Historical Marker · No. 133
Sebastian Indian Reservation
Grapevine, Kern County · California
Erected by Bakersfield Parlor No. 42 N.S.G.W., El Tejon Parlor No. 239 N.D.G.W., the Kern County Historical Society, the Kern County Chamber of Commerce, and the Kern County Museum, 1937
California's first reservation was laid out in 1853 on land the federal government did not own. Yokuts, Kitanemuk, Chumash and Kawaiisu families were gathered onto 75,000 acres inside the private Rancho El Tejón, and Edward Beale, the Superintendent of Indian Affairs who chose the site, named it for the senator chairing the Indian Affairs committee. Washington removed him the next spring over his accounts, then cleared him. The people were moved to Tule River in 1864 and Beale bought the grants. The Tejon Indian Tribe was restored to the federal list in 2012.
What the plaque says
CALIFORNIA HISTORICAL LANDMARK SEBASTIAN INDIAN RESERVATION THE SEBASTIAN OR TEJON INDIAN RESERVATION (HEADQUARTERS 10 MILES EAST OF HERE) WAS ESTABLISHED IN 1853 BY GEN. EDWARD FITZGERALD BEALE AS ONE OF SEVERAL CALIFORNIA RESERVATIONS. THE NUMBER OF INDIANS QUARTERED HERE VARIED FROM 500 TO 2000. GENERAL BEALE ACQUIRED TITLE TO THIS AREA UNDER MEXICAN LAND GRANT OF 1843. IN 1864 THE U.S. GOVERNMENT TRANSFERRED THE INDIANS TO OTHER RESERVATIONS. DEDICATED NOV. 28, 1937 BAKERSFIELD PARLOR NUMBER 42 N.S.G.W. EL TEJON PARLOR NUMBER 239 N.D.G.W. KERN COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETY KERN COUNTY CHAMBER OF COMMERCE KERN COUNTY MUSEUM STATE REGISTERED LANDMARK NO. 133
Where it stands
34.94132, -118.93253 · Directions
More markers nearby
- Rose Station — steps away
- Fort Tejón — 5.1 mi
- Top of Grapevine Pass — 8.3 mi
- Sinks of the Tejón — 11 mi