Loleta Site Information

The small town of Loleta, California and the nearby Table Bluff Reservation are located one the Pacific Coast a few miles south of the city of Eureka. It is a beautiful, rural area of dairy pastures and bluffs overlooking the Pacific Ocean and Humboldt Bay,

About The Wiyot Tribe. The Wiyot people have inhabited the coast areas of this part of California for thousands of years, where they hunted, fished and gathered roots and berries. At the beginning of European-American settlement in 1850 there were probably 2,000 Wiyot people living in the Humboldt Bay area. Within 10 years the population was disseminated, with perhaps 200 survivors remaining. In February, 1862, most of the Wiyot people were gathered on an island in Humboldt Bay for annual ceremonial dancing. In the early morning hours of February 26, a group of settlers, armed with hatchets, clubs and knives, attacked the sleeping Wiyot, murdering an estimated 200. Because many of the men had left the island to gather food on the mainland, the victims were mainly women, children and the elderly. (Settlers also attached two other Indian villages that night, killing an additional 100 people.) Source: Wiyot Tribe Website.

Following the massacres, surviving Wiyot people were forcibly removed to a series of Northern California reservations. In 1920, a 20 acre Rancheria was established on low-lying tidal lands near the current location of the Table Bluff Reservation. In 1961, the tribe was "terminated" by the Federal government. Following a successful lawsuit brought by the Wiyot, the termination was ruled unlawful and tribal status was reinstated. In 1991, the current 88-acre reservation was established.

Today there are about 300 tribal members. Some live on the Table Bluff Reservation, where there are 34 homes and a community center.

Indian Island Sacred Site. Through purchases and a grant of land by the City of Eureka, the Wiyot tribe now owns a portion of Indian Island where the 1860 massacre occurred and where, for thousands of years, Wiyot gathered for annual ceremonial dances. The tribe is engaged in cleaning up the island, where there is some toxic contamination plus lots of discarded equipment. Habitat restoration is taking place, and the tribe has build a ceremonial pavilion and an environmental and cultural interpretive center.

Our Work on the Reservation. Sierra Service Project will do a variety of general home repair work on houses on the reservation and also on some tribal residences in the off-reservation towns. Because of the high winds and wet winters, there is a big need for weatherization work on many homes, including window and door replacement, and for repairs of water-damaged walls and floors. We also expect to do some painting and roof repairs.

We are very excited that we have been invited to participate in some of the work underway on Indian Island. Teams will also work on habitat restoration and cleanup on Indian Island, and will get a chance to learn about the hist Loleta Elementary School

ory of the island and the restoration work that is taking place there. Our experience doing this type of work in the past is that youth teams have a lot of fun and get a lot of satisfaction out of it.

Where We Will Stay. We will stay at the Loleta Elementary School, located about 5 miles from the reservation. The school has a gymnasium where we will sleep and do program. There are gathering areas at the school, as well as soccer fields and basketball courts.

Site Emergency Phone Number: (707) 502-6709

(Please note the staff will be unable to answer your call until 6/21/10)

Mailing Address: Send all mail to:

Volunteer Name

Sierra Service Project

General Delivery

Loleta, CA 95551

Driving Directions. The tiny town of Loleta is located on Highway 101 about 10 miles south of the city of Eureka. From the 101, take the Loleta Drive exit and go west (towards the coast). Loleta School is located on the left side of Loleta Drive less than 1 mile from the freeway. Driving Times