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Who are the Big Lagoon Indian Tribe?
The Big Lagoon Rancheria is a federally recognized tribe of Yurok and Tolowa Indians.
Official Tribal Name: Big Lagoon Rancheria
Address: P.O. Drawer 3060, Trinidad, CA 95570
Phone: (707) 826-2079
Fax: (707) 826-0495
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Recognition Status:
Federally Recognized
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Region: California
State(s) Today: California
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Reservation: Big Lagoon Rancheria
Land Area: 20 acres (81,000 m2)
Tribal Headquarters: Arcata, California
Time Zone: Pacific
B.I.A. Office: California
Population at Contact:
Registered Population Today: 24 tribal members
Tribal Enrollment Requirements:
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Tribal enrollment is based on a minimum of 1/8 blood quantum and lineal descent from the Plan of Distribution on the Assets of the Big Lagoon Rancheria, created January 3, 1968.
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The tribe was first recognized by the US federal government on July 10, 1918.
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Related Tribes:
- Big Lagoon Rancheria (Yurok and Tolowa )
- Blue Lake Rancheria (Wiyot, Yurok, Tolowa, and Cherokee)
- Cher-Ae Heights Indian Community of the Trinidad Rancheria (Chetco, Hupa, Karuk, Tolowa, Wiyot, and Yurok)
- Confederated Tribes of the Lower Rogue (Chetco and Tututni) (U)
- Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians of Oregon (5,000 members from 29 tribes, including about 3,500 Chetco and Tututni)
- Elk Valley Rancheria (Tolowa)
- Hoopa Valley Tribe (Hupa and Yurok)
- Klamath Tribes (Klamath, Modoc, and Yahooskin)
- Quartz Valley Indian Community of the Quartz Valley Reservation of California (Klamath, Karuk, Shasta, and Yurok)
- Resighini Rancheria (Yurok)
- Tolowa Dee-ni’ Nation (Tolowa, Chetco, Yurok)
- Yurok Tribe of the Yurok Reservation
- Wiyot Tribe
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Due to the highly sensitive environment of the reservation, the tribe has agreed with the state of California to not develop the reservation. Instead the tribe has partnered with the Los Coyotes Band of Cahuilla and Cupeño Indians to operate the Barstow Casino and Resort in Barstow, California.
The historical Arcata Hotel in Arcata is owned and operated by the Big Lagoon Rancheria.
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Further Reading:
Digger: The Tragic Fate of the California Indians from the Missions to the Gold Rush
An American Genocide: The United States and the California Indian Catastrophe, 1846-1873
Tending the Wild: Native American Knowledge and the Management of California’s Natural Resources
Indians of California: The Changing Image
