes and they were able to trade some very unique resources due to this location. large, basically pond filled with tar between here and downtown los angeles, and it is near one of our large art museums, the los angeles county museum of art. that was a unique resource, so the tar or pitch was a sticky, black substance. tools,used that to make pitch their canoes. canoesd have oceangoing where they would go out to the islands in santa monica bay and this tar or pitch was important for that, as well as other local societies they traded with. another unique resource that the tongva utilized was soapstone.

rock thatis a type of is known for being very malleable. you can carve it into cups, bowls, small implements, and it does not break. it can be placed directly in the fire without cracking. the tongva are known for not making any pottery or ceramics, and it is believed the reason is because they had access to soapstone. most of it was mind on catalina island, and that was another item they would trade with the surrounding communities. had aan contact significant impact on the indigenous people. it was detrimental. rodriguez cabrillo

came and discovered california, and claimed it for spain. gaspar de, in 1769, portolla came with spanish fathers and soldiers to establish the mission system in california. the nearest mission to santa monica is in san gabriel, so san gabriel is about an hour by car today, which was of course much farther if you are walking. the mission lifestyle was very harsh on the native people. they suffered from diseases. they suffered from the harsh living conditions. was -- there was such a thatficant culture change it was difficult and many did not survive. there were uprisings within the missions. at san gabriel, one of the most led by a-- famous was

female shaman and orator, and tribe. within her this happened in the 1780's. she planned to attack the mission with other native men, planned an attack on the soldiers. it was unsuccessful and led to a court case. she was found guilty. there are transcripts of that trial, and in it, she makes some eloquent remarks stating that the spanish were not respecting the life or the culture of the tongva and that was the reason for the attack. she was subsequently removed from her tribe and sent to northern california, separated from her people. angeles, we have a significant native population that comes from all over the country, including the people that are tongva.

you will see many murals honoring her. if you see a native woman in a mural, that is most often a representation of her. tongvan phrase means "we are still here." our city tours staff travel to santa monica, california to discover its rich history. learn about santa monica and other stops at c-span.org/cities tour. you are watching american history tv, all weekend every weekend on c-span3. war, authorhe civil and sarah ruben talks about her book through the heart of dixie, sherman's march and the american memory, describing the path of sherman's march through the

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